Bachelor of Communications Management (Honours)
Program details
Credential: 4-Year Bachelor of Communications Management (Honours)This unique four-year Bachelor's degree program blends communications and public relations with the business acumen required to manage the systematic planning, implementation and oversight of communications campaigns, channels and content.
Students engage in numerous experiential courses and applied assignments to develop strong written, verbal and digital communications skills, creative and strategic thinking, and the ability to understand and respond to the complex reputational issues facing an organization.
Co-op students and graduates are prepared to manage issues, develop campaigns and lead communication projects in areas such as social media management, employee communications, media relations, investor relations, marketing communications, digital marketing, fundraising and other specialized communications functions within corporate, not-for-profit and agency environments.
Student availability & wage data
Conestoga College facilitates recruitment on an ongoing basis - there are no hard deadlines. Typical time frames for work terms are listed below.
Postings are accepted beginning four months before the start of a term until all students have secured employment provided the minimum 12 consecutive weeks of full-time work is met.
Work/Study Sequence
| Year | Fall (Sept - Dec) | Winter (Jan - Apr) | Spring (May - Aug) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | Classes | Classes | |
| Year 2 | Classes | Classes | Classes |
| Year 3 | Work Term 1: $N/A | Classes | Work Term 2: $N/A |
| Year 4 | Classes | Classes |
Note: this program is replacing the Bachelor of Public Relations program. The first work term will be fall 2025.
Conestoga College collects data on hourly wages of co-operative education students and offers suggested ranges as a service to employers for the purpose of establishing fair and competitive compensation.
Our experience has been that employers increase wages as skills increase, particularly when employing students for more advanced work terms. The Co-operative Education Office can provide assistance to employers in establishing appropriate wage rates.
Work term capabilities
Specific skills and abilities that students are typically capable of performing during a given work term are listed below.
Work term 1
- Manage event and other campaigns that arise in the fulfillment of public relations work
- Identify important media contacts
- Write news releases and pitch a news story
- Develop a public relations campaign: identify stakeholders and publics; set and write process and outcome objectives; devise strategies and tactics; prepare communication materials, establish budgets, and set evaluation criteria
- Create content for web and social media channels and monitor their impact
Work term 2
- Develop communication strategy for the purpose of employee communication, issue, crisis communication, investor communication and corporate social responsibility
- Prepare for media interviews
- Apply qualitative and quantitative research techniques for measuring messages, communication channels, and organizational outcomes
- Identify the role of fundraising for the not-for-profit sector and perform the public relations planning and tactical functions to support fundraising goals
- Manage a visual communications project by using professional practices in the creation, design and printing of documents
Sample job titles
Work term 1:
- Communications Coordinator
- Communications Officer
- Event Planner
- Public Relations Assistant
- Charities Coordinator
- Community Relations Coordinator
- Donor Relations Coordinator
- Employee Communications Coordinator
- External Communications Specialist
- Fundraising and Development Coordinator
- Internal Communications Coordinator
- Investor Relations Specialist
- Manager - Corporate Communications
- Manager - Media & Interactive Services
- Marketing & Events Coordinator
- Marketing Communications Coordinator
- Media Relations Coordinator
- Member Relations Coordinator
- PR and Product Coordinator
- Strategic Communications Specialist
- Web Strategist
- Web Writer/Editor
Program courses
To see a typical course list for this program, see the current program course information.
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