| Semester 2, 2021 Springfield On-campus | |
| Short Description: | Digital Public Relations |
| Units : | 1 |
| Faculty or Section : | Faculty of Business, Education, Law and Arts |
| School or Department : | School of Humanities & Communication |
| Student contribution band : | 2021 Grandfather Funding Cl 1 |
| ASCED code : | 100799 - Communication and Media Studie |
| Grading basis : | Graded |
Staffing
Examiner:
Other Requisites
Students are required to have access to a personal computer, e-mail capabilities and Internet access to UConnect. Current details of computer requirements can be found at .
Rationale
The world is more connected today than it has ever been, and the role of digital media in our daily lives continues to expand. Digital media is also now a crucial tool used by public relations (PR) practitioners. This practice-focused course focuses on the power of digital media – including social media - in PR, and the interactions that define contemporary communication. It brings together social theory and contemporary digital media platforms from the PR professional’s perspective to produce a range of PR components, including digital aspects of communication campaigns.
Synopsis
Students in this course plan and implement the digital component of a public relations (PR) campaign. Through an examination of social theory and contemporary digital media platforms, students use best practice PR engagement techniques to produce contemporary forms of a range of digital communications for individual and organisational purposes. Students learn how to implement the digital media planning process of a PR campaign and develop knowledge of its place in achieving a communications campaign's overall strategy.
Objectives
On successful completion of this course students should be able to:
- identify a range of appropriate digital communication strategies, applications and platforms for given scenarios and articulate how these affect decision-making from an operational perspective:
- identify and segment target publics:
- use digital analytics as part of campaign measurement and evaluation;
- ethically apply discipline-specific written communication and creative problem-solving skills for a stated professional outcome.
Topics
| Description | Weighting(%) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Digital media practice in public relations | 30.00 |
| 2. | Planning and creating effective digital strategies | 30.00 |
| 3. | Writing for social media and other digital platforms | 15.00 |
| 4. | Influencers, bloggers, and traditional media | 10.00 |
| 5. | Creativity and economy in digital media | 15.00 |
Text and Materials
ALL textbooks and materials available to be purchased can be sourced from (unless otherwise stated). (https://omnia.usq.edu.au/textbooks/?year=2021&sem=02&subject1=PRL1005)
Please for alternative purchase options from USQ Bookshop. (https://omnia.usq.edu.au/info/contact/)
Reference Materials
Student Workload Expectations
| Activity | Hours |
|---|---|
| Directed Study | 39.00 |
| Independent Study | 126.00 |
Assessment Details
| Description | Marks out of | Wtg (%) | Due Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| QUIZ | 15 | 15 | 06 Aug 2021 | |
| SEGMENTATION ANALYSIS | 100 | 30 | 20 Aug 2021 | |
| ESSAY | 100 | 15 | 09 Sep 2021 | (see note 1) |
| PR CAMPAIGN | 100 | 40 | 14 Oct 2021 |
Notes
- Students in Public Relations courses at USQ are required to use Harvard AGPS referencing style in their academic work.
Important assessment information
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Attendance requirements:
Students must attend and complete the requirements of the Workplace Health and Safety training program for this course where required.
External and Online:
There are no attendance requirements for this course. However, it is the students’ responsibility to study all material provided to them or required to be accessed by them to maximise their chance of meeting the objectives of the course and to be informed of course-related activities and administration.
On-campus
It is the students’ responsibility to attend and participate appropriately in all activities (such as lectures, tutorials, laboratories and practical work) scheduled for them, and to study all material provided to them or required to be accessed by them to maximise their chance of meeting the objectives of the course and to be informed of course-related activities and administration. -
Requirements for students to complete each assessment item satisfactorily:
To satisfactorily complete an individual assessment item a student must achieve at least 50% of the marks. -
Penalties for late submission of required work:
Students should refer to the Assessment Procedure (point 4.2.4) -
Requirements for student to be awarded a passing grade in the course:
To be assured of receiving a passing grade a student must achieve at least 50% of the total weighted marks available for the course. -
Method used to combine assessment results to attain final grade:
The final grades for students will be assigned on the basis of the aggregate of the weighted marks obtained for each of the summative assessment items in the course. -
Examination information:
There is no examination for this course. -
Examination period when Deferred/Supplementary examinations will be held:
Deferred and Supplementary examinations will be held in accordance with the Assessment Procedure . -
University Student Policies:
Students should read the USQ policies: Definitions, Assessment and Student Academic Misconduct to avoid actions which might contravene University policies and practices. These policies can be found at .
Other Requirements
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Students can expect that questions in assessment items in this course may draw upon knowledge and skills that they can reasonably be expected to have acquired before enrolling in this course. This includes knowledge contained in pre-requisite courses and appropriate communication, information literacy, analytical, critical thinking, problem-solving or numeracy skills. Students who do not possess such knowledge and skills should not expect the same grades as those students who do possess them.