Villanova vs Boston University for communications: which is better for a student interested in media and PR?

Boston University is the better choice here for a student focused on media and public relations. BU’s College of Communication is one of the school’s signature academic units, and it offers direct strength in journalism, media production, advertising, film/TV, and communication studies in a way that creates a larger built-in media ecosystem. Its Boston location also matters a lot for PR and media internships during the school year, not just in the summer.

The first big differentiator is program structure. At BU, communications is not a smaller branch of the university, it is a major professional hub with students constantly working across media, reporting, writing, production, strategy, and digital storytelling. For someone exploring PR, that kind of environment usually means more hands-on exposure to the industries around it, and more classmates headed into adjacent media careers that overlap with public relations.

The second is access to internships and professional networks. Being in Boston gives BU students easier reach to agencies, nonprofits, healthcare organizations, sports teams, startups, and major employers that need communications interns. That can make it more realistic to build experience during the academic year, which is especially valuable in PR because employers care a lot about clips, campaigns, client work, writing samples, and practical experience.

Villanova is a respected university with strong academics and solid outcomes, but it is not as specifically identified with media and communications training as BU. It can absolutely work well for a student who wants a more traditional campus feel and is willing to be more intentional about finding communications opportunities. But for media and PR in particular, BU offers the deeper specialization and more immediate proximity to the kind of work you’re hoping to enter.