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You get along great with others and have fabulous oral communication skills, so you’re thinking about majoring in communications when you go to college; but what can you do with a communications degree?

Actually, the career choices in this field are amazingly diverse; you can find a position in banking, manufacturing, government, agriculture, healthcare, and social programs. All businesses need effective communicators to succeed – over a BILLION dollars a year are spent on employee and membership communications, even more money goes into external communications.

As a communications specialist, you can work in human resources, publications, research and development, advertising, training, and sales and marketing. You can work as a freelancer or do consulting for public relations firms. There are opportunities to work in the Foreign Service as well as all three branches of government. You could also work for a labor union, college, university, technical or vocational school, non-profit organization or in the medical services field.

You should be a creative, naturally curious person to be successful in the field of communications, as you will be constantly searching for accurate information and adapting it to various audiences.

Luckily, jobs in corporate communications are expected to grow at a faster than average pace (non-management public relations professional jobs are predicted to hold steady), but job competition is strong and preference is given to those with communications training, industry-specific knowledge, and appropriate internship or volunteer experience.

You will need minimum of a bachelor’s degree to obtain a position in the field of communications, but a master’s is usually required to become a public relations manager.

Here are a few positions that would be available to you with a communications degree:

Public relations specialists – essentially the “face” of a company – PR specialists develop and maintain a likeable, memorable image to draw in customers and clients. They might also work doing research and compiling data, writing news releases, reports, and promotional pieces, and coordinate special events and meetings for specific groups. If a new product is being launched, you, as a public relations rep, will prepare and distribute the information to the media, coordinate the location and logistics of the gathering, write speeches and brief executives on answering audience questions. You will also establish yourself as the liaison for more extensive information.

Public Information Officer – works in government communications to write media releases, newsletters, and speeches. Also work in parks, zoos, and museums.

Publicist – can turn scandal into positive publicity and works to find ways famous and not-so-famous clients can gain media coverage.

Communications Director – works with an executive director of a non-profit organization to promote the goals and policies of the organization. Many of the duties of a communications director are the same as that of a public information officer, but focus more on ways to get the public involved in order to develop a high enough profile to increase sponsorships and funding as well as the opportunity to help those who benefit from their cause.