Start a PRSSA Chapter

If you are interested in starting a Chapter, review the guidelines below and the charter application form (Word or PDF) to see if your school is eligible. Contact PRSSA Headquarters if you have questions.

• School Requirements – To be eligible, your school must be a four-year college or university that offers baccalaureate degrees and is nationally or regionally accredited.
• Required Courses – Confirm that your college or university offers a sequence of at least five public relations courses and is supplemented by additional courses relevant to public relations. See the charter application form  (Word or PDF) for the list of specific required courses.
• Endorsement – Secure endorsement from a PRSA sponsor Chapter. You can find contact information for these Chapters on the PRSA website.
• Students – Find 10 or more students who will join your new PRSSA Chapter. Eight of the students must be at or below the junior level.
• Faculty Adviser – Every Chapter must have a Faculty Adviser. The Adviser must teach one of the approved public relations courses and be a member or associate member of PRSA.
• Professional Adviser – Every Chapter also must have a Professional Adviser who has at least five years of public relations experience and is a PRSA member.
• Application Fee – You must send a $100 nonrefundable application fee with your application or prior to us receiving your application. This can be sent as a check, payable to PRSSA, or you can pay via credit card over the phone by calling 212-460-1474.
  

One required element of the Chapter charter application process is a draft of proposed Chapter bylaws. These bylaws should follow the example of the PRSSA National Bylaws but be specific to the individual Chapter operations. Use the Chapter Template Bylaws as a guide when drafting your Chapter’s proposed bylaws.

Any time your Chapter reviews and updates these bylaws, please submit them to the PRSSA National Committee for approval.

To apply, schools must submit the following:

• One copy of the completed application and proposed bylaws.
• One copy of each syllabus for the required public relations courses.
• One copy of the teacher biographies.
• The college/university catalogue online.
• A nonrefundable application fee of $100. This can be sent as a check, payable to PRSSA, or you can pay via credit card over the phone by calling 212-460-1474.

If your school meets all the criteria, send the completed charter application in one attachment via email to: