How to hire public relations specialists

Job description template

Copy it, fill in the brackets, and remove anything that does not fit your job. Keep only must-haves you would really turn someone away for.

[Job title] at [Company name]
[City, State] · [Full-time / Part-time] · [Pay range]

About the role
[Two or three sentences about your team, the work and why it matters.]

What you will do
• Coach client representatives in effective communication with the public or with employees.
• Confer with other managers to identify trends or key group interests or concerns or to provide advice on business decisions.
• Establish or maintain cooperative relationships with representatives of community, consumer, employee, or public interest groups.
• Plan or direct development or communication of programs to maintain favorable public or stockholder perceptions of an organization's accomplishments, agenda, or environmental responsibility.
• Post and update content on the company's Web site and social media outlets.
• Respond to requests for information from the media or designate an appropriate spokesperson or information source.
• Study the objectives, promotional policies, or needs of organizations to develop public relations strategies that will influence public opinion or promote ideas, products, or services.
• Write press releases or other media communications to promote clients.

What you bring
• [Required license, certification or years of experience, if any]
• [Education, only if you truly need it. Typical to start in this job: Bachelor's degree]
• Strong active listening, speaking, reading comprehension, writing, critical thinking and active learning skills
• Working knowledge of communications and media, English Language, administration and management and customer and personal service
• [Anything else you would really turn someone away for]

Pay and benefits
[Pay range]. For reference, the U.S. median for this job is $35.94 an hour ($74,750 a year).
[Benefits, schedule and anything else candidates should know.]

How to apply
[Apply on JAI Bot. Every applicant hears back.]

Copy the template Check your finished job post

Interview questions for public relations specialists

Ask every candidate the same questions, in the same order, and write down what they say. Questions about past work show what someone has actually done.

1. Tell me about a time you had to coach client representatives in effective communication with the public or with employees. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
2. Tell me about a time you had to confer with other managers to identify trends or key group interests or concerns or to provide advice on business decisions. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
3. Tell me about a time you had to establish or maintain cooperative relationships with representatives of community, consumer, employee, or public interest groups. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
4. Tell me about a time you had to plan or direct development or communication of programs to maintain favorable public or stockholder perceptions of an organization's accomplishments, agenda, or environmental responsibility. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
5. Tell me about a time you had to understand a request or problem that was explained poorly. How did you make sure you got it right?
6. Explain something technical from your last job as you would to a new coworker.
7. Tell me about written instructions, a policy or a manual you had to follow closely. How did you make sure you followed it correctly?
8. Why this job, and why now? What would make you stay here for the long term?

Good answers name a real situation, what the person did themselves and what happened. Avoid questions about age, family plans, religion, health, national origin or anything else unrelated to the job.

What public relations specialists do

• Coach client representatives in effective communication with the public or with employees.
• Confer with other managers to identify trends or key group interests or concerns or to provide advice on business decisions.
• Establish or maintain cooperative relationships with representatives of community, consumer, employee, or public interest groups.
• Plan or direct development or communication of programs to maintain favorable public or stockholder perceptions of an organization's accomplishments, agenda, or environmental responsibility.
• Post and update content on the company's Web site and social media outlets.
• Respond to requests for information from the media or designate an appropriate spokesperson or information source.
• Study the objectives, promotional policies, or needs of organizations to develop public relations strategies that will influence public opinion or promote ideas, products, or services.
• Write press releases or other media communications to promote clients.

Skills that matter most

Active ListeningSpeakingReading ComprehensionWritingCritical ThinkingActive LearningCommunications and MediaEnglish LanguageAdministration and ManagementCustomer and Personal Service

Education, experience and outlook for public relations specialists

• Typical education to start: Bachelor's degree (BLS)
• Job outlook: +1.8% over ten years, little or no change · about 23,000 openings a year (BLS)

What to pay public relations specialists

Pay depends a lot on where the job is. Highest and lowest median yearly pay by state:

See public relations specialists pay in every state

Related hiring guides

• Broadcast Announcers and Radio Disc Jockeys
• News Analysts, Reporters, and Journalists
• Editors
• Technical Writers
• Writers and Authors
• Interpreters and Translators
• Court Reporters and Simultaneous Captioners
• Media and Communication Workers, All Other

Job duties and skills: O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license; O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. JAI Bot has modified this information; USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. Pay: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS, May 2025. Interview questions and the job description template: JAI Bot, based on the duties and skills above.