Student Organizations
At the Robertson School, we encourage you to participate in school-supported student organizations. These groups offer opportunities for you to develop leadership, professional and academic skills, build relationships with your fellow students and faculty, and explore mass communications topics in ways that are student-directed.
Ad Club
The Ad Club at VCU is a community of students interested in the field of advertising. Through agency tours, guest speakers, workshops and social events, their goal is to prepare members for a career in advertising and forge lasting connections.
Kappa Tau Alpha
Kappa Tau Alpha is the honor society for journalism and mass communications. According to the organization’s website, “Membership must be earned by excellence in academic work at one of the colleges and universities that have chapters. Selection for membership is a mark of highest distinction and honor.”
Membership is by invitation only. The faculty adviser, Tim Bajkiewicz, Ph.D., associate professor, contacts students as they become eligible. The school holds an induction ceremony every semester. The school established its chapter in 1978, named the George T. Crutchfield Chapter, after the former director of the then VCU School of Mass Communications.
Public Relations Student Society of America
The Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) is a network of more than 300 chapters in the United States, Argentina, Colombia and Peru. It is the main organization for students interested in the field of public relations. The VCU Chapter of PRSSA engages students in the field of public relations through guest speakers, networking events and workshops, amongst other things. The chapter’s faculty adviser is Maggie McDearmon.
Society of Professional Journalists
The Society of Professional Journalists is the leading organization for journalists in both print and electronic media. According to their website, "For more than 100 years, the Society of Professional Journalists has been dedicated to encouraging a climate in which journalism can be practiced more freely and fully, stimulating high standards and ethical behavior in the practice of journalism and perpetuating a free press."
The Robertson School’s official chapter of SPJ, SPJ@VCU, meets regularly and sponsors events for professional networking and development, and for just plain fun. The chapter’s faculty adviser is Alix Bryan, journalism instructor.