Member Mondays Recap: PRSSA Helps Nurture Comms Careers, Say Students, Recent Graduates

How does the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) benefit communications students and recent graduates?

“Our mission is to broaden networks, enhance education and launch careers,” Alicia Caracciolo said, referencing PRSSA’s mission statement. Those elements help PRSSA members “set themselves up for career success beyond graduation.”

Caracciolo, PRSSA’s International president, was among the panelists for the April 27 installment of Member Mondays, PRSA’s livestream event for members and non-members alike, held on the last Monday of each month.

“We see that so many of our members know how to network and know how to promote themselves, from what they’ve learned and published as PRSSA students,” said Caracciolo, who graduated in December from the University of South Carolina with a major in public relations and dual minors in sports management and business administration. She now works as business communications coordinator for the Texas Rangers Baseball Club.

Members of PRSSA gain public relations experience as students, she said. “We have access to learning and real experiences through student-run firms. Or members are executing campaigns, from start to finish, from research to evaluation.”

Panelist Katie Thomas, APR, is PRSSA’s professional adviser. “I owe everything in my career to PRSSA,” she said. “Those connections have continued throughout my whole life.”

When Thomas was in college, PRSSA helped her develop leadership skills, she said. Being part of PRSSA “also gives members an early understanding of ethics and standards” in public relations.

“When I’m hiring, I always look to see if they were a PRSSA member,” Thomas said. “If they were, that puts them above, in my book. There’s so much credibility and career readiness that PRSSA gives to our students as they enter the profession.”

PRSA members helping students

Heide Harrell, PRSA’s 2026 Chair and host of Member Mondays, asked the panel what students and graduates need most from PRSA professionals.

Panelist Milagros Orcoyen, PRSSA’s immediate past president, cited “guidance and support, practical and real-world skills, honest advice and being a connecter” as ways that public relations professionals can benefit the next generation of practitioners.

“Professionals can help students and recent graduates navigate their transition into the workforce and encourage them to build their own board of directors — their own trusted network of mentors and advisers,” said Orcoyen, who in 2022 graduated from the Universidad Torcuato Di Tella in Argentina, with a degree in social sciences and marketing. She now works for a branding agency in Buenos Aires.

“This board of directors can provide insight into things we don’t necessarily learn in school, such as how to negotiate our salaries,” she said.

Caracciolo said, “So many PRSA professionals are going out of their way to be in [PRSSA] Chapter meetings, to build positive relationships, to help ground people … and give them foresight” about their careers.

Panelist Gemma Puglisi is PRSSA’s international faculty adviser and an assistant professor of marketing and communications at American University in Washington, D.C. Every year, the school hosts a “mocktails” event and invites PRSA National Capital members to speak with the students.

After Covid, “We’re still dealing with that generation of students who have been feeling isolated, and now they’re back,” she said. “Any kind of personal interaction is so important for students.”

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