1. Making the change from journalism to academia Or, how I learned to top worrying and embrace public relations

2. Are you ready? Don’t make the change just because You think the work will be a lot easier You think the money will be a lot better You think the hours will be a lot less – or a lot better You want to get away from change and/or technology You want to get away from deadlines You want to get away from a bad boss

3. Evaluate your skills Tamara L. Gillis, professor of communications at Elizabethtown College in Pennsylvania, says writing ranked as the top skill in demand in a study she made of 514 job descriptions for the International Association of Business Communicators last year.

4. Be ready to learn new skills What I needed to learn quickly were many of the nitty gritty, tactical things, like producing annual reports (we do ours mostly in-house), trade show material, brochures and the day-to-day tools and skills most PR practitioners probably honed while doing a summer internship. –Mike Spear, former journalist, PR Consultant

5. Learn what PR is “Public relations helps an organization and its publics adapt mutually to each other.” Definition adopted by the Public Relations Society of America in 1982

6. PR Defined “Organization” is denoted in this context, as opposed to the more limiting “company” or “business,” to stress public relations’ use by businesses, trade unions, government agencies, voluntary associations, foundations, hospitals, schools, colleges, religious groups and other societal institutions.

7. PR Defined “Publics” recognizes the need to understand the attitudes and values of — and to develop effective relationships with — many different stakeholders, such as employees, members, customers, local communities, shareholders and other institutions, and with society at large.

8. Become an expert Join professional organizations like PRSA, IABC, NFPW Read professional journals – and write for them Join online communities and learn from you peers Attend professional conferences – and present at them Seek accreditation – like the Accredited in Public Relations (APR) designation through PRSA Invest in yourself and your future

9. Pick the right place The company had to be engaged in work that had meaningful impact on the community. I needed to feel comfortable with the company's values. I understood that a spokesperson represents one point of view -- the company's -- but I needed to believe I could have a relationship with the media that was straightforward and truthful. From The Big Switch: Hack to Flack and Back By Butch Ward, Poynter Institute

10. Higher Education An affinity for education, campus life Personal experience with the university-based PR professionals Started in a comfortable role Learned from working with an experienced public relations professional

11. Read the literature Chronicle of Higher Education Chronicle of Philanthropy National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities Council of Independent Colleges American Council on Education National Association of College and University Business Officers

12. CASE Council for the Advancement and Support of Education: www.case.org www.case.org Conferences, publications, networking, list servs, tools Principals of Practice for College and University Editors Principles of Practice for Communications and Marketing Professionals at Educational Institutions Management Checklist for Communications and Marketing

13. Parting words While I'm never happy to learn that people are leaving journalism -- especially when the decision is made for them -- I'm now able to reassure them that their abilities to write, to gather and to organize information, and to think analytically, will serve them well in the business world. And, I can assure them one other thing: PR -- like journalism -- can be a very honorable way to spend one's life. - Butch Ward, Poynter Institute

14. Video Out Shift Happens 4.0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ILQrUrEWe8 The Fat Lady Has Not Sung http://www.fatladyhasnotsung.com