15 Best Masters In Public Relations Online

Ashland University’s College of Arts & Sciences’ Department of Communication Studies provides an online Master of Arts in Corporate and Strategic Communication (MACSC) degree program that can be finished in as little as 18 months.

The Corporate and Strategic Communication program at Ashland University is entirely online and needs 30 credits of coursework, which is made up of prerequisites, major courses, and specific track focus area studies.

Students can choose between the Public Relations Concentration Track and the Health & Risk Concentration Track, and the latter provides courses like “Public Relations Campaigns” and “Seminar in Social Media Platforming.”

The courses in the MACSC program is entirely taught by the qualified and experienced Ashland faculty, and all students earn their degrees with a Communication Studies capstone.

3. Syracuse College

An online MS in Communications degree program with a Public Relations concentration is offered by Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. This program combines the prestige of a prestigious university with the convenience of totally online training.

Five core courses, including “Multimedia Storytelling” and “Digital Communications Systems,” are required for the 33-credit MS in Communications program, and four courses are devoted to the Public Relations specialization, which covers theory, management, planning, and design elements in the industry.

4. University of Maryland Global Campus

A public school called UMGC is situated in Largo, Maryland. The school offers a variety of programs, including an online master of management with a public relations specialty, to distant learners and holds regional accreditation from the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.

The master’s program has a 36-credit minimum. Students gain knowledge of how to assess the success of public relations campaigns, create fresh methods for interacting with target audiences, comprehend ethical and legal concerns in the industry, and improve their writing abilities. Financial decision-making, managerial decision-making using statistics, and organizational theory are all required courses.

Entry-level remedial courses in graduate writing, accounting, and financial management are required of new students without prior work experience. To remain in good standing, students must keep their GPA at 3.0 or better during the entire program.

5. Mo State University

With a student’s choice of electives, Missouri State Online offers an online master’s degree program in communication. Students can focus on a variety of areas, with options like “Public Relations Campaigns,” “Concepts and Analysis of Public Relations,” “Communication Technology and Politics,” and “Presidential Rhetoric” leading to an emphasis in Public Relations.

The School of Communication Studies houses the 32-credit program, which can be finished in two years. The Department of Communication faculty at Missouri State University offers close interaction and has “a reputation of excellence through their teaching, research, and publication accomplishments.”

All online master’s in communication students at Missouri State have access to the university’s online student support services, and they also receive specialized graduate communication counseling.

6. Florida University

By collaborating with major consulting firm APCO Worldwide, the University of Florida improves its online Masters in Mass Communication with a Public Relations specialty by bringing practical, cutting-edge methods and industry best practices to its Public Relations students. provided by the College of Journalism and Communications (CJC) at the University of Florida.

33 credits are required for the fully online master’s in public relations, including fundamental courses like “Measurement & Evaluation” and “Strategy & Messaging” as well as a final capstone project.

Even while those who pursue the degree full-time can finish in just eighteen months, the program’s online format gives students the freedom to earn the degree at their own leisure.

Along with working with APCO Worldwide, the University of Florida also works with a Public Relations Advisory Council to ensure that the already cutting-edge curriculum remains relevant and gives students access to the appropriate tools.

7. Mississippi College 

The private college Mississippi College, which is based in Clinton, provides an online master’s in communication. The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges has granted the institution regional accreditation. It has a student body of about 5,000.

This program, provided by the Department of Communication, is most beneficial to students who want to increase their employability for a career or get ready for doctorate studies. Distance learners have the option of concentrating in professional communication or integrated communication in the management of health care.

31 credits are completed by online students. Communication research, persuasion, public relations, and process and consequences of communication are among the courses that are required for the integrated communication concentration. Candidates for degrees must also finish a convocation paper and pass a written test.

8. Marist University

Students can pursue a Master of Integrated Marketing Communication (MA in IMC) totally online through the Marist College School of Communication and the Arts. The 30-credit Marist online IMC Degree program offers all coursework asynchronously for your convenience.

Full-time students can finish the program in just three semesters, while part-time students can finish it in up to three years. Relevant courses in the curriculum include “Global Consumer Insights,” “Social Media Strategies & Tactics,” and “Analytical Tools for Decision Making.”

The curriculum is completed with an Integrated Marketing Communication Capstone course, and the academic advisors assigned to each student together with the teachers from the Marist Communication Department offer assistance.

9. Southern California University

A Master of Communication Management Online degree program is offered by the esteemed USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, which is known for its excellence and rigor. Students participate in an online curriculum that was “designed to build real-world leaders for the modern workplace” while learning from USC Annenberg teachers who have “deep academic expertise and extensive professional experience.”

Master of Communication Management (MCM) Student Testimonials attest to the program’s success in developing leaders and critical thinkers, and prospective students can choose from a variety of program videos to learn more about the course material and what it’s like to be a distance learner in the MCM program.

A “full toolbox of advanced skills” is provided to graduates of the 32-credit program through coursework (such as “Communication, Attitudes, Values and Behavior,” “Foundations of Effective Public Relations Writing,” and “Online Marketing Communication Development & Analysis”) and the Communication Research Practicum, which is the program’s capstone project.

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10. Drexel University 

The online MS in Communication with a concentration in Public Communication from Drexel University gives students the “skills and insider knowledge to manage communications for any organization” and prepares them for “careers in journalism, public relations, and nonprofit communication” (two other non-public relation concentrations are also offered in Science and Health Communication and Technical Communication).

The 30-credit program is divided into core Communication courses like “Theories of Communication and Persuasion” and “Creating and Managing Communication Professional Identities,” allowing students to complete their degrees in less time.

11. Texas Tech University

Graduates of the online master’s program in strategic communication and innovation offered by the Texas Tech College of Media & Communication are prepared for “senior-level positions as strategic communicators in today’s global and digital environment.”

Electives like “Multimedia Story Telling,” “Audience/Data Analysis & Reporting,” and “Advanced Social Media Practice” allow students to concentrate on the coursework that will specifically help them achieve their professional goals. The 30-credit hour, entirely online degree program has required courses like “Strategic Communication in a Global Environment” and “Media Management, Entrepreneurship & Consulting” to build the strategic communication foundations.

12. California Baptist College

The Master of Arts in Public Relations (MAPR) program at California Baptist University Online takes pride in turning out professionals that can “communicate with credibility, relevance, and impact.” The MAPR curriculum is 33 credits long and includes courses like “Legal, Ethical and Social Foundations of Public Relations,” “Critical Thinking and Crisis Management,” “New Media Strategies,” and “Public Relations Campaigns: Social and Physical.” It does this by utilizing a faith-based and biblical setting.

The MAPR program is offered by the Division of Online and Professional Studies, which was “established for the specific purpose of serving the needs of an increasing number of adults and non-traditional students seeking higher education.” The Division of Online and Professional Studies has experience with online teacher training as well as the effects of media and public relations.

13. University of Denver

Students have a choice of six concentrations in the 48-credit online Masters in Communication Management program offered by the University of Denver University College, one of which is Public Relations. The fully online degree can be finished in as little as 18 months; all students take the same core courses, which total 12 credits and include topics like “Research, Measurement, and Storytelling” and “Business Fundamentals for Communicators,” and they are given the option of completing either a Capstone Project or Portfolio Capstone as their final project.

The degree program’s fifteen credit hours of public relations concentration coursework include courses on “Communication and Society: Theories and Applications” and “Dimensions of Reputation Management.” The curriculum is completed with nine credits of electives, which can be chosen by students (with permission) from any other University College program.

14. Rowan University

The Masters in Strategic Communication degree program at Rowan University, formerly known as the Master of Arts in Public Relations, is offered as a partially online program through Rowan Global Learning & Partnerships and gives students more freedom to concentrate on a subject within their professional interests.

Students have the option of concentrating in “media relations, strategic writing, event planning and management, visual communication, online public relations, or school public relations,” and all coursework is instructed by Rowan University faculty who have both practical and academic experience.

The 33-credit hour curriculum is made up of required courses like “Graduate Strategic Case Studies and Public Relations Planning” and “Graduate Strategic Visual Communication,” and classes are offered in a hybrid format (evening face-to-face classes and online classes). The remaining classes are chosen in conjunction with the student’s focus area, and there is no thesis requirement to complete the degree.

15. Maryville University

The online Masters in Strategic Communication and Leadership program at Maryville University advertises as a “experience-driven degree,” promising that graduates will “graduate with at least three in-demand professional certifications” (from Google AdWords, Salesforce, and HubSpot).

A Strategic Leadership core, a Strategic Communication core, electives, and an optional Emerging and Digital Media Concentration make up the 36-credit program’s entirely online courses. Classes on subjects including “Strategic Communication Best Practices,” “Public Relations Research & Strategy,” “Professional & Organizational Ethics,” and the Emerging and Digital Media Concentration are demanding but student-centered.

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