Seamless Learning for Communication Educators

By Matthew Hibberd

matthew.hibberd@usi.ch

A PRapport Exclusive!

Mathew Hibberd

When the University of Stirling started its MSc in Public Relations in 1988 there was little competition for taught under and postgraduate media and communication courses in the UK or internationally with the possible exception of the US. Today, the number of UK universities alone offering PR education total over 50. As a result of increased competition, many American and European universities have expanded eastwards towards the Asian economies which have seen a rapid expansion in the media and communication industries in recent years.

There are a plethora of UK universities operating some form of Transnational Education (TNE), the fancy term for the foreign delivery of courses, either face to face or via online platforms. Universities in the UK have spent billions of pounds in building international campuses or organising agreements with foreign universities and colleges to deliver UK-accredited courses. Thus far, there has also been aready supply of students in youthful emerging economies across Asia to fill those campuses and courses. Students across Asia have a great appetite for knowledge and many have moved seamlessly into the growing corporate world applying classroom concepts to real-world examples. It also means that an ever-increasing number of senior PR and communication managerson the Asian continent have come through communication schools and postgraduate courses.

In the space of 30 years, media and communication education in the UK has gone from being a rare or exotic species in a university’s portfolio to a situation today wheremedia and communication degrees can be found aplenty. There have been many doomsayers in recent years arguing that this growth cannot be sustained. After all, so the argument goes, releasing more and more communication students into the international workplace will produce on-going problems with employability issues, leading to more unemployment among communication graduates,therefore devaluing the reputation of university education. But the increasing numbers of communication students leaving universities, both at under and postgraduate level in the UK, have thus far moved into the vacancies being created by the booming digital media and internet economy, with media companies, communication and PR agencies all hiring from communication schools.

The employment rates for communication students in the UK remain higher than for those students coming from many other arts or social science faculties. Communication students have demonstrated time and time again to possess requisite skills needed to gain a foothold on the career ladder. But as the rate of growth for the digital economy slows and companies retrench, and competition grows among university students for employment opportunities, universities will be challenged in coming years to identify how they can provide a value-added service to their communication students. 

Continued employability of students in the UK (especially post-BREXIT) will require universities to make more investments in training-related courses.

Companies are increasingly looking more for employees with digital skills related to social media, mobile applications, etc, rather than theory-dominated content. Students are also increasingly demanding such content and choose university courses that can provide applied content. Students may increasing consist of young people viewed to be ‘digital natives’, that is with high levels of competence in using a wide range of digital platforms, but evidence suggests that both employers and those students would welcome more digital media skills training.

Secondly, renewed emphasis should also be placed on subjects that highlight importance of communications to business life as a whole. The concept of stakeholder relations is an old one that has led many organisations to boost time and money devoted to cultivating key constituencies such as employees, investors, etc. It is one area that benefits from having graduates with area-specific knowledge in order to contribute to communicative effectiveness, general business growth and development. Communication students can provide that area knowledge. Universities will also come under further pressure to provide meaningful opportunities for students to network and engage with industry. Providing some form of work placement remains one key way. But just as important remains the idea of developing cohorts of Honorary Professors or Lecturers, industry professionals who can pass on knowledge of their experience and provide opportunities for students to network via talks or industry events. Universities will likely further increase the flexibility of degree courses as hard up students mix and match academic study with work opportunities. Finally, opportunities to

provide short or refresher courses for professionals will also enhance life-long learning and allow universities to play a continued role in wealth creation for the general good of the UK and international economy.(The author is Full Professor of Media Management, Media Economics and Media and Cultural Industries in the Faculty of Communication Sciences, Universita’ Svizzera Italiana (USI), Lugano, Switzerland. He was formerly Head of Division (2011-2016), in Communication, Media and Culture, University of Stirling.)