A New Club Opens the Door for Students Interested in PR
A Toronto Met Public Relations Society (TMPRS) sign is displayed at the entrance to the TMPRS industry panel on Nov. 7, 2025. Photo by Farnia Khaleghi.
Toronto Met Public Relations Society (external link) (TMPRS) is a new student-run club at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) that fills the gap on campus for interested students.
The society launched this semester.
According to its president and founder, Carol Varghese (external link) , TMPRS’ mission is to inspire students, encourage them to pursue opportunities, and create an environment where students from different academic backgrounds can feel represented.
This mission is already visible within the current team, which includes members from Ted Rogers School of Management (TRSM), Creative Industries, Journalism, and other schools. Notably, two journalism students hold executive positions.
Lucy Kebirungi (external link) is one of those Journalism students.
From left to right: Kyra Mediratta, Perrin Langille, Lucy Kebirungi, and Carol Varghese pose for a photo at the industry panel event. Photo by Farnia Khaleghi
Kebirungi is a third-year Journalism student and is the vice president of industry and corporate relations. She says that she joined the team to broaden her understanding of career opportunities related to journalism.
“I’ve been curious about how I could lean more into PR as a career post-grad. While I do see myself sticking to journalism…it's been really eye-opening and informative,” she said.
Harsh Kumar (external link) is another member of the TMPRS who works with Kebirungi as a partnership and outreach coordinator. He decided to join to learn more about the field of public relations and explore it as a career path.
“This club helps you learn more about what the industry is all about. You can learn the types of people that are working in PR and what they sort of do on a daily basis,” Kumar said. “I think this club allows you to see the different avenues and how people are succeeding in a PR work environment.”
According to Varghese, it’s not uncommon for Journalism students to explore the field of public relations.
“I've definitely seen a lot of people go from journalism to PR. A lot of the courses in the PR minor itself are actually journalism classes…so I feel like that in itself speaks for all the transferable skills you can get,” she explained.
The TMPRS hosted an industry panel event on Nov. 7, featuring three public relations professionals. One of the speakers was Gabrielle Reyes (external link) ‘20, a Journalism graduate who now works as a senior account manager at Duet PR.
Gabrielle Reyes (left) answers a question from Carol Varghese (right) during the industry panel. Photo by Farnia Khaleghi.
Varghese thought it was important to choose panellists who would reflect the needs of all students and help them feel less “insecure about what their experiences are and what value they can contribute,” she said.
“I really wanted the panel to be diverse in terms of...their experiences,” Varghese said. We had two people from TMU, including a journalism and creative industries grad. I wanted people to feel represented,” she added.
“I saw this as a really good opportunity to…share what I had learned as someone who transitioned from journalism to PR,” Reyes said.
During her talk, Reyes spoke about feeling imposter syndrome when starting out in the field. However, she quickly learned that coming from a journalism background was an asset rather than a weakness.
“I think just remembering that a lot of the skills that I learned in journalism were still very valuable to a career in PR,” she said. “Knowing how to write well, knowing how to tell stories, is the foundation of what we do in public relations. Those skills got me to where I was.”
Reyes said it was a highlight to meet attendees, answer questions, and learn from other panellists.
Reyes connecting with students during the networking portion of the industry panel event. Photo by Farnia Khaleghi.
“I thought it was really well executed,” she said. “I think the future of PR is bright if this is the batch of people in the TMPRS and the people who are attending the event. It sounds like there are a lot of eager people to learn and to just break into the PR industry.”
One piece of advice that Reyes emphasized was the need to be curious and willing to learn.
She said, “I think a big part of dipping your foot into the industry is having that willingness to learn. That curiosity and seeing that across the attendees and everyone on the TMPRS was just so encouraging to see.”