I Thought I Knew PR — Then I Hit Send

I remember sitting in my first PR lecture at TU Dublin, confidently thinking, “I’ve got this. ” I’d studied Mass Communication in Singapore and the United States, worked on campaigns for assignments, and thought I could write a decent press release. 

Fast forward to my first week working as an Account Executive in Ireland — staring at my screen, triple-checking a subject line, terrified of sending the wrong email to a real journalist. 

That’s when it hit me: knowing about PR and doing PR are two very different worlds. 

In college, you perfect your work - you write, edit, get feedback, and submit. Now, as an Account Executive in an Irish PR firm, deadlines, client emails, and media lists are constantly moving targets. The “target audience” from your essays suddenly becomes real people with opinions, expectations, and emotions. 

The biggest shift hasn’t been technical. It’s internal. Learning to be okay with not knowing everything. Learning to ask questions without feeling embarrassed. Learning that confidence isn’t something you wake up with — it’s built slowly, one task at a time. 

Even small wins, like seeing a press release I drafted get approved, feel huge. 

I’m still early in my PR journey. I still overthink. But each task teaches me more than any textbook ever could. 

And honestly? 

After studying in Singapore and the US, and now working in Ireland, I’m realising that PR isn’t just different on paper — it’s different everywhere you go. 

Every office, every culture, every client teaches you something new, and that’s what keeps it exciting! 

- Devika Baburaj, MPRII, Account Executive, DHR Communications.