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ADPR Facts & Guiding Documents

The Tombras School of Advertising & Public Relations, at the University of Tennessee, is one of the premier schools in the country, with graduates working at a multitude of companies from: Nike, Twitter, Ralph Lauren, Disney, Scripps Network, Young & Rubicam, Tombras Group, Anomaly, and more.

With state of the art facilities including the Adam Brown Social Media Command Center (ABSMCC) equipped with SocialStudio powered by SalesForce, The Scripps Lab, and the Message Effects Lab – the Tombras School of Advertising & Public Relations provides a unique experience for students within our majors. The School offers internship services to pair students within their field of interest from a variety of agencies and corporations across the country.

Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications (ACEJMC) Information

Reported Summer 2022

Undergraduate Enrollment

Undergraduate Enrollment (Mass Communication  Majors)*
Fall ’21 Fall ’20 Fall ’19 Fall ’18 Fall ’17 Fall ’16 Fall ’15 Fall ’14
Advertising 187 195 179 180 154 168 139 124
Public Relations 219 215 226 225 232 245 247 203

*Total major numbers are based on 14th-day enrollment data.


Graduation Rates

Fall 2019 Cohort – Graduation Rates
3rd Year Graduation 4th Year Graduation 5th Year Graduation 6th Year Graduation
Advertising 0.05% TBD TBD TBD
Public Relations 0.00% TBD TBD TBD
Fall 2018 Cohort – Graduation Rates
3rd Year Graduation 4th Year Graduation 5th Year Graduation 6th Year Graduation
Advertising 0.0% 78.6% TBD TBD
Public Relations 2.9% 68.6% TBD TBD
Fall 2017 Cohort – Graduation Rates
3rd Year Graduation 4th Year Graduation 5th Year Graduation 6th Year Graduation
Advertising 0.0% 66.7% 66.7% TBD
Public Relations 9.1% 77.3% 81.8% TBD
Fall 2016 Cohort – Graduation Rates
3rd Year Graduation 4th Year Graduation 5th Year Graduation 6th Year Graduation
Advertising 4.2% 87.5% 91.7% 95.8%
Public Relations 0.0% 81.3% 87.5% 87.5%
Fall 2015 Cohort – Graduation Rates
3rd Year Graduation 4th Year Graduation 5th Year Graduation 6th Year Graduation
Advertising 0.0% 60.9% 78.3% 78.3%
Public Relations 3.4% 65.5% 72.4% 79.3%


Average 1st Year Retention Rates - College-wide

Fall 2015 – Fall 2016 88.1%
Fall 2016 – Fall 2017 88.2%
Fall 2017 – Fall 2018 87.1%
Fall 2018 – Fall 2019 87.4%
Fall 2019 – Fall 2020 88.2%
Fall 2020 – Fall 2021 89.5%

1st-Year Retention Rates by Major

Fall 2020 – Fall 2021 Fall 2019 – Fall 2020 Fall 2018 – Fall 2019 Fall 2017 – Fall 2018 Fall 2016 – Fall 2017 Fall 2015 – Fall 2016
Advertising 92.3% 90.0% 92.9% 73.3% 91.7% 82.6%
Public Relations 95.8% 86.2% 94.3% 100% 96.9% 96.6%