Crisis Communication Credit

From accusations of fiscal or legal mismanagement, cyberattacks, labor issues and board chair-executive director disputes to controversies, mergers and acquisitions, we live in a 24-minute news cycle, where everyone has a mobile phone capable of posting their problem or complaint directly on social media, which often results in a story in the news media. 

It’s a fact: Controversies today are tried in the court of public opinion more often than in the court of law.

The skill set you used to get into your present position isn’t the same skill set it takes to manage a crisis situation. The same is true for most of the PR and marketing people working for nonprofits and professional service firms because the skill set for crisis work is much different than the traditional practice of public relations. 

Experience has shown that the faster and more forthright an organization is when it responds to thorny issues, the more likely it is to contain or neutralize what might otherwise become an extended and damaging attack on its reputation and brand.

The Crisis Communication Graduate Certificate from Ohio University's Scripps College of Communication will prepare you to guide your organization and communicate before, during and after a crisis using industry-proven crisis communications techniques and social media. 

The one credit hour you’ll earn by completing a Hennes Communications seminar will count towards our crisis communications graduate certificate. The certificate can be earned alone or you can combine it with other coursework to earn an online master's degree in communication or organizational communication.

Benefits of Certificate

Corporations, nonprofits, health care, education, government, law enforcement, legal and accounting and other professional service firms all have one thing in-common: Every one of them can suddenly find themselves the target of a crisis situation. And every minute that goes by can damage the organization’s most important uninsured asset – its reputation.

Whether you’re already a senior executive or just coming up through the ranks, knowing how to handle a crisis situation – especially when attorneys are counseling “no comment” – will benefit your career and the organization you work for.

Why Ohio University

Communication history runs deep at OHIO. The first communication study areas were being taught in 1808, just four years after OHIO was established. With over 30,000 Scripps alumni, including Pulitzer and other top award-winning journalists and photographers, you will join an alumni and networking base of some of the best communicators across the world. 

While OHIO is physically located in Athens, Ohio, our online courses provide the same top-notch education to thousands of online students all over. Ranked #1 best online college in the state for affordability, we can help you set up your next or improve your current career path.