Attitudes and perceptions of public relations professionals towards graduating students’ skills
Abstract The study asks whether universities should educate public relations students with a focus more on traditional skills or new technical skills. Results of a survey of 113 public relations professionals show that, while new technical skills are seen as increasingly important, professionals still value traditional skills more. Within the new technical skills, professionals emphasized the latest trends.
QUALITY CONTROL AND IMPROVEMENTS MECHANISM OF STUDY FIELD - FOCUSED ON PROFESSIONAL STUDY FIELD
Quality control mechanism that allows long term improvements of a study field or a study program is necessary for good functioning of educational institution or department in actual nature of competitive universities’ environment. This paper focuses on quality control mechanisms in general and more closely on professional study fields. The professional study fields have been settled in Czech higher education by approving the amendment to the Higher Education Act. This brings new need for control and improvement mechanisms based more on connection to industry practice than on academic publications. The aim of this paper is to explain the importance of gathering information from contact with study field’s stakeholders. These information lead to form appropriate improvements implemented on time. In the case study, there are presented examples of gathered findings and how they are being handled. They include the student‘s expectations that underrate theory although it is needed for basic insight to the industry. The students are also motivated to start their own business. What this paper brings is the proposed continuous development mechanism that helped to improve the bachelors study field Multimedia in Economic Practice and also the general recommendations that should help to any other study field.
The role of prolactin in andrology: what is new?
Prolactin (PRL) has been long deemed as a hormone involved only in female reproduction. However, PRL is a surprising hormone and, since its identification in the 1970s, its attributed functions have greatly increased. However, its specific role in male health is still widely unknown. Recently, low PRL has been associated with reduced ejaculate and seminal vesicle volume in infertile subjects. In addition, in men consulting for sexual dysfunction, hypoprolactinemia has been associated with erectile dysfunction and premature ejaculation, findings further confirmed in the general European population and infertile men. Several metabolic derangements, recapitulating metabolic syndrome, have also been associated with low PRL both in men with sexual dysfunction and from the general European population. In men with sexual dysfunction, followed-up for more than 4 years, low PRL was identified as an independent predictor of the incidence of major adverse cardiovascular events. Finally, an association with anxiety or depressive symptoms has been found in men with sexual dysfunction and from the general European population. While a direct role for impaired PRL function in the pathogenesis of these reproductive, sexual, metabolic and psychological disorders is conceivable, the possibility that low PRL is a mirror of an increased dopaminergic or a decreased serotonergic tone cannot be ruled-out. Hyperactivity of the dopaminergic system can explain only a few of the aforementioned findings, whereas a hypo-serotonergic tone fits well with the clinical features associated with low PRL, and there is significant evidence supporting the hypothesis that PRL could be a mirror of serotonin in the brain.