by our College Data Analytics TeamThe main focus area for this major is Public Relations. For more details on this concentration, visit its profile page.
Public Relations & Advertising is a major offered under the communication and journalism program of study at American University. We’ve pulled together some essential information you should know about the bachelor’s degree program in public relations, including how many students graduate each year, the ethnic diversity of these students, whether or not the degree is offered online, and more.
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BA in Communication - Public Relations
Prepare to develop your skills in building mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their public audiences.
In order to help students and their parents find the best school for them, we have created several different types of college rankings, which are updated yearly. The American University is in the top 10% of the country for public relations. More specifically it was ranked #24 out of 307 schools by College Factual. It is also ranked #3 in District of Columbia.
Here are some of the other rankings for The American University.
Part-time undergraduates at The American University paid an average of $1,684 per credit hour in 2019-2020. This tuition was the same for both in-state and out-of-state students. The average full-time tuition and fees for undergraduates are shown in the table below.
| In State | Out of State | |
|---|---|---|
| Tuition | $50,542 | $50,542 |
| Fees | $819 | $819 |
| Books and Supplies | $800 | $800 |
| On Campus Room and Board | $16,196 | $16,196 |
| On Campus Other Expenses | $1,009 | $1,009 |
Learn more about The American University tuition and fees.
You may also want to consider how much in student loans you’ll need when thinking about the overall cost to attend a school. Students who received their bachelor’s degree at The American University in Public Relations walked away with an average of $26,000 in student debt. That is 11% higher than the national average of $23,348.
The median early career salary of public relations students who receive their bachelor’s degree from The American University is $48,725 per year. That is 40% higher than the national average of $34,735.
The American University does not offer an online option for its public relations bachelor’s degree program at this time. To see if the school offers distance learning options in other areas, visit the The American University Online Learning page.
Of the students who received their bachelor’s degree in public relations in 2019-2020, 79.0% of them were women. This is higher than the nationwide number of 72.2%.
Around 28.6% of public relations bachelor’s degree recipients at The American University in 2019-2020 were awarded to racial-ethnic minorities*. This is about the same as the nationwide number of 29%.
| Race/Ethnicity | Number of Students |
|---|---|
| Asian | 1 |
| Black or African American | 8 |
| Hispanic or Latino | 20 |
| Native American or Alaska Native | 0 |
| Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander | 0 |
| White | 60 |
| International Students | 12 |
| Other Races/Ethnicities | 4 |
Public Relations & Advertising students may decide to major in one of the following focus areas.
| Focus Area | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Public Relations | 105 |
You may also be interested in one of these majors related to public relations and advertising.
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Communication & Media Studies | 34 |
| Journalism | 45 |
*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
