AUT - Become a Client or Mentor at Outside the Square
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Become a Client or Mentor at Outside the Square
There are two ways you can participate in Outside the Square: become our client or be a mentor to our students.
Become a Client
If you are a not-for-profit organisation and have an appropriate project, or are a consultant with a pro-bono client who could do with some help, please contact us with some details. If the project is suitable and can be realistically completed within the 10 – 12 week time-frame, you will be invited to come and talk to the students about it in mid-July, and a student team can start working with you soon after.
Your commitments as a client are to:
- Come up with an ‘opportunity’ suitable for an Outside the Square team
- Brief the team fully
- Set regular meetings (weekly or fortnightly) to make sure their work is on track
- Contribute up to $50 per student towards their out-of-pocket expenses, which AUT matches dollar for dollar. All expenses must be backed by gst receipts. Any additional work commissioned on your behalf must be signed off and paid for by you/your organisation.
- Complete an evaluation form for each student at the project’s end.
Each team has an experienced PR mentor to give them regular advice, as well as on-going supervision by AUT senior academic staff.
Outside the Square is a PR degree requirement, and students have to hand in two assignments relating to their campaign plans which are assessed and marked – however, these can be kept confidential if so requested.
Be A Mentor
If you are a PR practitioner, and the thought of providing professional guidance to a small team of PR students working on a project appeals to you then please let us know. Each year mentors have provided invaluable assistance to those students working on not-for-profit projects, and have felt enriched and satisfied by their involvement.
All that is asked of you is to meet with, or be in regular contact with the team a few times over the three month period (say, fortnightly), and encourage them to seek solutions ‘outside the square’. They may want to brainstorm ideas with you, ask your advice on project and event management, media liaison and on their written work – including proposals, reports or news releases.
The value they receive is in finding out how professional public relations consultants work, learning communication and time management skills, and having their written work assessed by experienced practitioners.
To become a client or mentor, contact our Academic Team.