Public relations education in Britain: A review at the outset of the millennium and thoughts for a different research agenda

Abstract

This paper reviews the history of public relations (PR) education in the UK in the context of the process of professionalisation. Drawing on the sociology of the professions, it describes the criteria for an occupation to be accorded professional status and the role of education in that process. The relationship between academia and practice is given some consideration and some of the challenges facing practitioners and academics in relation to legitimacy and status are identified. Finally, the paper suggests some new issues for research in the field and argues for an ethnographic turn in PR.

Citation

L’Etang, J. (2002), "Public relations education in Britain: A review at the outset of the millennium and thoughts for a different research agenda", Journal of Communication Management, Vol. 7 No. 1, pp. 43-53. https://doi.org/10.1108/13632540310807241