Faculty of Arts and Social Science’s (FAS) Department of Public Relations (PR) organised its inaugural PR Awareness Day 2019 at Grand Kampar Hotel on 23 October 2019.

Besides promoting UTAR as one of Malaysia’s leading private higher learning institutions offering quality programmes, the PR Awareness Day was also a platform for the academics to foster closer ties with the industry experts, as well as to deepen current students’ understanding on the PR industry’s expectations.

Officiating the event was UTAR President Ir Prof Dr Ewe Hong Tat. Also present were Keynote Speakers Khoo Khar Khoon from Media Chinese International Limited and Assoc Prof Dr Chang Peng Kee from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM); FAS Dean Dr Lee Lai Meng; Department of PR Head Dr S Maartandan Suppiah; and Organising Chairperson Clarence Anthony Puspanathan.

Commending the Department of PR’s initiative in spearheading the PR Awareness Day, Dr Lee also highlighted the objectives of the event in which she emphasised the importance of university-industry collaborations. “UTAR strongly believes that a university needs to collaborate with the industry to build mutually beneficial relationships in line with the Malaysian Education Blueprint 2015 – 2020. Plenty of benefits can be reaped via such close collaborations such as enhancement of research and innovation through joint research projects; delivery of innovative commercial products; improvements in teaching, learning, and curriculum design; enrichment of students’ knowledge and employability,” she explained, adding that collaborations with the industry allow students to be exposed to real case studies and latest industry insights, thus get training assistance for educational purposes and internship opportunities.

Hoping that all participants will gain a thing or two from the event which is a tribute to university-industry collaboration, Dr Lee also mentioned that UTAR recognises such symbiotic university-industry relationship. “As such, each programme offered in UTAR is anchored to an industry advisor that provides guidance and feedback for continuous quality improvement on curriculum and syllabus design. On top of that, every programme in UTAR also has at least one anchored corporations of which mutually beneficial activities can be conducted together, further helping us in producing graduates who meet the industry’s demands of the industry,” she concluded.

Intrigued by the Awareness Day’s activities for being multifaceted with keynote speeches, forums, workshops as well as pitching competitions, Prof Ewe felt that such events are important as the participating students will gain exposure to knowledge and lessons beyond the classrooms. “It’s really impressive to see so many students allocating time to attend and learn from this PR Awareness Day. Since there are so many experts who will be sharing their knowledge and insights, do grab this opportunity and learn from them as much as you can,” he mentioned.

Also reminding the participants on being on their toes in the advent of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), the University President said, “The existence of new gadgets, the Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data, Artificial Intelligence (AI), 5G, and so on are advanced tools which could change the world of PR and Corporate Communication. While it is important in knowing how to utilise them to reach out to a wider group of target audience, it is also essential for us to always go back to the very fundamental human touch – our heart.” He cited the example by Apple Inc’s CEO Tim Cook that the Apple customers prefer owning Apple products not because of the technology or design, but due to the creators’ sensitivity and thoughtfulness in making their products user-friendly. “The way you convey your message must be in the shoes of your target audience. Therefore, for those participating in the pitching competition later, remember that it shouldn’t be solely from your point of view, but should also be from the perspective of the listeners. Have consideration about how they will look and think about your pitching approach and content,” Prof Ewe advised.

This was followed by the keynote speeches by Khoo, also an Industry Advisor to FAS’s PR programme, whose title was “Embracing Change and Technology in Future PR and Communication Professionals” while Dr Chang’s was “ABC of PR for 4IR”.

Further broadening the participants’ perspectives on the local communication and PR industry was a forum in which the panelists, namely JomRun Sdn Bhd founder-cum-Managing Director Chang Yi Hern, BrandSoul co-founder-cum-brand and PR Specialist Stella Wong, and Companies Commission of Malaysia’s Corporate Branding executive Aizuddin bin Mohamed Abdul Ghani offered their observations, insights, personal success stories, and advice related to strategic communication.

Also a platform to instill confidence among students and spur their creativity, the PR Awareness Day also saw over 40 students participating in the Idea Pitching Contest. Participants had to improve or create individual and community engagement plans pertaining to workplace, organisational designs, infrastructure, public health and safety, education, tourism, social or environmental issues in the categories of business, personal capacity, social enterprise, and communication technology.

The winners list is as follows:

In line with UTAR’s commitment in producing industry-ready graduates, PR Awareness Day also saw the offering of workshops such as “The Art of Event Planning” by Datum Corporation International Sdn Bhd Corporate Communication Manager Wahi Irwan and “Resume Writing” by UTAR FAS lecturer Joginder Kaur aimed at honing the students’ skillsets before graduating. 

As one of the participants who benefitted greatly from the line-up of activities, PR final year student Low Shun Jun commented, “It’s refreshing for me to learn about PR in the era of 4IR as well as the requirements of a PR graduate before venturing into the industry. I’d without a doubt join similar events like this in the near future.”

“The PR Awareness Day provides the opportunity for higher learning institutions to collaborate with experts from the industry. Partnerships of such kind would certainly help provide us with key information pertaining the changes in the industry which in turn helps us, the academics, to make relevant changes to our curriculum, further improving the employability of our PR graduates,” said Organising Chairperson Clarence.

PR Awareness Day was mainly sponsored by Grand Kampar Hotel. The co-sponsor was Perak Medical Clinic (PMC) Kampar.