Hammed Shittu in Ilorin.
The University of Ilorin in Kwara State has emerged winner in the just concluded advertising and public relations competition held at Ilorin.
University of Ibadan came second, while Kwara State Polytechnic took third position in the competition.
Tertiary institutions that participated in the creative contest included the host university, the University of Ilorin, University of Ibadan, Al-Hikmah University, Kwara State University, Federal Polytechnic, Offa, Kwara State Polytechnic, Summit University and Fountain University.
Speaking at the event, the convener and a lecturer of Mass Communications Department of the university, Dr. Kehinde Kadiri, said the competition was organised to prepare students ahead of future attainment in the advertising and public relations field.
Tagged, ‘pitch-a-ton advertising creative contest,’ the convener said the competition provided students with real world experience of creating a strategic advertising/creative pitch for a corporate client.
She added that, “students were expected to develop a creative advertising plan for a real product/service and then present for consideration their work to advertising professionals in the industry.
“We believe that there is no better way to learn about advertising campaign process than by actually developing a campaign for a real client
“The field of creative communication is like a battle field and I believe that to be relevant, the students have to be better prepared to face this battle.
“This preparation should not just be theoretical but also practical exposition from professionals in the field who have tasted the war and are conquering.”
Kadir, added that, “The advertising industry in Nigeria is a volatile and dynamic one. Hence it is important that students start learning about the tricks right from school so that they would not meet a drastically different approach from what they were used to when they eventually get to the real world.
“Hence, this creative competition will not only add to the reservoir of knowledge of both students and lecturers in communication, but it would also shrink the town and gown relationship that is needed in academia”.
