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2025 Best Public Relations & Advertising Schools in the Southeast Region

52 Colleges in the Southeast Region
5,369 Public Relations Degrees Awarded
$41,961 Avg Early-Career Salary
A degree in public relations & advertising is more popular than many other degrees. In fact, it ranks #52 out of 395 on popularity of all such degrees in the nation. This means you won't have too much trouble finding schools that offer the degree.

In 2025, College Factual analyzed 52 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Public Relations & Advertising Schools in the Southeast Region ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 5,369 degrees in public relations & advertising annually.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Public Relations & Advertising School

Best Public Relations & Advertising Schools in the Southeast Region Your choice of public relations & advertising school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. We derive our Best Overall Public Relations & Advertising School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.

You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.

Pick Your Public Relations & Advertising Degree Level

Associate Degrees in Public Relations
Bachelor's Degrees in Public Relations
Master's Degrees in Public Relations
Doctor's Degrees in Public Relations

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Public Relations & Advertising Schools in the Southeast Region list, to help you choose the best school for you. You can also filter this list by location to find schools closer to you.

In addition to College Factual's rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don't forget it.

More information on how we come up with our rankings can be found here: College Factual's Data Methodology.

Best Schools for Public Relations & Advertising in the Southeast Region

Although we recommend filtering by degree level first, you can view the list below to see which schools give the educational experience for the public relations degree levels they offer. Only those schools that rank in the top 20% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.

10 Top Southeast Region Schools in Public Relations

1
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
391 Public Relations Degrees Awarded
1.8% Growth in Graduates

Any student pursuing a degree in public relations & advertising has to look into University of Georgia. Located in the city of Athens, UGA is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #69 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UGA is a great university overall.

There were roughly 391 public relations & advertising students who graduated with this degree at UGA in the most recent data year. Public Relations & Advertising degree recipients from University of Georgia receive an earnings boost of around $3,347 over the typical earnings of public relations & advertising graduates.

More information about a degree in public relations & advertising from University of Georgia

2
UF crest
University of Florida
Gainesville, FL
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
386 Public Relations Degrees Awarded
$42,099 Median Starting Salary

Any student who is interested in public relations & advertising needs to take a look at University of Florida. Located in the medium-sized city of Gainesville, UF is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #56 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UF is a great university overall.

There were about 386 public relations & advertising students who graduated with this degree at UF in the most recent data year. Graduates who receive their degree from the public relations program earn around $42,099 in the first couple years of their career.

More information about a degree in public relations & advertising from University of Florida

Sponsored
Bachelors Degree Type
BA in Communication - Public Relations Program Name

Prepare to develop your skills in building mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their public audiences.

More information about a degree in BA in Communication - Public Relations from Southern New Hampshire University

Related Programs

3
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
363 Public Relations Degrees Awarded
6.3% Growth in Graduates

It is hard to beat The University of Alabama if you want to pursue a degree in public relations & advertising. UA is a fairly large public university located in the medium-sized city of Tuscaloosa. A Best Colleges rank of #180 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UA is a great university overall.

There were approximately 363 public relations & advertising students who graduated with this degree at UA in the most recent data year. After graduating, public relations degree recipients generally earn about $42,445 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a degree in public relations & advertising from The University of Alabama

4
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In NC
176 Public Relations Degrees Awarded

Elon University is a wonderful decision for students pursuing a degree in public relations & advertising. Located in the medium-sized suburb of Elon, Elon is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of #190 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Elon is a great university overall.

There were approximately 176 public relations & advertising students who graduated with this degree at Elon in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in public relations & advertising from Elon University

5
U Miami crest
University of Miami
Coral Gables, FL
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
169 Public Relations Degrees Awarded
$43,917 Median Starting Salary

U Miami is a large private not-for-profit university located in the suburb of Coral Gables. A Best Colleges rank of #175 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means U Miami is a great university overall.

There were roughly 169 public relations & advertising students who graduated with this degree at U Miami in the most recent year we have data available. After graduation, public relations degree recipients generally make around $43,917 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a degree in public relations & advertising from University of Miami

6
Graduate Certificate Highest Degree Type
204 Public Relations Degrees Awarded
$42,974 Median Starting Salary

UofSC is a fairly large public university located in the midsize city of Columbia. A Best Colleges rank of #99 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UofSC is a great university overall.

There were approximately 204 public relations & advertising students who graduated with this degree at UofSC in the most recent year we have data available. Graduates who receive their degree from the public relations program earn about $42,974 in the first couple years of working.

More information about a degree in public relations & advertising from University of South Carolina - Columbia

7
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
175 Public Relations Degrees Awarded
$45,275 Median Starting Salary

UK is a fairly large public university located in the large city of Lexington. A Best Colleges rank of #220 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UK is a great university overall.

There were roughly 175 public relations & advertising students who graduated with this degree at UK in the most recent year we have data available. Public Relations & Advertising degree recipients from University of Kentucky earn a boost of about $3,314 over the average earnings of public relations & advertising graduates.

More information about a degree in public relations & advertising from University of Kentucky

Sponsored
Masters Degree Type
MA in Communication - Public Relations Program Name

Learn how to use the latest technology and tactics to manage the flow of information between brands and the public with your Master's in Communication with a concentration in Public Relations at Southern New Hampshire University.

More information about a degree in MA in Communication - Public Relations from Southern New Hampshire University

Related Programs

8
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
167 Public Relations Degrees Awarded
44.3% Growth in Graduates

Located in the small city of Morgantown, WVU is a public university with a very large student population. This university ranks 2nd out of 25 schools for overall quality in the state of West Virginia.

There were about 167 public relations & advertising students who graduated with this degree at WVU in the most recent year we have data available. Those public relations & advertising students who get their degree from West Virginia University make $14,874 more than the average public relations grad.

More information about a degree in public relations & advertising from West Virginia University

9
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
158 Public Relations Degrees Awarded
0.6% Growth in Graduates

Located in the distant town of Boone, Appalachian State is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 11th out of 93 colleges for overall quality in the state of North Carolina.

There were about 158 public relations & advertising students who graduated with this degree at Appalachian State in the most recent data year. Graduates who receive their degree from the public relations program make an average of $36,559 in the first couple years of working.

More information about a degree in public relations & advertising from Appalachian State University

10
WKU crest
Western Kentucky University
Bowling Green, KY
Graduate Certificate Highest Degree Type
135 Public Relations Degrees Awarded
21.5% Growth in Graduates

Located in the city of Bowling Green, WKU is a public university with a large student population. This university ranks 6th out of 39 colleges for overall quality in the state of Kentucky.

There were approximately 135 public relations & advertising students who graduated with this degree at WKU in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the public relations program state that they receive average early career income of $35,534.

More information about a degree in public relations & advertising from Western Kentucky University

Additional Noteworthy Schools

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Public Relations & Advertising Schools in the Southeast Region award.

Rank College Location
11 Florida State University Tallahassee, FL
12 The University of Tennessee - Knoxville Knoxville, TN
13 University of South Florida - Main Campus Tampa, FL
14 Lipscomb University Nashville, TN
15 University of Arkansas Fayetteville, AR
16 Auburn University Auburn, AL
17 University of Florida-Online Gainesville, FL

Best Public Relations & Advertising Colleges by State

Explore the best public relations & advertising colleges for a specific state in the Southeast Region .

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Georgia 287 639
Florida 282 1,746
North Carolina 279 413
Virginia 274 82
Tennessee 269 281
South Carolina 248 345
Kentucky 244 436
Louisiana 242 124
Mississippi 234 64
Arkansas 234 134
Alabama 233 475
West Virginia 207 114

View All Rankings >

Public Relations & Advertising is one of 5 different types of Communication & Journalism programs to choose from.

Public Relations Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication 1,571
Public Relations 1,474
Advertising 1,035
Communication Management and Strategic Communications 455
Other Public Relations, Advertising, & Applied Communication 274
General Organizational Communication 186
Sports Communication 184
Political Communication 55
Health Communication 49
Technical & Scientific Communication 46

View All Public Relations Focus Areas >

Related Major Annual Graduates
Communication & Media Studies 14,251
Radio, Television & Digital Communication 3,646
Journalism 2,731
Communication & Journalism (Other) 534
Publishing 14

View All Public Relations Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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