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Where are the men at?!

Posted on March 2, 2016 at 9 p.m.
by: Kelley Breeding

Being in the public relations program at The University of Alabama, it’s hard not to notice the lack of men in the classroom. This is not just an occurrence at my university either. Arik Hanson stated in an article that about 85 percent of our industry is made up of women.  Many people say it’s great to have a female-dominated field, but when you start to dig a little deeper, is it really giving off good signals?

As I looked into why men don’t go into public relations, the results were not all that surprising. The main indicator is that PR is not seen as a “manly” profession.  We need to change that — not just so more men go into public relations, but so public relations will be taken as a serious career choice for all.

Another reason is that some men believe women understand public relations better, and men’s minds are made for other subjects. As Hanson said, “Accounting, law, engineering, and financial services are industries that, on the surface, are easier to understand. Therefore, more men seek them out.”

brains

Daphna Joel, a behavioral neuroscientist at Tel Aviv University in Israel, stated in an article by Kate Wheeling, “‘There is no sense in talking about male nature and female nature. … There is no one person that has all the male characteristics and another person that has all the female characteristics. Or if they exist they are really, really rare to find.’”

In each university’s PR department  across the country, we need to start encouraging men to go into the field to achieve stronger diversity. Even if we don’t get an overwhelming response from men, it’s important that public relations not just be seen as a degree for women, but a degree that prepares you to succeed in the professional world — a degree that teaches you how to think on your feet and communicate with all types of audiences.

Come on guys, you know you want to.

Note: To read more about men’s roles in the profession, go to
https://platformmagazine.org/2015/03/16/under-the-menfluence/

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