Here are some tips for selecting schools, based on an analysis comparing each school to all others across dozens of factors:
Schools Concentrating On Public Relations Specialists
- Focus: For schools with a focus on this career area, look at Ellis University, Moraine Valley Community College, Northern Illinois, and University of Illinois.
Fastest Response From Schools
- Request Info: For the fastest information for prospective students, look at the Spotlight schools on this page.
Student Body
- Part-Time: For schools emphasizing part-time studies, consider Northeastern Illinois University, Judson, Roosevelt University, and Blackburn.
- Female: For schools particularly welcoming to female students, consider Hebrew Theological College and Ellis University.
- Diverse: For a diverse student body, consider Prairie State, Illinois Institute of Technology, Benedictine, and University of Chicago.
- Adult Learners: For lots of adult learners, consider John A Logan College, Governors State, Trinity International University, and Rend Lake College.
School Setting
- Out of State: For geographic diversity, take note of Hebrew Theological College, Wheaton College, University of Chicago, and Northwestern University.
- Dorms: For a residential campus environment, take note of Monmouth College, Blackburn, Illinois Wesleyan, and Lake Forest College.
Excellence
- SAT: For students with high SAT scores, look at University of Chicago, Northwestern University, University of Illinois, and Wheaton College.
- % Accepted: For selective institutions, look at Saint Xavier University, Northwestern University, University of Chicago, and Concordia.
- Class Size: For small class sizes, look at University of Chicago, Northwestern University, Illinois Wesleyan, and Illinois Institute of Technology.
Spotlight Schools Search
Spotlight Illinois Schools Related to This Career
- Locations: Chicago, Mokena, Schaumburg, Warrenville
- Programs: 4 relevant programs; click the school name for details.
- Degrees: Bachelor
- Locations: Chicago
- Programs: One relevant program; click the school name for details.
- Degrees: Bachelor
See these schools on a map
Study from Anywhere at Online Schools Related to This Career
- Programs: 4 relevant programs; click the school name for details.
- Degrees: Associate, Bachelor
- Programs: 3 relevant programs; click the school name for details.
- Degrees: Associate, Master
- Programs: One relevant program; click the school name for details.
- Degrees: Bachelor
- Programs: 9 relevant programs; click the school name for details.
- Degrees: Associate, Bachelor, Master
- Programs: One relevant program; click the school name for details.
- Degrees: Associate, Bachelor
Jones International University
- Programs: One relevant program; click the school name for details.
- Degrees: Master
Student/Alumnus Reviews of Schools for This Career and State
Southern Illinois University At Carbondale • Carbondale, IL
Studying Journalism (completion in 2003)
• 8/23/2011
"As an experience, I was satisfied. I took a lot of classes outside of my main program and learned a little bit about a lot of subjects. The school provided me very little real-word skills for the cost of the education, though."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | maybe | I would not recommend this school to people who definitely want to go into public relations or journalism. I would recommend on-the-job training or a cheaper school. I might recommend the school to someone who thinks they might want to go into that field and is also interested in exploring other options while having a college experience. |
| Program Reputation | 8 | The school has a fairly strong reputation for its journalism program. It has had several noted instructors, including one of the co-founders of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute. |
| Program Quality | 4 | I had a couple of excellent instructors. Most of the material in the courses was not of practical use, however. |
| Instruction | 4 | The instructors themselves were very well versed in the program materials and were highly qualified. The relevance of the material was fairly poor as it didn't relate to actual skills needed for the job. |
| How Difficult | 5 | I obtained mostly B's and A's in the program and did a moderate amount of studying. Some material was challenging, but not inordinately so. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | I was mostly book learning. I had two or three courses that had hands-on training. Those courses involved field reporting and computer work. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 8 | There were online classes offered along with weekend courses, summer courses, and evening classes. Several courses had more than one schedule to pick from - no complaints. |
| Academic Facilities | 7 | Excellent library. School has its own newspaper. I had difficulty with the newspaper and was not able to get a position on it. This was very frustrating, but the paper is there. |
| Social Life | 9 | I had a great experience living in the dorms thanks to the RA's and the friendly student body. There was always a social event or speaking event or other interesting engagement to attend on campus. The town has a very active night life. |
| Placement Services | 3 | I had one instructor who went to significant effort to help find me a job. I am grateful for his help. The school itself did nothing to help me obtain a job. |
| Alumni Network | 5 | I am rating this average because I have had very little interaction with the school's alumni network. I know they do have a section on their website for alumni. However, the only interactions I have had with the group is when they call asking for money. |
Review your current or past school and help others make better career decisions.