Twenty years and 700 professional careers in Advertising and Public Relations

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  • The increasing importance of communication in society led to the development of this UVic degree two decades ago. The importance of communication continues to grow and the sector has undergone an incredible revolution marked by technological evolution
  • The Faculty of Business and Communication is celebrating the 20th anniversary of these studies with three initiatives that link current students with alumni who are working in the profession in various sectors

“Twenty years, 700 professional careers”. With this slogan, degree in Advertising and Public Relations commemorates its 20th anniversary this year. It does so with the aim of highlighting the professional value of all those who have so far graduated from these studies at the University and recognizing the mark they have left and will leave in years to come. As Guillem Marca, coordinator of the degree taught at the Vic campus of the University of Vic - Central University of Catalonia (UVic-UCC), explains, 20 years is the length of our experience in what we do and 700 is the number of successes that, as educators, we have achieved in this period, a figure that is not bad at all.”

Studies in Advertising and Public Relations at UVic-UCC began in the 2001-2002 academic year. At that time, the dean of the Faculty of Business and Communication Studies, Josep Burgaya, noted that “communication and image are becoming increasingly relevant in our global society and are becoming essential factors in business and economic activity.” In this way, he explained why this degree (which started as a pre-EHEA degree) was included in the faculty’s training offer.

Burgaya recalled that two decades ago very few universities taught undergraduate courses in Advertising. In the UVic, when the pre-EHEA degree was created, it was considered that “it would complement the knowledge of Business studies, as the fields have synergies and similarities, and would be brought together in the same faculty that was under construction.” “The idea was well-received from the outset, and time has also shown that it was the right decision,” said the dean. He supported his argument with the list of professionals who have passed the degree and who “now occupy prominent positions in the industry and in benchmark, leading companies.”

«Technological development has created new opportunities and new all-encompassing professional profiles»

Twenty years later, again in the position of dean, Burgaya said: “Although the world and our society have changed radically, the growing need to communicate more and better that marked the launch of the degree has not only been maintained, but has become increasingly important.” What has changed is the way this communication is conceived and the advertising and public relations sector. Burgaya added that this sector “has experienced a spectacular revolution,” as “technological development has created new opportunities and new all-encompassing professional profiles.”

Consequently, the UVic’s degree in Advertising and Public Relations has evolved with the world, maintaining its essence but adapting to new challenges, the changing market context, the paradigm shifts and, above all, the constant transformation of new technologies. An example of this ongoing updating is the current curriculum, which began to be implemented in 2015 and has been consolidated in recent years.

“We have updated methodologies, concepts and contents to facilitate the employment of students,” explains Guillem Marca. According to him, “students learn to develop working methods with immediate practical applications in agencies or with advertisers, using the foundations in the sector at the current time.” At the same time, students gain knowledge, resources and skills that "prepare them to continue to learn once they have graduated, and to know how to constantly update and continuously and easily adapt to the changing environments in the sector.” In addition, the degree has a wide range of training options to meet the specific needs of any professional profile, such as the evolution and monitoring of markets or data processing.

The celebration of the 20th anniversary of the degree in Advertising and Public Relations looks back at the past and makes a commitment to the future.

The celebration of the 20th anniversary of the degree in Advertising and Public Relations at UVic started last spring and will continue throughout this academic year. In a context still marked by the Covid-19 pandemic, the Faculty of Business and Communication Studies chose to celebrate with three actions, all “aimed at recognizing the mark these studies have left and will leave in years to come,” explained Guillem Marca. The first two activities –Career Talks and Career Experience– were held at the end of last year and the third activity, MentorPlan 1800, starts now and will be implemented throughout 2021-2022.

All the proposals “put into contact current students and alumni from the institution with very diverse professional backgrounds,” said Marca. According to the degree coordinator, the experience of “current students seeing the various futures that could await them” is proving to be “rewarding and enriching for everyone.”

The year of the 20th anniversary of the degree in Advertising and Public Relations has also coincided with a relevant date for the UVic-UCC. That is the award this November of an honorary doctorate, the institution’s highest distinction, to the publicist and businessman Lluís Bassat, a leading figure in the sector, at the proposal of the Faculty of Business and Communication Studies.

Career Talks

The Career Talks consist of meetings, face-to-face and online, between current undergraduate students and alumni who have graduated and are working in different branches of the sector. The aim of the sessions is to provide a space where alumni can share information about their experiences, impressions and careers with current students. The first calls, held last May, focused on the field of communication, the digital world and creativity in the field of advertising. This academic year, other Career Talks are planned on the organization of events and the fashion world, a sector in which many alumni are working, and on entrepreneurship, since, as Guillem Marca explained, “many graduates have started communication projects as freelancers or by creating their own companies.”

Career Experience

The Career Experiences are a repository of alumni careers in personal interview format. Under the heading “12Testimonials / 12Weeks”, at the end of last year they were published on the blog of the Faculty of Business and Communication Studies. In the interviews, the main elements of the working life of the alumni are highlighted, starting with their passage through university and their first job, and ending by explaining their professional life and the projects of interest they have promoted or in which they have participated. Interviewees also offer advice to students, and share links to their professional and social media profiles.

Mentor Plan 1800

The Mentor Plan 1800 begins this academic year and involves alumni providing professional mentoring for fourth-year students. The professionals trained at the UVic and currently work in agencies such as DDB, Publicis or OgilvyEs, or in companies like Banco Sabadell, Futbol Club Barcelona or Toyota Motor, among others. The mentoring has support materials that make it easy to identify milestones in the process itself, what to think about and what to do before starting a mentoring relationship, how to maintain that relationship, how to end it, or even how to define the roles and responsibilities of both parties. Matching between participants will begin next December so that the meetings can take place in the second semester. A first assessment of the programme will take place in June, and it is expected to be continued.