Subjects
Courses
Colleges and Institutes
- English
- Arabic
- Chinese (Simplified)
- Chinese (Traditional)
- French
- Italian
- Japanese
- Korean
- Portuguese
- Russian
- Spanish
- Thai

Gabriel Chan

College

London College of Communication

Person Type

Alumni

Biography

Gabriel Chan graduated from MA Public Relations from London College of Communication in 2019.

Interview

Why did you decide to pursue a postgraduate degree in public relations?

I worked for Hong Kong political parties when I was finishing my bachelor’s degree in politics.

Having a chance to participate in elections and political campaigns made me realised the significance of communications and relationship management, on how they raise awareness and shape perceptions, thus leading to change in actions - voting behaviours, their social media activities, protests, etc.

That is why I chose PR after graduating from my undergraduate degree in politics.

What was the highlight of studying at London College of Communication?

The collaborative unit is definitely a highlight of my study in LCC. In the module, my team had the chance to work with ACAS, a public organisation which helps both employees and employers in creating an efficient and better workplace.

Throughout the project, we had the chance to take a brief from a real client, ACAS told us what do they need to build on their communications platforms, and our team had the chance to develop a communications plan for them.

The project ended with a presentation prepared by our team, sharing our insights on how to improve their social media presence and appeal to a wider range of audiences.

That was my first client-serving experience, and it was very useful.

What was the most valuable lesson you learnt from studying on the course?

Lessons on the public sphere and how do PR contribute to/influence the society.

It gave me a better idea of how PR really works in a broader view, and that made me understand the purpose and importance of my current job working in a PR agency.

Why would you recommend MA Public Relations to prospective students?

People usually believe PR professionals/practitioners are spin doctors. In this course, through looking into PR theories, prospective students would be able to learn more about PR, to look into the function of PR from another angle.

On top of theories, practical skillsets and experiences are also key components of the course.

The course equipped me with professional skills which are extremely useful for my current job, whether it is writing communications plan for an international corporation, developing social media content for brands, or participating in TV and radio interviews as a spokesperson.

Those experience are very useful and gave me an idea of how the industry works.

What are the main benefits of studying public relations in London?

First, major communications and Public Relations agencies are based in London, which means a lot of internships and placements.

Second, as one of the best financial and business destination, London has a lot of brands, which means a lot of case studies will be available while PR students are trying to find examples for their essays and dissertation.

What have you been up to since graduating from the course?

I had two placements in W communications and Freud. Both are PR agencies with really cool clients.

I had the chance to participate in PR campaigns for cool consumer brands like Ben and Jerry’s and Nike Football.

I am currently an associate at the Public Relations and Influence cluster of Ogilvy Hong Kong. That gave me intensive exposure to professional PR practices, and an opportunity to work on executing regional strategic communications plan for major global brands.

I am so grateful to have the chance to participate in major campaigns of established brands, and to work alongside a fantastic team.

Related area

View the MA Public Relations course page.