Would you consider it a social media marketing skill set to appeal to an audience's sense of ethics, logic, and emotions to persuade an action? Is it helpful in digital marketing to integrate different approaches to solve a problem or achieve a specific desired result? I'd say yes to both questions.
I decided to include an academic section in my portfolio for a few reasons. One, I am only six years removed from my undergraduate degree and feel as though my studies are directly related to my role as a digital marketing (social media focus) professional. I also wanted to display how a degree in Interdisciplinary Studies, and the areas of focus I chose, molded me into a balanced digital marketing professional ...even without a specific marketing focus. 
My academic studies centered on extensive analysis of rhetoric and interdisciplinary studies. The word rhetoric has had a certain negative connotation thrust upon it by spinsters and misuse in the media. In its purest form, rhetoric is the art of persuasion using appeals to an audience's sense of ethics (ethos), logic (logos), and emotions (pathos).
And what does a degree in Interdisciplinary Studies mean as far as relatable, real-world experience? It means I can recognize and integrate different disciplines to solve complex issues and problems.