Unit convenor and teaching staff |
Unit convenor and teaching staff
Convenor, Lecturer
Lauren Gorfinkel
Contact via Email
Mondays 1-3pm (after the lecture)
Tutor
Raymond Welling
Tutor
Danielle Redmond
Tutor
Nicole Lenoir Jourdan
Tutor
Brittany Ferdinands
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Credit points |
Credit points
10
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Prerequisites |
Prerequisites
130cp at 1000 level or above including MMCC2100
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Corequisites |
Corequisites
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Co-badged status |
Co-badged status
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Unit description |
Unit description
The objective of this unit is to develop practical public relations and social media skills, including: strategy writing, budgeting and professional presentations. The focus will be on employee, volunteer, and member strategies for engaging with key publics outside of the organisation. Students will work in small teams to establish their own PR agency, which will pitch for the business of commercial and not-for-profit organisations. Visit Employability Connect for important information on this unit. |
Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates
On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
Late Assessment Submission Penalty
Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, a 5% penalty (of the total possible mark) will be applied each day a written assessment is not submitted, up until the 7th day (including weekends). After the 7th day, a mark of ‘0’ (zero) will be awarded even if the assessment is submitted. Submission time for all written assessments is set at 11.55pm. A 1-hour grace period is provided to students who experience a technical issue. This late penalty will apply to written reports and recordings only. Late submission of time sensitive tasks (such as tests/exams, performance assessments/presentations, scheduled practical assessments/labs will be addressed by the unit convenor in a Special consideration application.
Name | Weighting | Hurdle | Due |
---|---|---|---|
Client Research Project | 40% | No | 2024-08-30 |
Pitch to Client | 30% | No | Week 9 or 10 during your tutorial |
Strategy Report | 30% | No | 2024-11-01 |
Assessment Type 1: Work-integrated task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 24 hours
Due: 2024-08-30
Weighting: 40%
For this assignment you will submit work designed to help propel your client project forward. Working individually (whilst sharing with your team for feedback), you will conduct background research into your client, competitors, key public and/or key issue. The material will be presented in a professional manner appropriate for intra-agency and client communications. Refer to iLearn for further details.
Assessment Type 1: Presentation
Indicative Time on Task 2: 22 hours
Due: Week 9 or 10 during your tutorial
Weighting: 30%
Your consultancy will present your PR strategy to your client. You will be marked on your part in the online delivery, including your spoken delivery, slides and script. Refer to iLearn for further information.
Assessment Type 1: Report
Indicative Time on Task 2: 22 hours
Due: 2024-11-01
Weighting: 30%
Your consultancy will develop a comprehensive PR strategy report (communications plan) for your client. You will be marked on your sections of the report. Refer to iLearn for further information.
1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:
2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation
Out-of-class commitment
MMCC3090 is a 10-credit point unit. This means that you should allocate approximately 10 hours of study per week for this unit (including in non-teaching weeks). Roughly speaking each week this time should be spent on:
Teamwork
Emails
Professional Presentation/Design Tools
Feedback in this Unit
Feedback in this unit to individuals, groups, and the class/cohort may be made available in multiple forms, including:
Please ensure you engage with all these forms of feedback and hesitate to request feedback as you need it.
This unit will make extensive use of iLearn https://ilearn.mq.edu.au/. Required readings, comprehensive information on assessment tasks and important announcements will be posted to iLearn. Make sure you check iLearn and your Macquarie University email account regularly during this unit.
For technical support go to: http://mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/informatics/help
For student quick guides on the use of iLearn go to: http://mq.edu.au/iLearn/student_info/guides.htm
Please check ilearn for the most up-to-date schedule.
Week 1 Welcome to #MQAgency / Overview of the Unit / Assessment Tasks and Client Projects / Ethical Industry Practice
Week 2 Leading Communications Projects 1: Leadership Styles / Teamwork / Professional Client-Agency Communication / Preparing for the Briefing Meeting
Week 3 PR and Social Media Research 1: Background / SWOT / Competitor Analyses
Week 4 PR and Social Media Research 2: Key Issues / PESTLE analysis / media analysis [Client briefings]
Week 5 PR and Social Media Research 3: Key Publics
Week 6 PR and Social Media Strategy 1: SMART Objectives / Monitoring and Evaluation / Key Messages / Reverse Brief [Client Research Project Due]
Week 7: PR and Social Media Strategy 2: Selecting and Justifying Strategies and Tactics / Timeline / Budget
Week 8 Leading Communications Projects 2: Selling Your Ideas and Your Agency in a Pitch
----Mid-Semester Break----
Week 9: Not-for-Profit Campaigns 1: Fundraising / Flagship Events / Ambassadors [Pitches]
Week 10: Not-for-Profit Campaigns 2: Volunteer Recruitment and Corporate Outreach [Pitches]
Week 11: Leading Communications Projects 3: Selling Your Ideas and Your Agency in a Report
Week 12 Reflecting on Your PACE Experience / Adjouring / PR'ing Yourself
Week 13 No class [Report Due]
Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:
Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.
To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.
Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct
Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au
At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.
Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/
The Writing Centre provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.
The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources.
Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:
Got a question? Ask us via AskMQ, or contact Service Connect.
For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/.
When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.
An Internal Communications Project has been replaced with a Client Research Project.
Unit information based on version 2024.03 of the Handbook