How long is the BA in Public Relations?

The BA in Public Relations is three years full-time, with on-campus, fully online and distance-learning routes sharing the same UK CIPR-aware honours-degree syllabus.

Can I study the BA in Public Relations fully online?

Yes. The BA in Public Relations is offered fully online with live press-line workshops, on-campus near the West End, or by structured distance learning.

Is the BA in Public Relations recognised by UK PR consultancies and CIPR?

Yes. The BA in Public Relations is a UK honours degree designed around CIPR and PRCA professional standards used by UK consultancies and in-house comms teams.

What are the entry requirements for the BA in Public Relations?

You need three A-levels at BBC (or IB 28+, BTEC DMM, Foundation Year pass), GCSE English at 5, IELTS 6.5 — strong written English is particularly important for this programme.

How much does the BA in Public Relations cost and are scholarships available?

Fees for the BA in Public Relations vary by route and domicile; merit scholarships and consultancy-sponsored places are available — contact LSCT admissions.

BA in Public Relations London Course | LSCT London | Harold International College of London

Course Overview

The BA in Public Relations sits inside the Media, Journalism & Communication department at LSCT and is a three-year UK honours degree for school leavers, international students and career changers entering UK public-relations careers. Taught from central London with online and distance routes, the programme combines CIPR- and PRCA-aware practice with media-relations craft, digital reputation, crisis management and the UK regulatory environment for consumer, corporate and public-affairs communications.

You will be drafting press lines, building real consumer campaign plans and reading current IPSO rulings from your first term. By graduation you will have produced a campaign portfolio, completed a placement with a UK consultancy or in-house team and earned a UK honours degree mapped to CIPR Professional PR Diploma progression.

The programme runs on a weekly newsroom rhythm: pitch on Monday, file on Wednesday, edit on Thursday and review on Friday. Tutors include working UK journalists, agency leads and in-house comms practitioners drawn from London newsrooms, PRCA-graded consultancies and FTSE press offices. Cohort sizes are deliberately small so feedback is line-by-line rather than generic, which is how editorial standards actually improve.

Key Features

CIPR- and PRCA-aware honours degree reflecting Chartered Institute of Public Relations and PRCA professional standards.
Three study modes — on-campus near the West End, fully online with live press-line workshops, or structured distance learning.
Industry placement in year two with a UK PRCA-graded consultancy or in-house comms team.
Crisis simulation week with rolling social-media monitoring, journalist call-backs and real-time press lines.
UK Online Safety Act module covering Ofcom's expectations of user-to-user services.
Final-year specialisms across consumer PR, corporate communications, public affairs and digital reputation.

What You Will Learn

The degree is structured around three pillars: craft, strategy and regulation. You will graduate able to plan and run a UK PR campaign, defend an editorial choice under IPSO's Editors' Code, draft a credible crisis statement and explain to a board why a particular reputational risk matters.

Strategic Public Relations Planning (RACE / OASIS)
Media Relations: Press Lines, Pitches, Briefings
Digital Reputation, Social Listening and Owned-Media Strategy
Crisis and Issues Management
UK Reputation Law: Defamation, IPSO, Online Safety Act
Public Affairs and the UK Westminster Lobby System
Sustainability and ESG Communications
CIPR PR Evaluation Framework (Outtakes, Outcomes)
Final-Year Capstone Campaign Project

Assessment is portfolio-led: you are graded on published work, on-the-record copy and live editorial defence in front of the cohort and a working UK practitioner. This pattern is deliberate — it mirrors how UK newsroom and consultancy candidates are actually tested at interview, and it forces every student to develop the habit of standing behind their copy when a tough question lands rather than retreating behind a brief.

Who This Course Is For

A-level leavers targeting UK graduate PR consultancies and in-house comms teams.
International students who want a UK-recognised PR honours degree.
Career changers from marketing, journalism or events entering UK PR work.
Apprenticeship leavers stepping up to a degree-level PR role.

Hybrid candidates with one foot in editorial and the other in commercial communications are particularly well-served, since UK in-house teams increasingly need people who can switch between newsroom and boardroom registers.

Career Pathways

Graduates step into graduate and senior account roles inside UK PR consultancies, FTSE communications teams, public-sector press offices and third-sector charities. Typical first roles include:

Graduate PR Account Executive (UK consultancy)
Corporate Communications Officer (in-house)
Public Affairs Officer (Westminster-adjacent)
Social Media and Digital Reputation Manager (junior)
Press Officer (NHS trust, charity or government department)
Sustainability Communications Coordinator

The degree also serves as a strong foundation for the CIPR Professional PR Diploma or an MA in Strategic Communications.

Beyond the obvious newsroom and consultancy routes, graduates are picked up by UK in-house communications teams at FTSE companies, NHS trusts, large charities and central government departments. Hiring conversations test how you draft under deadline pressure and how you defend an editorial decision when challenged, so the cuttings and case-study portfolio you build during the programme matters more than the certificate itself.

Recent intakes have included career changers from teaching, returners after parental leave, working freelancers and people stepping out of agency life into in-house roles — the cohort mix itself becomes part of the curriculum.

Entry Requirements

Three A-levels at grades BBC or above, or an equivalent UK / international qualification (IB 28+, BTEC DMM, Foundation Year pass) — strong written English is particularly important for this programme.
GCSE English Language at grade 5/C and Mathematics at grade 4/C (or equivalent).
IELTS 6.5 overall (no band below 6.0) for non-native English speakers.
A personal statement; mature applicants (21+) may apply with a portfolio and short interview.

Why Study at LSCT

The London School of Commerce and Technology (LSCT) is a specialist higher-education provider based in central London and part of Harold International College. We teach in small cohorts so every student is visible to their tutor, run a single intake schedule that students can rely on, and partner with UK professional bodies so qualifications carry weight with employers. London puts Whitehall, the City, Silicon Roundabout, the Royal Courts of Justice, the West End and the NHS estate within a short tube ride of every classroom — and our students use that proximity in their projects, placements and graduate job hunts. For PR students Westminster, Soho and the City are the working lab: working FTSE comms directors and PRCA-graded agency leaders run guest sessions on real campaign briefs throughout the year.

We also run a structured careers service from intake onwards: scheduled mock editorial interviews with working UK newsroom and consultancy practitioners, CV and cuttings-book reviews aligned to UK hiring norms, and live cohort sessions on how UK editors, agency MDs and in-house heads actually filter candidates. Every student is paired with an alumni mentor working in their target UK media sector — a small touch but one that compounds across the year.

Apply for BA in Public Relations

The BA in Public Relations is built to launch your career in the Media, Journalism & Communication sector. Click Enrol Now to submit your application; admissions reply within one working day with intake dates, scholarship guidance and placement-route information.