AUBURN, Ala. (EETV) - Formerly known as Public Relations Day, the PR Spring Speaker Series welcomed students and special guests to the Melton Student Center on February 16 for a morning of professional insight.
Hosted by the Public Relations Advisory Council, the event offered public relations students the opportunity to expand their skillsets through a question and answer session, the opportunity to network with industry professionals, and an in-depth LinkedIn workshop.
According to the Senior Lecturer of Public Relations, Terri Knight, what was once a full day of festivities has been narrowed to half a day to maximize the event’s success among Auburn’s students.
“We’ll be talking a lot about what to look for in terms of the hiring process, what they’re looking for in the hiring process and how to set yourself up for success,” said Knight. “We really felt like we were going to hone in on the things we heard from our students that they really wanted to hear.”
Moderated by Auburn alum and Social Media Director of UPS, Chelsea Grund, the Interview 101 panel consisted of Auburn alum and founder of Estes Group, Kaylee Estes, and Emily Rock, a Jackson Spalding Human Resources associate.
Rock, a 2022 graduate of Georgia Southern University, hoped the panel could impart knowledge she had to learn when applying for jobs during her undergrad career.
“I think it’s great that I can come to this setting and share all of the stuff that I have learned over the past couple of years since I graduated with such an eager group of students,” said Rock.
Following the panel’s conclusion, a presentation detailing tips and tricks to improve a LinkedIn profile took over the screens in Melton 2223. Presented by alums Ally Dorrough and Gabrielle Ferree, of Gulf Shores & Orange Beach Tourism and Slack respectively, students were given step by step instructions on how to manage their professional networking pages.
“10% of users are Gen Z, with engagement continuing to climb,” said Dorrough. “It’s so important.”
Lasting from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., PR Spring Speaker Day concluded with the opportunity for attendees to network with their lecturers.
For more information on Auburn University’s public relations program, visit (https://cla.auburn.edu/cmjn/public-relations/).
