Develop a strategic communications and management skill set
10 weeks, excluding
orientation
7 hours per week,
entirely online
Weekly modules,
flexible learning
1
An understanding of how to strategically manage a brand, business, or individual’s reputation among its key stakeholders and media within the context of a changing communications landscape.
2
The knowledge to be able to define customers’ expectations and put crisis management plans into place.
3
Practical tools for creating messages that resonate across channels that help control image and audience perception, and drive influence.
4
Validation of your public relations competencies, in the form of a certificate of completion from Africa’s leading university.1
1 QS Top Universities (2023).
Over the duration of this online short course, you’ll work through the following modules:
Module 1 Introduction to Public Relations
An introduction to public relations and its purpose in a company’s broader marketing strategy, as well as PR career paths and planning.
Module 2 Managing Relationships With Stakeholders
Learn about different types of stakeholders in public relations, and explore how these roles influence the organisation.
Module 3 Content Creation and Management
Learn practical writing skills required to write effectively for traditional and online media channels.
Module 4 Building Valuable Relationships
Discover how to manage relationships with various media professionals.
Module 5 Online Public Relations (Web PR)
Gain insight into public relations and the internet, and the tools that can be used for Web PR.
Module 6 Public Relations and Social Media
Discover how social media channels can be used as PR tools as part of an integrated approach to public relations.
Module 7 Public Relations Activities and Events
Learn about traditional PR promotional events and activities.
Module 8 Crisis and Reputation Management
Discover the vital role that crisis and brand management plays in public relations.
Module 9 Measuring, Tracking, and Evaluating Public Relations Activities
Learn how to implement a successful public relations campaign measurement plan.
Module 10 Creating a Public Relations Plan (PR Plan)
Discover the different elements involved in creating a public relations plan.
Please note that module titles and their contents are subject to change during course development.
Nqobile Bundwini
Marketing Lecturer, Researcher, and PhD Candidate, School of Management Studies, UCT
Nqobile is a marketing lecturer, researcher, and PhD candidate at the University of Cape Town’s School of Management Studies. She holds a Master of Commerce degree from UCT, and currently lectures consumer behaviour and contemporary marketing Issues at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels, respectively. She currently serves as a module developer for the Independent Institute of Education (IIE), for the retail marketing management course to be taught at Vega, Varsity College, and Rosebank College. At the IIE, she also serves as a programme advisor for the postgraduate diploma in digital business. She is a supervisor of postgraduate research, and has published academic and industry research papers in the marketing and social research fields. She has served as a research project manager and consultant on research projects at the Red Cross Memorial Children’s Hospital, PSL Research Group, and ikapadata. Her current research focuses are religious marketing, the cannabis industry, brand building, and consumer behaviour. She has presented her research internationally in Australia and Michigan, and has served as a panellist at stakeholder engagements on the South African cannabis economy. She lends her academic expertise to radio and documentary platforms in her free time, as well as consulting with aspiring academics to achieve their greatest academic potential. Nqobile is a committed educator and believes in equipping her students with the tools they need to develop autonomy which, she believes, translates into freedom.
This UCT online short course is delivered in collaboration with online education provider GetSmarter, part of edX. Join a growing community of global professionals, and benefit from the opportunity to:
Gain verifiable and relevant competencies and earn invaluable recognition from an international selection of universities and institutions, entirely online and in your own time.
Enjoy a personalised, people-mediated online learning experience created to make you feel supported at every step.
Experience a flexible but structured approach to online education as you plan your learning around your life to meet weekly milestones.