By Grace Capwell, APR Director-at-Large, PRSA Austin
The PRSA Accreditation Public Relations (APR) credential demonstrates professional competence, expertise and the highest standards of excellence in the practice of public relations. The APR credential helps to improve your personal brand and distinguishes a practitioner by demonstrating mastery of the strategic communications practice.
The program is designed to accommodate any schedule. Each candidate begins and ends their own personal journey to achieve accreditation. To begin, a candidate submits an online application via the PRSA site using your PRSA membership ID and password.
Once the candidate receives notification of eligibility from the Universal Accreditation Board, the process must be completed one year from that date. PRSA National recommends a potential candidate to begin the clock (one year) once they have researched and understood the process since time flies! The cost to apply is $410 for members and $745 for non-members.
The PRSA site has many resources to help you understand the purpose and processes for earning your accreditation. The Austin Chapter 2024 Accreditation Committee Chair is Grace Capwell. Please reach out to her for any support: grace.capwell@emerson.com
The best place for anyone interested in APR is the PRSA candidate page that outlines all aspects of earning the credential with links to:
- FAQs about the process and exam
- KSAs/Competencies that are tested
- APR Study Guide
- Sample PowerPoint for you to explain APR to prospects
- Looking for a Mentor? (Someone to help answer questions, assist in questionnaire proofing, process navigation)
- Recommended texts
- Panel Presentation documents and candidate questionnaires
- Renewal details
- University Waivers (benefits) for having your APR
One of the most valuable resources for interested candidates is the free APR Study Guide. A quick hack on understanding what you will need to master to earn an APR can be found in pages 24 to 26 to get the “research, planning, implementation and evaluation” (RPIE) which is central to good public relations practice. Also see pages 49 to 52 for the 10 steps to creating a communications plan.
For more information on APR, check out this resource:
