How to become a public relations professional in Australia
Public Relations Professionals plan, develop, implement and evaluate information and communication strategies that create an understanding and a favourable view of organisations, their goods and services, and their role in the community.
The all-jobs median is $1,852 a week. Jobs in the public relations professionals group are projected to grow 21.2% between May 2025 and May 2035, faster than the 13.3% projected for all jobs. Projections are indicative, not forecasts, and JSA says they don't yet reflect generative AI.
What the job involves
- Planning and organising publicity campaigns and communication strategies
- Advising executives on the public relations implications of their policies, programs and practices
- Preparing and controlling the issue of news and press releases
- Undertaking and commissioning public opinion research, analysing the findings and planning public relations and promotional campaigns
- Organising special events, seminars, entertainment, competitions and social functions to promote goodwill and favourable publicity
- Representing organisations and arranging executive interviews with publicity media
How to get there
What it usually takes. A bachelor degree or higher. This is the skill level Jobs and Skills Australia gives the public relations professionals group, and some roles differ.
What people in the job have. Highest qualification held: 75% a degree or higher, 8% a diploma, 4% a Certificate III or IV.
Many jobs also need registration, a licence or a specific accredited course. Check the professional body or regulator before you choose.
Courses that can lead here
Estimate your ATAR and this page shows the gap to each course. Your marks stay on your device.
Victoria4 matches
VTAC lowest selection ranks, December 2025 offer round.
Communication (Public Relations major) · Deakin, Melbourne Burwood66.30 Professional Communication (majoring in Advertising, Digital Communication and Public Relations) · RMIT, City63.35 Media and Communication (Public Relations major) · Swinburne, Hawthorn58.40Showing 3 of 4 matches. Search every course.
NSW and ACT3 matches
UAC lowest selection ranks, December Round 2, 2025-26 admissions.
B Communication in Public Relations & Advertising B Creative Intelligence & Innovation · UTS84.10 Bachelor of Communication in Public Relations and Advertising · UTS78.45 Bachelor of Communication in Public Relations and Advertising Bachelor of Laws · UTS98.90Queensland0 matches
QTAC course pages, ATAR/Selection Rank profile for semester 1, 2026.
No match in QTAC's list. Some courses, medicine especially, don't publish a cutoff or use their own admissions.
Western Australia1 match
TISC Course Search: lowest ATAR offered for 2026 entry and guaranteed offer ATARs.
Bachelor of Marketing, Advertising and Public Relations · ECU, City60.80Matched on course names, 8 across four admissions centres. A lowest selection rank includes adjustment points and moves every year. Check prerequisites and whether the course is accredited for this job.
Graduate outcomes, national
Undergraduates surveyed about four to six months after finishing, in 2025, across all providers. Full-time work is among those available for it. All graduates: 75.4% and $77,000. These are national figures for the study area, not for this course or uni, and a first-year salary says little about later pay. Source: QILT Graduate Outcomes Survey 2025.
Does it fit your interests?
Strongest interest areas for this kind of work: Enterprising, Artistic, Social.
From O*NET ratings for "Public Relations Specialists", the closest US occupation in JSA's correspondence (a good match). US ratings are a guide to Australian jobs, not a measurement of them.
Careers with similar interests
Film or tv director$1,975 Media producer$2,179 Author or editor Event organiser$1,634 Journalist$1,722Done this job, or studied for it?
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Share your storyJob data: © Commonwealth of Australia, Jobs and Skills Australia occupation profiles, February 2026 and Employment Projections, May 2025 to May 2035 (Victoria University), CC BY 4.0. Jobs and Skills Australia, ANZSCO 2013 Version 1.2 to O*NET-SOC 2019 Taxonomy correspondence.
Graduate outcomes: QILT Graduate Outcomes Survey 2025, National Report Tables (Social Research Centre, for the Australian Government).
This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. Curve ATAR has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.