Bachelor's degree in Advertising and Public Relations - Syllabus

FIRST YEAR

1

Socio-economic Structures

Sociology

B

6

Knowledge of contemporary social formations, paying special attention to political, social and economic structures and their relation with the formation of markets and target audiences of advertising and public relations communications. 

1

Fundamentals of Advertising and Public Relations

Communication

B

12

Study of advertising as a communications process and its main players. Study of the social function of public relations. Analysis and introduction to processes of communication. 

2

Social Structures and Cultural Trends

Sociology

B

6

Study of how different social factors affect the habits, values and tastes of social groups and generate a variety of types of cultural trends that are shown in everyday life as different lifestyles. 

3

Psycho-sociology of Consumption

Sociology

B

6

Study of the phenomenon of consumerism from its sociological perspective and from the contributions by social psychology. Analysis of consumer motivations and the behaviour of the different publics in the framework of current societies and their relationship with the disciplines of advertising and public relations. 

3

Theories and Techniques of Ideation in Advertising

Communication

B

6

Study of the creativity, the theories and of the techniques of ideation and creative stimulation applied to narrative-persuasive archetypes and the generative rhetoric of messages. 

1

Infography Techniques

O

4

Study of the role of infographics in audiovisual communication. Study of the history of computation, of the parts and of the functioning of computers dealing with the analogue-digital binomial, as well as images of synthesis. 

2

Methods of Message Analysis

O

4

Introduction to the main methods of analysis of contents - visual and written - of the messages of advertising and public relations. Specifically, this subject deals with the different methods of qualitative analysis, both textual and from the point of view of reception and its target audiences. 

2

History and Genres of Audiovisual Media

O

4

Introduction to the knowledge of audiovisual history, structure, contents and languages, paying special attention to the development of the genres in the different audiovisual media. 

2

Public Opinion

O

4

Study of public opinion and of the historical transformations of the public sphere. Analysis of the processes of political communication in social, economic and cultural areas. 

3

Analysis of Form, Colour and Composition

O

4

Study of the principles of sensory perception and of the interpretation of visual inputs for the construction of persuasive messages. Study of the formal, compositional and chromatic structures paying attention to their perceptive, aesthetic and semantic characteristics and to their uses in visual communication. 

3

Graphic Design I

O

4

Study of the bases of graphic design as a language to devise, organise, programme and project artefacts of communication. The use of typography and image in their textual and iconic aspects. 

SECOND YEAR

1

Strategic and Operational Marketing

Economics

B

6

Introduction to the basic concepts of marketing and of the process of commercialising products and services in market economies. 

2

Processes and Techniques of Audiovisual Creation in Advertising and Public Relations

Communication

B

6

Knowledge of the advertising audiovisual process and of the technical bases of audiovisual narration applied to advertising and to public relations. 

2

Statistics and Market Research Methods

Economics

B

6

Study of qualitative and quantitative research methods, dealing with the kind of research that is required by each entrepreneurial project. Identification of information sources to take decisions of product concept, positioning, packaging, prices and advertising. 

3

Sociology of Communication and Methods of Social Research in Communication

Sociology

B

6

Study of social research methods. Relation of scientific knowledge with other types of knowledge. Knowledge and command of the methodology of the social sciences to deal with the epistemological bases of communication. 

1

Analysis of Image Significance

O

4

This subject deals with the main perspectives, concepts and methods used to analyse the signification of image (both still and the specificity of the audiovisual image) and of the different existing paths between the plastics of the image and the generation of general and abstract values and attributes. 

1

Structure of Communication and Advertising Media

O

4

Study of the elements, the forms, the processes and structures of communication, and, in particular, their relationship with advertising and public relations activity. 

1

Public Relations Techniques

O

4

Study of the techniques of direction and management in the field of business and institutional communication. Differential and casuistic treatment of the different techniques according to the receivers of the public relations process. 

2

Analysis of Interactive Media Messages

O

4

Study of the messages produced based on interactive communications media. Analysis of the formal, semantic and pragmatic aspects of messages in interactive media. 

2

History and Theories of Advertising and Public Relations

O

4

Study of the origins of advertising and public relations communication and its consolidation in western society. An in-depth look at the theories that have marked the two disciplines, via the analysis of the theoretical models contributed by different professionals and academics. 

3

Analysis of Advertising Messages

O

4

Students tackle the specificity of signification in advertising messages, taking visual, linguistic and sound registers into consideration. They deal as much with the specific language of advertising and the theories and methods of analysis generated from the point of view of advertising. 

3

Writing Techniques in Advertising and Public Relations

O

4

Theoretical study and applied development of the main techniques of elaborating verbal messages in advertising and public relations. 

3

Audiovisual Scriptwriting and Narrative

O

4

Knowledge of and implementing techniques of writing scripts in advertising format, placing the theoretical and practical basis on the knowledge of narrative in the audiovisual media.

3

Graphic Design II

O

4

Analysis, experimentation and the design process of graphic design applied to advertising and public relations. Conceptualisation and proposal of solutions for society's communications needs. 

THIRD YEAR

1

Academic and Professional Uses of English

O

4

       Oral comprehension of lectures in English.

       Oral production in English: questions and brief interventions; oral presentations with visual and text support; formulas and language for group discussion.

       Techniques for understanding and memorising vocabulary.

       Efficient reading of short specialist texts in English.

       Techniques of writing short texts: structuring; edition; style conventions and international formats; the paragraph; writing long texts.

       Specialised glossary search techniques.

1

Creation of Advertising Messages

O

5

Study of the strategies and processes aimed at creating advertising campaigns in the different communications vehicles and media. Work of the different stages of the development of a campaign: creation, writing and presentation of sketches and stories. 

2

Media Planning

O

5

Introduction to the analysis, selection, purchase and evaluation of communications vehicles for the dissemination of advertising campaigns. 

2

Advertising Production in Radio and Television

O

6

Study and development of the conception, production and making of advertising genres using the expressive, narrative and industrial strategies and techniques of the radio and television. 

2

Strategic Planning

O

4

Study of the processes of analysis, diagnosis and planning of the communication of a commercial brand. Application to advertising activity. 

3

Interactive Scriptwriting and Design for Advertising and Corporate Communication

O

4

Study of the process of the scripting and design of multimedia interactives applied to advertising and public relations. Review of the bases of audiovisual and sequential narrative based on which a non-sequential script is conceptualised and created taking into account the integration of all the different media that come into play in a multimedia interactive (text, sound, image). Methodology of writing interactive scripts: conceptualisation, script, design of animated scripts (storyboards), navigation and interaction map. Study, analysis and experimentation of the different genres (games, documentaries, educational, promotional..) and of the different platforms (CD-ROM, DVD, websites and mobile platforms...). 

3

Public Relations Project

O

4

Study of the strategic process of corporate communication and public relations. Knowledge of the dynamics of the different communications programmes. Ability to identify target audiences, to determine the objectives, to articulate messages and to choose suitable techniques. Development of media strategies, the management of potential conflicts and of institutional communication. 

FOURTH YEAR

1

Business Structure and Advertising and Public Relations Departments

O

5

Study and analysis of models of advertising agencies, public relations agencies and internal communication and public relations departments in organisations, paying special attention to the systems of organisation, customer relations and retribution. 

1

Journalism and Communication Agencies

O

5

Study of agency journalism as a basic tool of public relations activity. Knowledge of the agents and of the main roles in the task of the relationship between enterprise and institutions with the communications media. 

1

Marketing and Institutional, Social and Political Communication

O

5

Study of the processes of strategic planning, of the structures and models of institutional, social and political communication. Knowledge of the impact of the communication of the culture industries, the industries of persuasion and political messages in society. Strategies of positioning and differentiation. 

End-of-degree project

2

Advertising Communication Project

O

8

Students carry out an advertising communication project based on a commission in the form of a request by a company placing an advertisement. Development of the stages of analysis and research, strategy, creativity, execution and evaluation. 

3

Public Relations Strategies

O

8

Students carry out a corporate communication project based on a commission in the form of a request by a company. Development of the stages of analysis and research, strategy, creativity, execution and evaluation. 

3

Social, Institutional and Political Communication Project

O

7

Students carry out an institutional, social or political communication project based on a commission by a public institution or a social or political organisation. Development of the stages of analysis and research, strategy, creativity, execution and evaluation. 

3

External internship

10

Practical initiation to the professional activity of advertising and public relations. 

Creative Advertising Itinerary

Art Direction

Op

4

The visual and graphic conception of messages based on the definition of aesthetic strategy and the production of sketches and mock-ups selecting and proposing the different agents involved in the project. 

Creation and Production of Corporate and Institutional  Audiovisual Works

Op

4

Knowledge and implementation of the production and making of audiovisuals for enterprise and institutions using audiovisual narrative and techniques. 

Music and Advertising

Op

4

Study and analysis of the different aesthetic criteria of music and its application to the phenomenon of advertising, especially music, voice, effects and silence in advertising communication. 

Spot Production

Op

4

Theoretical and practical knowledge of the different forms of audiovisual narration. Adaptation of narration to the different genres of advertising spots. An in-depth look at production and the processes involved. 

Characters and Dialogues Workshop

Op

4

Study and implementation of the techniques of creating characters and writing dialogues in the different advertising messages. 

Photography

Op

4

Study of photography as a means of transformation and persuasion of messages in advertising. Narrative ability of the photographic medium and its aesthetic, plastic and expressive registers in the contemporary media. 

Strategies of Advertising Communication Itinerary

Applied Strategic and  Operational Marketing

Op

4

Introduction to the basic concepts of marketing and of the process of commercialising products and services in the market economies. Analysis of cases and solving practical exercises. 

Account Management

Op

4

Study of the organisational and functional structure that plays a role in exercising the profession of accounts manager at an advertising agency, the department which manages all of the activity of the advertising process. 

Direct and Promotional Marketing

Op

4

Study and application of the main kinds of personalised commercial communications techniques. 

Media Planning. Case Study

Op

4

Introduction and analysis, selection, purchase and evaluation of communications vehicles for the dissemination of advertising campaigns. Analysis of cases and solving concrete exercises. 

Strategy and Brand Management

Op

4

Study of the main theoretical models that enable managing brands. An in-depth look into the methodology that enables measuring brands' image and positioning. 

Public Relations Itinerary

Risk and Crisis Communication

Op

4

Study of the concept of the communication of risk and of crisis, the players involved and the main strategies and techniques of communication related. 

Internal Communication

Op

4

Study of the principles of efficacious communication in organisations' internal communication and, especially, analysis of the tools for the planning of internal communication (internal communication plan). 

Strategies for Social Action

Op

4

Approach, by reflection and case studies, to the task of communicating companies' social actions, from a strategic, critical viewpoint of corporate social responsibility as a phenomenon that is currently consolidated. 

Organisation Protocols

Op

4

Study of the rules established and the codes governing organisation. Understanding professional development in reference to the sphere of official protocol as well as its business aspect. 

Pressure Groups and Stakeholders

Op

4

Study and analysis of the tools to manage the relations between the organisation and its key publics (authorities, regulators, trade unions, activists, others) and, especially, analysis of the techniques of lobbying in different scenarios. 

Communication and Events

Op

4

Specific study and analysis of the technique of "event organisation" public relations in the consolidation and in the transmission of the image of the brand or organisation. Study of cases in which the creative strategy applied to the event is analysed. 

Analysis and Research in Advertising and Public Relations Itinerary

Analysis of Persuasive Discourses

Op

4

Study and application of semantic, pragmatic and rhetorical methods of analysis to discourses that socially have a persuasive function. 

Analysis of Narrative Structures, Subjects and Myths  

Op

4

Study and application of semiotic, psychological and narratological methods of analysis to the narrative aspects of messages, with special emphasis on the knowledge of the relation between narrativity and persuasion. 

Analysis of the Effects of Advertising Messages

Op

4

This subject includes the study of the main method of analysis of the effects of messages and their applications to the specificity of advertising messages. The work on methods of analysis includes both the analysis of the specificity of the effects suggested from the point of view of the message and the different possibilities of its updating in accordance with the different target audiences of the messages. Application of pretext and post-text methods to advertising messages. 

Qualitative Methods of Consumer and Target Research  

Op

4

This subject offers a description of the main qualitative methods of research of the different target audiences of advertising communication and public relations; that is to say, it identifies as a fundamental objective not the analysis of the messages or technique of communication used, but rather it concentrates on research into the consumer and the target audiences of advertising and public relations communication, whether they are individuals, companies or institutions. 

Communication Processes Research IV

Op

4

This subject aims to present the main methodologies to research into the processes of communication, both in advertising and public relations. As an object it specifically identifies communication in advertising and public relations from the notion of process (and not the sum of elements or stages of communication) and the different elements that come into play in each act of communication in the different media and vehicles whose specificity they define. 

Optional transversal subjects on the different itineraries

Documentation in Advertising and Public Relations

Op

4

Study, analysis and management of the main information systems related with the professional activity of advertising and public relations. 

Political Communication and Electoral Propaganda

Op

4

Study of political communication strategies and electoral propaganda in the 20^th and 21^st centuries paying special attention to the analysis of citizens' assessment of political images as receivers of such communication. 

Legislation on Advertising and Public Relations Activities

Op

4

Study of the legislation governing advertising and public relations activities in respect of their contextualisation and development in Spain, with special reference to the laws and regulations that affect consumers' rights and duties. 

Ethics and Deontologics in Advertising and Public Relations

Op

4

Study of professional deontology in the field of advertising and in the field of public relations, and especially the analysis of ethical conflicts arising from the relationship between agency and client. Analysis of deontological codes. 

Public Speaking Techniques

Op

4

Study and training to communicate orally, fluently and eloquently in the context of professional advertising. 

Creativity in Advertising Media and Supports

Op

4

An in-depth look at the study of adapting the objectives of communication to the different media and advertising vehicles with the aim of developing strategies of innovative media. 

Creativity in Interactive Media Communication Forms

Op

4

Study and training for the development of the practice of interactive communication, the design, the script, the prototype and projects, applying the criterion of innovation. 

Intercultural Communication

Op

4

Analysis of the phenomenon of interculturality from the point of view of communication. Definition and characteristics of intercultural communication. Explanation of the changes brought about by interculturality in the new context of globalisation. 

Contemporary Visual Culture

Op

4

This subject aims to systematise the main milestones and referents of contemporary visual culture and for Advertising and Public Relations students to become familiar with them. This visual culture feeds from the referents that come both from the traditional plastic arts (painting or photography) and from the audiovisual media and new iconology and plasticity generated by the interactive media and digital technologies (Internet, videoart, blogosphere, etc.). Through this outlook, the aim is to provide students with an universe of reference that maintains mutual exchanges and influences constant with the universe created and recreated by advertising and public relations. 

History of Product Design

Op

4

Study, analysis and interpretation of products in the cultural, social, political, economic and business context in order to propose solutions to the needs of the market. 

Contemporary Culture and Advertising

Op

4

The fundamental aim of this subject is the chronological and argumental follow-up of the relations between politics, economics and mass culture during the 20^th century and their impact on advertising forms. It thus examines the changing value of the forms of communication and advertising according to the specificity of territorial, sociocultural and historical context, and, at the same time proposes an interpretation of the political and sociocultural history via an audiovisual chronological chain (relevance of audiovisual reading and critique for the understanding of history). 

Individual and Organisational Psychology

Op

4

Study of the different aspects that define and make up human conduct. An in-depth look into the basic principles of psychology and application to the field of organisations. 

Corporate Visual Image Design

Op

4

Design and creation of elements of identification and signification that form part of communication strategy and of the development of the different communications policies in enterprise and in institutions. Study of the abilities of a global image to identify, manage and deal with the needs of companies correctly using formats, means and vehicles.