Looking for a job or internship as graduation approaches? Follow this advice

 As summer approaches, students looking for their first jobs post-college and for the summer internships are diving headfirst into the job application pool, and many are doing this for the first time. Here's a list of tips compiled from hiring managers and other professionals who attended the College Media Association Spring National Media Convention in New York last week. 

No. 1:  Read the application instructions carefully and follow them. This is the first step hiring managers take to cull through all of the applicants, which can number in the thousands these days. If you can't follow the simple instructions for applying for the job, the assumption is you won't follow the instructions on the job, either. 

No. 2:  Include your work with your application. A link to your portfolio is a must. I’m not going to come back asking for it. If you don't have. URL yet with your resume and portfolio promoting yourself, you are very behind the game. And BUY your domain name; don't use one created by a fly-by-night web publisher. 

No. 3: Make sure all the hyperlinks on your resume and website work. COPY AND PASTE them into a web browser to test them. 

No. 4: Do some research to ensure your cover letter is addressed to the proper hiring manager, or at the very least to the correct media outlet. Show me that you can do the most basic reporting.Remember, the cover letter is about the hiring manager; it's not about you. 

No. 5: Know a little bit about the place you’re applying to. Be familiar with their team and their work. If you make it to the interview phase, you need to demonstrate this is a place you have researched and really want to work for. When an employer asks you if you have any questions for them, this is what they are talking about. 

No. 6: Make sure your portfolio is up-to-date. Nothing in there should be more than a year old. You should be creating -- and improving -- all the time. 

No. 7: Include a range of work showing that you’re versatile. Don’t fill it with images from one major event, nor should you include just photos or just writing. Throw a bit of everything in there; we live in a multimedia world. 

No. 8: If your portfolio has photos, include a cutline with every image. Make sure people in your images are identified.

No. 9:  If you don’t get the internship the first time, don’t be discouraged. Keep grinding and apply again in the future. Literally hundreds, if not thousands, of people applied for the same position. 

No. 10: If you’re applying for a second time, make sure your portfolio is different from last time. Show growth. Show development. If it didn’t work last time, it won’t work this time.

No. 11: When naming documents such as your resume and cover letter, make sure your name is in the file name. It’s difficult to find your resume in the folder if it’s titled “Resume_New.” If the employer gave you a naming protocol in No. 1, follow that.

No. 12: Copy edit your resume and cover letter. If you don’t pay attention to details on your application, I’ll assume you don’t pay attention to details in your work either. I can't emphasize this enough. This will get your materials deleted faster than any other mistake. 

No. 13: If you get an interview, send a thank you email -- or even better, a handwritten note. This doesn’t take much time and leaves your name at the front of mind for the hiring manager.

Assistant News Editor, Norfolk, Nebraska

The Norfolk Daily News is looking to hire a full-time assistant news editor to fill a vacancy in its newsroom staff. An attractive candidate will have a passion for accuracy, excellent editing skills, a flair for newspaper design and the ability to meet deadlines.

A college degree in journalism or related field is a plus. Hours are generally 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., with some Saturday morning shifts required. Competitive wages, strong fringe benefits and a positive, fun place to work.

Interested individuals should submit work samples, resume and cover letter. Applicants can contact Kent Warneke, editor of the News, via email at editor@norfolkdailynews.com or at 877-371-1020.

Want a job when you graduate? Then don't shun the multimedia skills

Recently, a discussion took place on the College Media Association listserv regarding the value of multimedia journalism skills, spawned by some advisers complaining that their students refused to learn them and preferred to stay in their "silos" or print or broadcast. This post, I thought, encapsulated the beliefs of many of the hiring managers with whom I communicate for my Twitter feed. It is reprinted here with permission.

As someone who hires interns and later helps them get jobs, I think students who work in converged newsrooms and have multimedia skills are much more likely to get and keep those jobs. At larger publications, people are still more likely to specialize, especially those who are farther along in their careers. No editor I know expects everyone to be great at every skill. But if you are the first person at the site of a breaking news story and you don’t get the photos and video, can’t write the first online brief and can’t provide updates across platforms, you aren’t going to make it.

 

Here is the first of a list of key activities listed for a multimedia journalist at one of the Scripps papers: “Write articles, take photographs, and shoot video (or a combination thereof) as necessary to tell a story.” Here’s another one: “Proficiency in use of web publishing tools and ability to learn new technology quickly.”

 

Here’s part of the description of the work environment: “Moderate physical demands to include carrying a laptop computer and digital camera with equipment bag on assignments.”

 

This is a job at a newspaper for someone just coming out of school.

 

A job posting at a TV station in a small market for someone with one to two years of experience calls for broadcasting skills but also the ability to “report, write, capture quality visual content, edit and produce stories for multiple platforms on deadline, such as Internet and digital channels.”

 

We stress multimedia skills here. I recruit students who have them, but we also teach them to students who need them. Sometimes when my interns return to school, they are stymied in taking courses that would allow them to get better at these skills because they are majoring in print or broadcast and can’t get into courses in the other specialty.

 

I’m sure it’s hard to change the culture. But if students want to work in journalism, they need to be thinking of how to tell stories across platforms.

 

Jody Beck

jody.beck@scripps.com

Scripps Howard Foundation Wire

Director, Semester in Washington Program

Scripps Howard Foundation

www.shfwire.com

202-408-2748

@JodyBeckDC

1100 13^th St. NW, #450

Washington, DC 20005

Entry Level Job Seekers: Thank you Notes on Verge of Extinction

Mike McGuiness
mike@jobipedia.org
Follow us on Twitter: @jobipedia

In a digital age, the ability to connect with people and gather information is incredible. There are countless channels, platforms, services and hardware designed to make everyday life easier and better connected. However, even with all these tools to improve our ability to do everything faster, a once common and personal communication is becoming lost – sending Thank You notes.

Always Send Thank You Notes
While a Thank You note will certainly be appreciated for almost any daily interaction, it’s an imperative step when you’re on the job hunt. Unfortunately, it seems jobseekers are forgetting this practice altogether. Nicole, a hiring manager from Manpower Group who contributes to jobipedia.org said, “As a Recruiter it still surprises me how many people do not send a thank you note after an interview.”

There is almost no excuse to not send a Thank You note to each person you met during the interview process. A hiring manager from Merck named Francis who contributes to jobipedia.org said, “It’s a matter of politeness and professionalism.” It’s also a great way to show your written communication skills, while simultaneously making a good impression with the hiring manager.

The reality of handwritten Thank You notes
A common misconception about Thank You notes is they must be handwritten. Ultimately, send any form of “thank you” to show how much you appreciated the opportunity to interview for the available position and for the time you spent with the hiring manager. Jonathan, a hiring manager from Avery Dennison who contributes to jobipedia.org said, “It shows good character and can be done via a hand written letter, email, LinkedIn note, etc.”

However, while handwritten Thank You notes aren’t the rule, they are a great way to stand-out and impress the hiring manager. A hiring manager from Cardinal Health named Megan who contributes to jobipedia.org said, “Interviewers are typically impressed with handwritten notes because they are usually well thought out, take slightly more effort than e-mailed notes and the card selected can show a glimpse of a candidate’s personality which is sometimes rather difficult to do when following proper interview etiquette.”

Thank You Notes Best Practice
If you want to go the extra mile, and that should always be the case when looking for a job, send an email Thank You immediately following your interview. That way the hiring manager receives a note from you quickly. Then, send a handwritten Thank You note the following day. That handwritten Thank You won’t arrive for a few days and will be a great, non-intrusive nor pestering reminder to the hiring manager that you’re excited about the available position.

Whatever method or approach you decide is best for you regarding Thank You notes, always remember to send them.

Unpaid Internship? No thank you.

If you want me to post your internship, it had better be paid. Otherwise, I won't promote it. I also won't recommend any students work for your company. Period.

Why? Simple. The more I research unpaid internships, the more I discover they offer little value to the student. In the cases where they do, the student was typically worked to the bone doing the job of a full-time employee -- sometimes more than one -- for no compensation other than "experience." I call that slave labor. It's unethical. It's immoral. And in most cases, it's illegal. A court ruling over the summer may end them once and for all. But it will take time.

In the meantime, I continually hear from my own students and students who follow my Twitter feed that their unpaid internships were brutal, exhausting, and frequently offered little supervision or training. One student who worked in an unpaid internship this past summer told me he wrote eight stories a week for the newspaper. He never once received feedback from the editor. He had to drive his own car to assignments without reimbursement for gas. And he was expected to pay for parking for the privilege of college credit -- for which he was also paying -- with nothing else in return. Yes, he says he got a ton of clips, but he also worked 45 hours a week. And when his internship ended, the small-town paper (which I won't name, but probably should, because the editor their won't call me back to confirm this) then advertised for a full-time paid reporter to replace him. In essence, the paper used him as free labor over the summer to fill an open position, and when his 10-week internship ended, they filled the void. They should have paid him. I told him to sue. He wants to forget about it.

More and more of these stories are cropping up in the news. And most of the time, it's because corporate greed outweighs doing the right thing.

I've decided I can no longer morally support unpaid internships. And I won't. Students, I'm sorry, but if you want one, you will have to find them through another source.

Internship, The Newspapers of Iowa County

Summer 2013 Journalism Internship
The Newspapers of Iowa County

Are you looking for that perfect first professional opportunity in newspapers? Do you enjoy meeting people with a wide range of personalities and learning about what goes on in your community? Are you adept at summarizing information and conveying it in a clear and concise way? If so, the NEWSpapers of Iowa County – publishers of the Pioneer-Republican of Iowa County, Marengo; and Williamsburg Journal Tribune – is looking for just such a person to serve as a summer intern.

We are looking for the right candidate who can assist the editorial staff with covering meetings, writing features and helping out wherever else needed. The ideal candidate is from Iowa (preferably Iowa, Johnson, Linn or Poweshiek counties), in college (at least finishing his/ her sophomore year) and working toward a degree in journalism, mass communications or a related field; and is looking for that first big step into the world of mass media.

The hours will vary, but should not exceed 10 hours per week. Here’s what we’re looking for:

• Someone who can cover a meeting at least once or twice a month, and an occasional feature. Some stories will be assigned, but the best candidates will be able to offer ideas of their own. You may also be asked to assist with breaking news as needed. 
• Photography skills are a plus but not required. Depending on your skills, we’ll have you assist with coverage at weekend events in our coverage area along with the Iowa County Fair. 

Candidates are asked to send a resume and 3-5 clips to NEWSpapers of Iowa County, Attn: Brian Rathjen, P.O. Box 208, Marengo, Iowa 52301, or email to brathjen@dmreg.com. No phone calls, please.

The Pioneer-Republican and Williamsburg Journal Tribune – along with our sister newspapers the Star Press-Union, Belle Plaine; and Poweshiek Chronicle-Republican, Grinnell – are owned by the Des Moines Register and Tribune Co., a division of Gannett Co. (the owners of the USA Today, the Iowa City Press-Citizen and many other newspapers nationwide).

Education Reporter, The Ames Tribune

Education/News Reporter
The Ames (Iowa) Tribune 

The Ames Tribune has a full-time opening for an experienced education and/or news reporter to cover Iowa State University and higher education in general. The position includes some general assignment as well.

You’ll join a small, hard-working, award-winning newsroom dedicated to creating compelling content and serving our readers. You’ll report and write short- and long-form stories for digital and print media; produce clean copy and usable photos, video and sound on tight digital and print deadlines; develop a beat, cultivate sources and be first to report news and issues in higher education in our coverage area; understand and explain budgets, contracts and other complex documents; follow legislation, court cases, issues and trends affecting post-secondary education; and understand and use social media and real-time reporting to enhance our news report and relationship with readers.

The successful candidate will have a bachelor’s degree in journalism and at least two years experience as a reporter in a fast-paced news environment. You’ll know your way around common content management systems, basic photography, audio and video equipment and editing software, and social media.

Recent graduates with college news experience and an internship or two will be considered. Send a letter of interest, resume, up to five work samples and three work references we can contact to Tribune city editor Michael Crumb at mcrumb@amestrib.com. Please, no phone calls.

The Ames Tribune is part of Stephens Media Iowa, a subsidiary of Stephens Media, and an equal opportunity employer. We offer a full range of benefits, including health, dental and vision insurance, paid time off, and a 401(k) plan. A satisfactory driving record and pre-employment drug screening are required.

Community Editor/Reporter, Southeast Iowa

Community Editor/Reporter
Inland Media Company
Southeast Iowa

We are searching for newsroom professionals with strong reporting and photography skills. Proficiency using InDesign is a plus. Duties will range from covering government entities and community events to featuring the people and places of our coverage area, as well as pagination.

Inland Media Co. focuses on strong print publications while continuing to grow our social media and web presence in the county seat cities of Fairfield, Mt Pleasant and Washington, Iowa. Our publications are Monday - Friday p.m. dailies with four-person newsrooms.

A competitive salary, excellent benefits and advancement potential awaits you in one of our three southeast Iowa communities. Send resume and recent clips to darwink@lisco.com or Washington Evening Journal, c/o Darwin Sherman, 111 North Marion Ave, Washington, IA 52353.

Sports Writer opening

Sports Writer
Le Mars, Iowa

The Le Mars Daily Sentinel has an immediate opening for a sports writer. The ideal candidate will have sports writing and photography skills and bring a teamwork approach to the two-person sports department covering high school sports at seven public and private schools. Applicants may submit resumes to the Daily Sentinel editor at dseditor@frontiernet.net.

For information on the paper, visit http://www.lemarssentinel.com.

Internship, Algona Upper Des Moines

Newsroom Internship
Algona Upper Des Moines, Algona, Iowa

The Algona Upper Des Moines seeks a newsroom intern for May through August 2013. The intern will meet with business leaders in the Algona area and write up to 100 stories for the annual Progress sections.

The intern should be a self-starter, eager to learn how to write under deadline, enjoy meeting and interviewing a wide variety of people and be familiar with AP Style.

To apply, contact Mindy Baker, 14 E Nebraska Street, P.O. Box 400, Algona, IA 50511; by email at news@algona.com; or by phone at 515-295-3535. For more information, visit the paper's website at www.algona.com.