Patrick Barrow - Director General of the PRCA (Public Relations Consultants Association)

PR. In recruitment terms there is always a queue at the door. The trouble is, that door rarely stops revolving. In the consultancy sector alone, staff churns runs at an average of 29%. The reasons for that are various and some are benign, but one factor is that PR, quite simply, is hard work.

Step number one then in the path to recruitment - and recruitment that will last - is to disabuse yourself of any starry-eyed notion that PR consists largely of attending celebrity events pausing only to collect an autograph and a fresh glass of champagne.

The fact is, and at particularly at entry level, you will be involved in hard graft execution in a profession where people hand you their reputation and ask you to look after it. Think about it.

For those still reading at this point, step two is arming yourself with the academic back-up to interest people. PR and media degrees are fine but are regarded within the industry as variable in quality, particularly when it comes to giving students the business – as distinct from PR skills - that they will need. Most continue to come armed with an arts degree but understand that these are nowadays a given and that employers are looking for much more.

The business skills are vital, whether in house or with an agency. Across most of British industry the lament is that graduates turn up educated for everything but work. With that in mind, get some experience. Whether working for your sports club, the local charity, even a local business, put some hours in.

It gives an insight into what is required and, what’s more, demonstrates commitment, enthusiasm and a positive approach which are the basic tools of any PR person. Passivity and detachment are simply not acceptable.

Some of the big PR firms – such as Bell Pottinger – run highly effective graduate trainee schemes and if you genuinely seek to develop a career in PR then there are fewer better groundings than these. They also have the great advantage of giving working experience across a number of sectors so that you can add serious focus to a career. There’s also the prize of being taken on permanently.

Getting onto a graduate scheme is competitive and adding to your CV something that differentiates you from the other 80 applications in the pile is imperative. PR is a profession that relies heavily on personality and it is a top tip that an employer should gain from your CV some sense of you as a person beyond the sum of your qualifications.

This should not be seen as an invitation to write in strange coloured inks with scattergun exclamation marks, nor should it include claiming personal attributes that the practical side of your CV will not stand up. It’s a short cut to the bin.

Final thought; research the people and company, check and check again your CV and covering letter. PR people are sensitive creatures and have a compulsion to correct copy. The wrong name topping a generic application including a misspelling and the game is simply up.