Public Relations Professionals

ANZSCO ID 2253

Overview

Snapshot

Employed
31,100
Future Growth
-2.6%
Weekly Earnings
$1,793
Full-Time Share
73%
Female Share
73%
Average age
34

Summary

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.

Specialisations: Media Liaison Officer, Press Officer, Promotions Officer, Public Affairs Officer, Public Relations Consultant, Public Relations Officer.

A bachelor degree in public relations, communication, arts, marketing, business, media or another related field is usually needed to work as a Public Relations Professional. Some workers have a Vocational Education and Training (VET) qualification.

Tasks

  • 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

  • attending business, social and other functions to promote the organisation

  • commissioning and obtaining photographs and other illustrative material

  • selecting, appraising and revising material submitted by publicity writers, Photographers, Illustrators and others to create favourable publicity

Characteristics

Job Type
Professionals
Skill Level
Very high skill
ANZSCO Occupation group
Unemployment Rate
Average
Industries
Pathway(s)
  • University
  • Vocational Education and Training (VET)
Interests
  • Creative
  • Enterprising
  • Helping
Physical Demand
  • Sedentary

Outlook

Employment Outlook

JSA produces employment projections to show where likely future job opportunities may be. The latest data are for the five years from November 2021 to November 2026. Over this period, the number of workers in this occupation is likely to remain stable.

Source: Jobs and Skills Australia Employment Projections to 2026.

Notes: The number employed includes people who work in this occupation as their main job. People who work in more than one job are counted against the occupation they work the most hours in.

Employment projections figures are rounded to the nearest 100. Calculations based on these rounded figures may result in differences to the numbers that are displayed on this page. Employment projections data (including occupations) can be downloaded from the Employment Projections page.

Projected Change
-2.6%
(or -600 jobs)
From
22,200
in 2021
To
21,600
in 2026

Number of Workers

Source: ABS Labour Force Survey, ABS seasonally adjusted data to November 2021 and Jobs and Skills Australia Employment Projections to 2026.
Year Employment
2011 22,000
2012 19,800
2013 21,700
2014 19,400
2015 21,600
2016 27,000
2017 19,400
2018 22,600
2019 33,700
2020 21,300
2021 22,200
2026 21,600

Source: ABS Labour Force Survey, ABS seasonally adjusted data to November 2021 and Jobs and Skills Australia Employment Projections to 2026.


Earnings and hours

Working arrangements

  • Around 74% of people employed as Public Relations Professionals work full-time hours, in all their jobs combined. This is 8 percentage points above the all jobs average (66%).

    Full-time workers work an average of 43 hours per week in their main job. This is similar to the all jobs average (44 hours per week).

    More than a third of workers regularly work overtime or extra hours (either paid or unpaid).

    Median full-time earnings are $1,793 per week, this is much higher than the all jobs median ($1,593):

    • 3 in 4 workers earn more than $1,584
    • 1 in 4 earn more than $2,295

    Median hourly earnings are $49, this is more than the all jobs median ($41 per hour).

    Sources: Full-time share and full-time hours: ABS, 2016 Census, customised report. Compared to the all jobs average. Overtime hours: ABS, Characteristics of Employment, 2021. Full-time median earnings and median hourly earnings: ABS, Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2021. Compared to all jobs median.

Weekly Earnings (Before Tax)

Source: Based on ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2021, Customised Report. Median weekly total cash earnings for full-time non-managerial employees paid at the adult rate. Earnings are before tax and include amounts salary sacrificed. Earnings can vary greatly depending on the skills and experience of the worker and the demands of the role. These figures should be used as a guide only, not to determine a wage rate.
Earnings Public Relations Professionals All Jobs Average
Full-Time Earnings 1,793 1,593
Total Earnings 0 0

Source: Based on ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2021, Customised Report. Median weekly total cash earnings for full-time non-managerial employees paid at the adult rate. Earnings are before tax and include amounts salary sacrificed. Earnings can vary greatly depending on the skills and experience of the worker and the demands of the role. These figures should be used as a guide only, not to determine a wage rate.


Industries

Main industries

1
Public Administration and Safety
21.5%
2
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
19.0%
3
Information Media and Telecommunications
11.8%
4
Health Care and Social Assistance
11.4%
5
Other industries
36.3%

Regions

Employment across Australia

NSW

34.0% All occupations: 31.6%

VIC

27.4% All occupations: 25.6%

QLD

15.8% All occupations: 20.0%

SA

5.3% All occupations: 7.0%

WA

8.6% All occupations: 10.8%

TAS

1.4% All occupations: 2.0%

NT

1.1% All occupations: 1.0%

ACT

6.4% All occupations: 1.9%

Employment by State and Territory (% Share)

State Public Relations Professionals All Jobs Average
NSW 34.0 31.6
VIC 27.4 25.6
QLD 15.8 20.0
SA 5.3 7.0
WA 8.6 10.8
TAS 1.4 2.0
NT 1.1 1.0
ACT 6.4 1.9



Worker profile

Age and gender

Age In Years
34
All Jobs Average is 40
Female Share
73%
All Jobs Average is 48%
  • The median age of Public Relations Professionals is 34 years. This is younger than the all jobs average of 40 years.

    A large share of workers are aged 25 to 34 years.

    Females make up 73% of the workforce. This is 25 percentage points above the all jobs average of 48%.

    Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile and gender share compared to the all jobs average.

Age Profile (% Share)

Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile of workers in this job compared to the all jobs average.
Age Bracket Public Relations Professionals All Jobs Average
15-19 0.7 5.0
20-24 10.7 9.3
25-34 38.7 22.9
35-44 26.0 22.0
45-54 15.2 21.6
55-59 4.3 9.0
60-64 2.5 6.0
65 and Over 1.9 4.2
Median Age 34 40

Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile of workers in this job compared to the all jobs average.


Employment Pathways

Education, training and experience

A bachelor degree in public relations, communication, arts, marketing, business, media or another related field is usually needed to work as a Public Relations Professional. Some workers have a Vocational Education and Training (VET) qualification.

Visit

  • Course Seeker to search and compare higher education courses.
  • ComparED to compare undergraduate and postgraduate student experiences and outcomes.
  • My Skills to compare Vocational Education and Training (VET) courses, providers and student outcomes.
  • AAPathways website to explore Tourism, Travel and Hospitality VET training pathways.

Highest Level of Education (% Share)

Source: ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Highest qualification completed by workers in this job (in any field of study). Qualifications needed by new workers might be different from the qualifications of workers already in the job.
Type of Qualification Public Relations Professionals All Jobs Average
Post Graduate/Graduate Diploma or Graduate Certificate 19.1 10.1
Bachelor degree 55.0 21.8
Advanced Diploma/Diploma 7.6 11.6
Certificate III/IV 4.1 21.1
Year 12 11.5 18.1
Year 11 1.2 4.8
Year 10 and below 1.6 12.5

Source: ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Highest qualification completed by workers in this job (in any field of study). Qualifications needed by new workers might be different from the qualifications of workers already in the job.


Skills and Knowledge

Employers look for Public Relations Professionals who have strong communication skills and are organised.

Skills

Skills can be improved through training or experience.

  • 59%

    Social perceptiveness

    Understanding why people react the way they do.

  • 59%

    Speaking

    Talking to others.

  • 57%

    Active listening

    Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.

  • 57%

    Coordination with others

    Being adaptable and coordinating work with other people.

  • 57%

    Critical thinking

    Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.

  • 57%

    Reading comprehension

    Reading work related information.

  • 57%

    Time management

    Managing your own and other peoples' time to get work done.

  • 57%

    Judgment and decision making

    Figuring out the pros and cons of different options and choosing the best one.

  • 55%

    Writing

    Writing things for co-workers or customers.

  • 52%

    Active learning

    Being able to use what you have learnt to solve problems now and again in the future.

  • 52%

    Persuasion

    Talking people into changing their minds or their behaviour.

  • 48%

    Complex problem solving

    Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.

  • 48%

    Negotiation

    Bringing people together and trying to sort out their differences.

  • 46%

    Serving others

    Looking for ways to help people.

  • 46%

    Monitoring

    Keeping track of how well work is progressing so you can make changes or improvements.

  • 46%

    Systems analysis

    Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect it.

  • 46%

    Systems evaluation

    Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.

  • 43%

    Instructing

    Teaching people how to do something.

  • 43%

    Management of personnel resources

    Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, and choosing the best people for the job.

  • 43%

    Learning strategies

    Figuring out the best way to teach or learn something new.


Knowledge

These are important topics, subjects or knowledge areas.

  • 79%

    Communications and media

    Media production, communication, and dissemination. Includes written, spoken, and visual media.

  • 76%

    English language

    English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

  • 74%

    Sales and marketing

    Showing, promoting, and selling including marketing strategy, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.

  • 70%

    Customer and personal service

    Understanding customer needs, providing good quality service, and measuring customer satisfaction.

  • 62%

    Clerical

    Word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office work.

  • 61%

    Administration and management

    Business principles involved in strategic planning, leadership, and coordinating people and resources.

  • 53%

    Sociology and anthropology

    Group behaviour and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures and their history and origins.

  • 52%

    Computers and electronics

    Circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

  • 52%

    Education and training

    Curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

  • 44%

    Mathematics

    Arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, or statistics.

  • 42%

    Personnel and human resources

    Recruiting and training people, managing pay and other entitlements (like sick leave), and negotiating pay and conditions.

  • 40%

    Geography

    Describing land, sea, and air, including their physical characteristics, locations, how they work together, and the location of plant, animal, and human life.

  • 39%

    Law and government

    How our laws and courts work. Government rules and regulations, and the political system.

  • 37%

    Psychology

    Human behaviour; differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; research methods; assessing and treating disorders.

  • 35%

    Economics and accounting

    Economics and accounting, the financial markets, banking and checking and reporting of financial data.

  • 29%

    Technical design

    Design techniques, tools, and principles used to make detailed technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.

  • 28%

    Public safety and security

    Use of equipment, rules and ideas to protect people, data, property, and institutions.

  • 28%

    Fine arts

    Compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.

  • 28%

    History and archeology

    Events of the past, their causes, how we learn about them, and how they influence the way we live today.

  • 21%

    Telecommunications

    Transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.


Abilities

Workers use these physical and mental abilities..

  • 59%

    Speech clarity

    Speak clearly so others can understand you.

  • 59%

    Written expression

    Write in a way that people can understand.

  • 57%

    Oral comprehension

    Listen to and understand what people say.

  • 57%

    Oral expression

    Communicate by speaking.

  • 57%

    Written comprehension

    Read and understand written information.

  • 55%

    Deductive reasoning

    Use general rules to find answers or solve problems logically.

  • 55%

    Problem spotting

    Notice when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong, even if you can't solve the problem.

  • 55%

    Speech recognition

    Identify and understand the speech of another person.

  • 55%

    Inductive reasoning

    Use lots of detailed information to come up with answers or make general rules.

  • 54%

    Near vision

    See details that are up-close (within a few feet).

  • 54%

    Brainstorming

    Come up with a number of ideas about a topic, even if the ideas aren't very good.

  • 54%

    Originality

    Come up with unusual or clever ideas, or creative ways to solve a problem.

  • 43%

    Categorising

    Come up with different ways of grouping things.

  • 43%

    Sorting or ordering

    Order or arrange things in a pattern or sequence (e.g., numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).

  • 41%

    Selective attention

    Pay attention to something without being distracted.

  • 36%

    Multitasking

    Do two or more things at the same time.

  • 34%

    Far vision

    See details that are far away.

  • 34%

    Flexibility of closure

    See a pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) hidden in other distracting material.

  • 32%

    Memorization

    Remember things like words, numbers, pictures, and procedures.

  • 29%

    Perceptual speed

    Use your eyes to quickly compare groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.


Activities

These are kinds of activities workers regularly do in this job.

  • 95%

    Communicating with the public

    Giving information to the public, business or government by telephone, in writing, or in person.

  • 88%

    Building good relationships

    Building good working relationships and keeping them over time.

  • 86%

    Communicating within a team

    Giving information to co-workers by telephone, in writing, or in person.

  • 81%

    Planning and prioritising work

    Deciding on goals and putting together a detailed plan to get the work done.

  • 77%

    Giving expert advice

    Providing guidance and expert advice to management or other groups.

  • 75%

    Keeping your knowledge up-to-date

    Keeping up-to-date with technology and new ideas.

  • 72%

    Thinking creatively

    Using your own ideas for developing, designing, or creating something new.

  • 71%

    Scheduling work and activities

    Working out the timing of events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.

  • 71%

    Researching and investigating

    Looking for, getting and understanding different kinds of information.

  • 71%

    Influencing people

    Convincing people to buy something or to change their minds or actions.

  • 70%

    Coming up with systems and processes

    Deciding on goals and figuring out what you need to do to achieve them.

  • 69%

    Making decisions and solving problems

    Using information to work out the best solution and solve problems.

  • 68%

    Working with the public

    Greeting or serving customers, clients or guests, and public speaking or performing.

  • 67%

    Negotiating and resolving conflicts

    Handling complaints and disagreements, and negotiating with people.

  • 64%

    Coordinating the work of a team

    Getting members of a group to work together to finish a task.

  • 61%

    Looking for changes over time

    Comparing objects, actions, or events. Looking for differences between them or changes over time.

  • 60%

    Collecting and organising information

    Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or checking information or data.

  • 58%

    Explaining things to people

    Helping people to understand and use information.

  • 50%

    Working with computers

    Using computers to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.

  • 50%

    Leading and encouraging a team

    Encouraging and building trust, respect, and cooperation among team members.


Interests and demands

Learn about the daily activities, and physical and social demands faced by workers. Explore the values and work styles that workers rate as most important.

Interests

Interests are the style or type of work we prefer to do. All interest areas are shown below.

  • 100%

    Enterprising

    Starting up and carrying out projects. Leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes require risk taking and often deal with business.

  • 71%

    Creative

    Working with forms, designs and patterns. Often need self-expression and can be done without following rules.

  • 67%

    Helping

    Working with people. Helping or providing service to others.

  • 43%

    Administrative

    Following set procedures and routines. Working with numbers and details more than with ideas, usually following rules.

  • 29%

    Analytical

    Ideas and thinking. Searching for facts and figuring out problems in your head.

  • 14%

    Practical

    Practical, hands-on work. Often with plants and animals, or materials like wood, tools, and machinery.


Values

Work values are important to a person’s feeling of satisfaction. All six values are shown below.
  • 81%

    Achievement

    Results oriented. Workers are able to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment.

  • 81%

    Independence

    Work alone and make decisions. Workers are able to try out their own ideas, make decisions on their own, and work with little or no supervision.

  • 76%

    Relationships

    Serve and work with others. Workers usually get along well with each other, do things to help other people, and are rarely pressured to do things that go against their sense of right and wrong.

  • 76%

    Working conditions

    Job security and good working conditions. There is usually a steady flow of interesting work, and the pay and conditions are generally good.

  • 67%

    Recognition

    Advancement and the potential to lead. Workers are recognised for the work that they do, they may give directions and instructions to others, and they are looked up to in their company and their community.

  • 67%

    Support

    Supportive management that stands behind employees. Workers are treated fairly by their company, they are supported by management, and have supervisors who train them well.


Demands

The physical and social demands that workers face most often are shown below:
  • 100%

    Electronic mail

    Use electronic mail.

  • 100%

    Telephone

    Talk on the telephone.

  • 95%

    Face-to-face discussions

    Talk with people face-to-face.

  • 93%

    Indoors, heat controlled

    Work indoors with access to heating or cooling.

  • 92%

    Contact with people

    Have contact with people by telephone, face-to-face, or any other way.

  • 89%

    Spend time sitting

    Spend time sitting at work.

  • 88%

    Teamwork

    Work with people in a group or team.

  • 88%

    Time pressure

    Work to strict deadlines.

  • 84%

    Being exact or accurate

    Be very exact or highly accurate.

  • 82%

    Frequent decision making

    Frequently make decisions that impact other people.

  • 82%

    Unstructured work

    Have freedom to decide on tasks, priorities, and goals.

  • 80%

    Contact with the public

    Work with customers or the public.

  • 80%

    Impact of decisions

    Make decisions that have a large impact on other people.

  • 79%

    Freedom to make decisions

    Have freedom to make decision on your own.

  • 79%

    Lead or coordinate a team

    Lead others to do work activities.

  • 73%

    Competition

    Compete with others, or be aware of competitive pressures.

  • 72%

    Letters and memos

    Write letters and memos.

  • 64%

    Responsible for outcomes

    Take responsibility for the results of other people's work.

  • 62%

    Conflict situations

    Deal with conflict or disagreements.

  • 62%

    Angry or unpleasant people

    Deal with unpleasant, angry, or rude people.

Occupational Information Network
O*NET is a trademark of the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration.
The skills and importance ratings on this page are derived from the US Department of Labor O*NET Database Version 21.2, 27-3031.00 - Public Relations Specialists.


Links and downloads

Back to top