Becoming Accredited in Public Relations (APR)

The designation “Accredited in Public Relations (APR)” signifies a high level of professional experience and competence among public relations practitioners. Becoming accredited is definitely something to put on your task lists as newcomers to the field.

The APR exam was designed for professionals with at least five years of paid experience in the full-time practice or in the teaching of public relations and who have earned a bachelor's degree in a communication-specific field or have equivalent work experience.

Earning the APR mark of distinction signifies that a public relations professional is committed to the profession and to its ethical practice.

PRSA Houston APR chairs Amy Kaiser and Aaron Woods, APR, are proud to present Scott Scheffler, APR, external communications specialist with Marathon Oil, and Dennis Winkler, APR, president of Winkler Public Relations, as Accredited Professionals following their successful completion of the APR examination process.

The Houston Chapter will schedule its next study course in the Fall, but encourages those who are interested to begin preparing now! You may visit http://www.praccreditation.org for complete information about preparation tools, facts, and procedures for taking the Accreditation exam.

Amyoffers this advice, too: "Although a five-year experience is recommended to take the exam, it is not required. But, please keep in mind that the exam is DESIGNED for a seasoned professional, and it's virtually impossible to pass the exam on book knowledge alone -- the exam will ask questions that do not appear in ANY of the study materials!"

Thanks, Amy and Aaron!