MLB.com is once again seeking interns to work this summer, a terrific opportunity for either undergrad or grad students. Deadline is Dec. 11, 2009.

According to MLB: “Applicants should submit a resume, 5 to 10 published articles, a list of references and a 750-word essay on why MLB.com should select you? Your clips ideally will show a variety of work, including game stories, previews and features.”

Good luck.

-30-

Phoenix New Times is looking for a fulltime staff writer. They want an experienced journalist who understands the difference between magazine-style reporting and the hurried fact-finding of daily papers. Spanish fluency and a background in news are required. If your copy is as much a pleasure to read as it is well researched, they want to hear from you. They offer competitive salaries and benefits.

Send your best clips, a résumé and a cover letter:

Andy Van De Voorde
Executive Associate Editor
P.O. Box 5970
Denver, CO 80217
or andy.vandevoorde@villagevoicemedia.com.

No phone calls, please.

I’m thinking I want to invest in “The Teen Vogue Handbook” and “The Style Strategy” by Nina Garcia. 

 I’m waiting for the places I applied to for an internship to reply and I must say if I don’t get an e-mail soon, I’ll cry. While I wait, I’m going to read up on things I need to know to learn and be even better.  

Screenshot: http://www.thestonybrookpress.com/

I was spending some time in the Stony Brook Press office last week, (settle down, Indie staff-it was for an interview…and, yes, maybe to watch the latest episode of South Park with my interview subjects) when I noticed this lengthy feature (2,900 words) by Najib Aminy in the latest print issue on the enfeebled journalism job market and just how it’s been treating the latest Stony Brook graduates these days.
I’d say that the word length in itself makes a powerful statement. When it comes to the arthritic job market in this industry, our alumni (though quite a diminutive group at present) apparently have a lot (or, perhaps more) to say. If you’re writing a nearly 3,000-word story on the issue, I guess that comes as a healthy advantage. If you’re floundering around in stale air nine long months after you hurled your mortarboard skyward, however, perhaps it’s not such a wonderful thing.

I say this sans the tongue in cheek sarcasm that I usually administer pretty liberally on this blog: this is probably the most useful article that I’ve read in a Stony Brook campus paper. First of all, I have to say that I love the fact that Najib has localized what has easily become a national issue. I’m sure that even the laziest news consumers among us (this week, I’m prepared to list myself as one of them) have come across at least a couple of articles highlighting the doom and gloom of the journalistic job market.

The industry, after all, is in the process of recovering from somewhat of a botched facelift courtesy of esteemed amateur surgeon, Dr. Internet. Coincidentally, ever since he opened up his international private practice, pessimistic (or, simply honest) newsies from this publication and that publication have led us to believe that the world after graduation from journalism school has become an unwelcome, unforgiving place.

Consider it the haunted house of the entry-level job market. You only set foot in it if you’re a fan of the unexpected (a risk-taker, if you will), and yes, it is surprisingly full of ghosts (R.I.P. Rocky Mountain News, Gourmet Magazine and all those plucky little dailies who faced corporate wrath just as they were starting to turn a profit).

I have to say that it is more than a little scary being among the first graduates of a young program. When you think about, we’re essentially responsible for crafting the reputation of the journalism school (as if any of us needed the added pressure of being ambassadors).

Obviously, the grim fact that many of us are going to be stepping out into a bruised economy in which the unemployment rate has ballooned to 9.8 percent this past month, and employers are still notably skittish about hiring, isn’t doing a whole lot to alleviate some of that anxiety. Does anybody know a cheap stress ball manufacturer?

Let’s face it-the economy is still gingerly nursing that generic chicken soup, and our inability to pick up jobs after taking two steps out the door might not be the best thing for the journalism school just as its trying to establish itself as a legitimate program alongside those with deep roots (Syracuse, the University of Missouri…you name it. Just about every program is older than ours.).

That said, I don’t suppose that the situation is really as straightforwardly hopeless as it may seem. Because we are so new, I suppose that gives us somewhat of an advantage when it comes to dealing with new technology. After all, the start-up budget allowed for a $1.3 million state-of-the-art newsroom. Many of you are probably sitting in it right now as you read this.

Photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/31412485@N02/3523341214/in/set-72157608505691860/

If you are, I encourage you to take a good look around the place. We humble J-schoolers are extremely lucky to have all of this, especially considering the fact that we are part of such a new program.

Think about it-we’re still sitting tight, patiently waiting for our graduates to snag jobs and grant us the all-important credibility that the school so desperately needs…but, we do have expensive editing and vital skill-building programs, like the latest versions of Final Cut Pro and Photoshop (Final Cut alone could set you back nearly $1,000 if you don’t know where to look) at our disposal. I’m sure that at least a few newsrooms at so-called ‘established’ institutions are in desperate need of a makeover…perhaps there should be a newsroom edition of Extreme Makeover.

I’ve said it before…this newsroom is sort of like its students in that it’s a bit like the kid who was lucky enough to grow up with available technology. It didn’t have to scramble to figure out every minute detail like many of our fifteen-words-per-minute parents often do.

However, I have to wonder how potential employers or members of a graduate admissions board are going to be able to understand the brand of journalism that we’re capable of producing?

The program itself is only four years old…pre-school age. Alright, so I guess you could say that the program is somewhat of a prodigy-call it a Mozart of new major programs-but that doesn’t change the fact that the program still lacks the prestige of say, a Columbia or a Syracuse.

In addition, as the online program stabilizes, I think that professors really need to be careful not to get too carried away with the new technology. Because we are still growing, it might seem like somewhat of an arms race to gobble up all the latest gadgets and gizmos of the journalistic realm. While this may be fine for the established faculty members, who have already dipped their toes in any number of print or broadcast oceans, their more inexperienced students really need a rigorous education on the basic tenets of journalism-that is, getting to the bottom line of the story and developing superior writing skills-more than they need their professors to smack them in the face with a Twitter account.

Apparently, the News Literacy program here at Stony Brook is doing something to boost the school’s credibility, according to Najib’s article. It seems as though our school is becoming somewhat of a model for other universities that are trying to incorporate something like this into their curriculum. Who can say for sure? Maybe this will be something that really makes the journalism department stand out before it receives the confirmation from successful alumni that it truly needs.

Here’s a quick rundown of the program.

Let me know what you think. By the way, can somebody tell me why it’s always incredibly weird seeing professors on Youtube?

I can barely even read through stories like this any more. But this story is a fairly dead-on portrayal of the Sisyphean task of hunting for journalism jobs today. Especially with lines such as:

Apparently, even a canned response was impossible in New York.

I usually describe the process as a perpetual cycle of screaming into the void, especially back in yonder ancient days when you could spend hours a day assembling packets of clips (and resumes, and cover letters, and clip descriptions, and printed-out versions of online content) and dropping them into a mailbox, releasing the package to some terrible in-pile purgatory or waste bin damnation, maybe never even given the humble nobility of having a pen knife slid across the glue seal to release some of the pressurized optimism stuffed inside. Maybe it wasn’t all that bad, but I would have no way of knowing otherwise.

If science (once it’s done fighting the moon over there so we don’t have to fight it here) ever explores the outer reaches of the galaxy, I would not be surprised to hear a report one day of the mysterious texture of some extra-solar planet, with jagged rock formations and sloping dusty mountainsides, barren save for a small, slowly growing pile of 11×17 manilla envelopes seemingly expelled from the sky above and left there unmolested, their glue seals and optimism still firmly in place.

And this is one of the better ideas I’ve heard in a while:

Katie launched into “Nowhere Man,” then “In My Life,” the sax’s mournful wail ringing through the tunnels in the Times Square subway station on a Friday afternoon. Her sign read: “Don’t Give Money, Give Business Cards.”

Jobs Wanted, Any Jobs at All

By N. R. KLEINFIELD

(NYT) SEVENTEEN months out of Rutgers University, they live in an unwelcome continuum of mass rejection. Between them, Kristy and Katie Barry, identical twins who grew up in Ohio, have applied for some 150 jobs: a magazine for diabetics, a Web site about board games and a commercial for green tea-flavored gum; fact-checking at Scholastic Books, copy editing for the celebrity baby section ofPeople.com, road-tripping for College Sports Television.

They did not get any of these. More than a year has lapsed without so much as an interview. Apparently, even a canned response was impossible in New York.

“I wake up hopeful and check my e-mail and then all there is is the Merriam-Webster word of the day,” Katie lamented. “Or a stupid Facebook thing. So-and-so sent you a puppy. Or a drink. Great!”

Keep reading….

Is a profile in the Times a fast-track to getting employment? Daily Intel is following.

Here’s the details on a recent posting for a reporter at the AZ Capitol Times:

If you are a fly-on-the-wall type of reporter, don’t bother applying. This job requires someone with a gung-ho spirit who digs into records, pesters sources when necessary and never hesitates to pursue big stories – and someone who will become so entrenched in their beat that sources consider them part of the scenery. The Arizona Capitol Times is looking for a full-time reporter who can cover the state Capitol, including the Legislature, state political parties, state agencies and elections (we’re not talking about election results and press releases, we’re talking about embedding yourself on the campaign trail). The successful candidate must be able to hit the ground running, with an understanding of public policy and an ability to turn jargon into real language. Ideal candidates will have at least two years of experience in a newsroom and a degree in journalism or political science. Knowledge of Arizona politics is a plus.

E-mail letter, resume, references and three writing samples to matt.bunk@azcapitoltimes.com.

Truth be told, Jazzmen and I butted heads more than anyone on the staff at The Towerlight. But as my immaturity faded we developed a mutual respect for one another. I remember receiving a text from her while I was out on assignment, a big news story involving murder and financial scandal. It read:

“Is my little news ninja on the scene?”

This is part 2 of her story:

Q: What are you doing for a living now? Can you describe your responsibilities? What you like about it? Not like about it?

A: Currently, I work for Laureate Education, Inc. I’m an enrollment advisor for one of their online schools. I talk with professional adults who are interested in going back to school and help them enroll. It’s pretty easy and it pays very well. I still freelance occasionally to keep my sanity.

Q: How does your current job compare to a job in journalism?

A: It’s nothing like journalism, but I don’t look at is as a career setback. I’ve been here for about 6 months and I’ve learned a lot about business, something I never thought I’d be interested in at all.

Q: Do you ever see yourself getting back into journalism? If so, why or why not?

A: I’m not sure if I want to go into journalism, but I want some type of media job.  I’m not sure exactly what I want to do yet. I know I want to write, but I don’t know if I necessarily want to be a reporter. I’ve considered public relations (the dark side!). I’m also interested in broadcast journalism. Not on-air stuff, but I’d like to write for the newscasts. Producing would be my dream job. I’m planning to go back to school next fall, so hopefully I’ll have it all figured out by then.

Q: Advice for young j-school students entering the field?

A: Don’t give up: The medium is changing, but we still need reporters. Someone has to gather the facts, tell stories, hold elected officials accountable and keep the marketplace of ideas open whether it’s in a printed newspaper, a blog or news Web site. It’s also important to be as tech savvy as possible. The future of journalism isn’t just the moving 1,000 word story. You have to be able to incorporate multimedia elements (podcasts, slideshows, video) also. Get a camera and play around with shooting and editing video. Learn to use audio and photo editing software. Even if you’re not a guru, it helps to have some familiarity.

For most j-school students, entering the media industry during a time when newsrooms are downsizing and

Photo courtesy of Jazzmen Tynes

cutting back on reporters on resources, the prospect of job hunting is terrifying. Unless you happened to be like Jazzmen Tynes.

She’s a former colleague of mine at our college newspaper, The Towerlight. For two semesters she was my boss as news editor and I personally learned a great deal from watching her work. During her college career she earned multiple journalism awards from both the Society of Professional Journalists and Columbia University. I watched her hold together a news staff, while interning at the Baltimore Sun until she eventually left for an internship at ABC-2 News in Baltimore.

So what did all of her hard work equal? She received several job offers in journalism mere weeks after her graduation–bucking the trend of j-students scouring the want ads for jobs. But there’s the rub. After taking a position with the Baltimore Messenger, part of the Patuxent Publishing Co., she left the industry.

Why did you originally want to get into journalism? What did you do to become successful enough to earn a job after Towson?

I always liked to write, I have an outgoing personality and I’m a news junkie. It seemed like going into journalism was the natural thing to do.

Can you describe the job you had and your responsibilities? What did you like about it? What did you not like about it?

I eventually took a job with Patuxent Publishing as an editorial assistant. I figured I could start at the bottom and work my way up to a reporter in a year or so. I started out as the EA for three of their papers (Baltimore Messenger, Catonsville Times and Arbutus Times). By the time I left (7 months later), I was EA for about six of Patuxent’s papers. They’d lost so many EAs, I had to pick up the slack. At first I really liked it. I learned a lot quickly and my editor let me write a lot. Typically, EAs aren’t allowed to write. Then we had a change in management and I wasn’t allowed to write for anymore. I started freelancing for b to keep my sanity and have a byline from time to time.

How do you feel about the industry, factoring in your decision to leave it?

I can only speak about “the industry” based on what I experienced at Patuxent. I worked with amazing copy editors, reporters and editors. Unfortunately, our management wasn’t so great. They hated the internet and didn’t want to experiment with new media. Any new ideas were met with criticism and dismissal. It was very stifling and frustrating environment, especially for someone trying to move up in the industry. The morale was low and my co-workers were literally depressed! There was a round of staff cuts, so we had to do more with less. I was told that I couldn’t freelance for b anymore. An editor told me, “If you can write for them, you can write for us.” But, I didn’t want to write about dogs, new computers at libraries and bingo nights in Catonsville. And I didn’t want to work more without proper compensation. I couldn’t grow and learn in that environment, so I left.

Be sure to check out part 2 of the interview in later posts where Jazzmen offers advice to young journalism students.

Changing technologies and the recession are hitting the newspaper industry hard.

Consequently, many journalists and communications professionals are losing their livelihoods.

While it is easy for those who’ve been laid off to start job hunting online, it’s not so easy to find a place where journalists and communications professionals can connect with each other and find support during the job hunt.

Getanewsjob.com fills this need.

The site gives unemployed journalists and communication professionals what they need in way of job listings and it provides a community where journalists and communications professionals can be themselves.

“Think of Getanewsjob.comas your favorite job site, online community, and news site wrapped into one,” said Getanewsjob.com managing editor and founder, Tiffany Orr.

“And if something is missing, we are open to suggestions,” she said.| The recession and the exodus of newspaper subscribers to Web 2.0 properties has left many journalists without jobs.

Though newspapers are folding, there is hope.

Since journalism is a writing intensive field, laid off journalists, and those just graduating from J-school, should be able to easily find work in a variety of professions.

Some of the professions laid off journalists can transition into include:

Public relations—PR people are pretty much corporate journalists. Instead of looking out for the interests of the people, PR people look out for the interests of their employers.

Education—If you’ve been a journalist for a while, and you have the gift of gab , consider a career in education. K-12 jobs in English, communications, and journalism, should be easy to find.

Copy writing—White papers, manuals, text books– you name it–as a copy writer, you’ll write all kinds of stuff.

Advertising and marketing—Advertising and marketing are writing driven industries. Since you’ll be promoting some new widget, the message is important. Why not get out there and craft it? AP-style, not necessary.

Publishing—Use your journalism skills to become your own boss. Publish your own novel, magazine or newspaper.

One site that lists opportunities for laid-off journalists is getanewsjob.com.

Getanewsjob.com lists thousands of news and communications-related jobs daily.

In addition, the site also provides a forum where journalists can connect with each other.

According to site founder, Tiffany Orr, the site is like Monster.com, but specifically for journalists and communications professionals.

Changing technologies and the recession are hitting the newspaper industry hard.

Consequently, many journalists and communications professionals are losing their livelihoods.

While it is easy for those who’ve been laid off to start job hunting online, it’s not so easy to find a place where journalists and communications professionals can connect with each other and find support during the job hunt.

Getanewsjob.com fills this need.

The site gives unemployed journalists and communication professionals what they need in way of job listings and it provides a community where journalists and communications professionals can be themselves.

“Think of Getanewsjob.comas your favorite job site, online community, and news site wrapped into one,” said Getanewsjob.com managing editor and founder, Tiffany Orr.

“And if something is missing, we are open to suggestions,” she said.| The recession and the exodus of newspaper subscribers to Web 2.0 properties has left many journalists without jobs.

Though newspapers are folding, there is hope.

Since journalism is a writing intensive field, laid off journalists, and those just graduating from J-school, should be able to easily find work in a variety of professions.

Some of the professions laid off journalists can transition into include:

Public relations—PR people are pretty much corporate journalists. Instead of looking out for the interests of the people, PR people look out for the interests of their employers.

Education—If you’ve been a journalist for a while, and you have the gift of gab , consider a career in education. K-12 jobs in English, communications, and journalism, should be easy to find.

Copy writing—White papers, manuals, text books– you name it–as a copy writer, you’ll write all kinds of stuff.

Advertising and marketing—Advertising and marketing are writing driven industries. Since you’ll be promoting some new widget, the message is important. Why not get out there and craft it? AP-style, not necessary.

Publishing—Use your journalism skills to become your own boss. Publish your own novel, magazine or newspaper.

One site that lists opportunities for laid-off journalists is getanewsjob.com.

Getanewsjob.com lists thousands of news and communications-related jobs daily.

In addition, the site also provides a forum where journalists can connect with each other.

According to site founder, Tiffany Orr, the site is like Monster.com, but specifically for journalists and communications professionals.

Changing technologies and the recession are hitting the newspaper industry hard.

Consequently, many journalists and communications professionals are losing their livelihoods.

While it is easy for those who’ve been laid off to start job hunting online, it’s not so easy to find a place where journalists and communications professionals can connect with each other and find support during the job hunt.

Getanewsjob.com fills this need.

The site gives unemployed journalists and communication professionals what they need in way of job listings and it provides a community where journalists and communications professionals can be themselves.

“Think of Getanewsjob.comas your favorite job site, online community, and news site wrapped into one,” said Getanewsjob.com managing editor and founder, Tiffany Orr.

“And if something is missing, we are open to suggestions,” she said.| The recession and the exodus of newspaper subscribers to Web 2.0 properties has left many journalists without jobs.

Though newspapers are folding, there is hope.

Since journalism is a writing intensive field, laid off journalists, and those just graduating from J-school, should be able to easily find work in a variety of professions.

Some of the professions laid off journalists can transition into include:

Public relations—PR people are pretty much corporate journalists. Instead of looking out for the interests of the people, PR people look out for the interests of their employers.

Education—If you’ve been a journalist for a while, and you have the gift of gab , consider a career in education. K-12 jobs in English, communications, and journalism, should be easy to find.

Copy writing—White papers, manuals, text books– you name it–as a copy writer, you’ll write all kinds of stuff.

Advertising and marketing—Advertising and marketing are writing driven industries. Since you’ll be promoting some new widget, the message is important. Why not get out there and craft it? AP-style, not necessary.

Publishing—Use your journalism skills to become your own boss. Publish your own novel, magazine or newspaper.

One site that lists opportunities for laid-off journalists is getanewsjob.com.

Getanewsjob.com lists thousands of news and communications-related jobs daily.

In addition, the site also provides a forum where journalists can connect with each other.

According to site founder, Tiffany Orr, the site is like Monster.com, but specifically for journalists and communications professionals.

Changing technologies and the recession are hitting the newspaper industry hard.

Consequently, many journalists and communications professionals are losing their livelihoods.

While it is easy for those who’ve been laid off to start job hunting online, it’s not so easy to find a place where journalists and communications professionals can connect with each other and find support during the job hunt.

Getanewsjob.com fills this need.

The site gives unemployed journalists and communication professionals what they need in way of job listings and it provides a community where journalists and communications professionals can be themselves.

“Think of Getanewsjob.comas your favorite job site, online community, and news site wrapped into one,” said Getanewsjob.com managing editor and founder, Tiffany Orr.

“And if something is missing, we are open to suggestions,” she said.| The recession and the exodus of newspaper subscribers to Web 2.0 properties has left many journalists without jobs.

Though newspapers are folding, there is hope.

Since journalism is a writing intensive field, laid off journalists, and those just graduating from J-school, should be able to easily find work in a variety of professions.

Some of the professions laid off journalists can transition into include:

Public relations—PR people are pretty much corporate journalists. Instead of looking out for the interests of the people, PR people look out for the interests of their employers.

Education—If you’ve been a journalist for a while, and you have the gift of gab , consider a career in education. K-12 jobs in English, communications, and journalism, should be easy to find.

Copy writing—White papers, manuals, text books– you name it–as a copy writer, you’ll write all kinds of stuff.

Advertising and marketing—Advertising and marketing are writing driven industries. Since you’ll be promoting some new widget, the message is important. Why not get out there and craft it? AP-style, not necessary.

Publishing—Use your journalism skills to become your own boss. Publish your own novel, magazine or newspaper.

One site that lists opportunities for laid-off journalists is getanewsjob.com.

Getanewsjob.com lists thousands of news and communications-related jobs daily.

In addition, the site also provides a forum where journalists can connect with each other.

According to site founder, Tiffany Orr, the site is like Monster.com, but specifically for journalists and communications professionals.

Changing technologies and the recession are hitting the newspaper industry hard.

Consequently, many journalists and communications professionals are losing their livelihoods.

While it is easy for those who’ve been laid off to start job hunting online, it’s not so easy to find a place where journalists and communications professionals can connect with each other and find support during the job hunt.

Getanewsjob.com fills this need.

The site gives unemployed journalists and communication professionals what they need in way of job listings and it provides a community where journalists and communications professionals can be themselves.

“Think of Getanewsjob.comas your favorite job site, online community, and news site wrapped into one,” said Getanewsjob.com managing editor and founder, Tiffany Orr.

“And if something is missing, we are open to suggestions,” she said.| The recession and the exodus of newspaper subscribers to Web 2.0 properties has left many journalists without jobs.

Though newspapers are folding, there is hope.

Since journalism is a writing intensive field, laid off journalists, and those just graduating from J-school, should be able to easily find work in a variety of professions.

Some of the professions laid off journalists can transition into include:

Public relations—PR people are pretty much corporate journalists. Instead of looking out for the interests of the people, PR people look out for the interests of their employers.

Education—If you’ve been a journalist for a while, and you have the gift of gab , consider a career in education. K-12 jobs in English, communications, and journalism, should be easy to find.

Copy writing—White papers, manuals, text books– you name it–as a copy writer, you’ll write all kinds of stuff.

Advertising and marketing—Advertising and marketing are writing driven industries. Since you’ll be promoting some new widget, the message is important. Why not get out there and craft it? AP-style, not necessary.

Publishing—Use your journalism skills to become your own boss. Publish your own novel, magazine or newspaper.

One site that lists opportunities for laid-off journalists is getanewsjob.com.

Getanewsjob.com lists thousands of news and communications-related jobs daily.

In addition, the site also provides a forum where journalists can connect with each other.

According to site founder, Tiffany Orr, the site is like Monster.com, but specifically for journalists and communications professionals.

Changing technologies and the recession are hitting the newspaper industry hard.

Consequently, many journalists and communications professionals are losing their livelihoods.

While it is easy for those who’ve been laid off to start job hunting online, it’s not so easy to find a place where journalists and communications professionals can connect with each other and find support during the job hunt.

Getanewsjob.com fills this need.

The site gives unemployed journalists and communication professionals what they need in way of job listings and it provides a community where journalists and communications professionals can be themselves.

“Think of Getanewsjob.comas your favorite job site, online community, and news site wrapped into one,” said Getanewsjob.com managing editor and founder, Tiffany Orr.

“And if something is missing, we are open to suggestions,” she said.| The recession and the exodus of newspaper subscribers to Web 2.0 properties has left many journalists without jobs.

Though newspapers are folding, there is hope.

Since journalism is a writing intensive field, laid off journalists, and those just graduating from J-school, should be able to easily find work in a variety of professions.

Some of the professions laid off journalists can transition into include:

Public relations—PR people are pretty much corporate journalists. Instead of looking out for the interests of the people, PR people look out for the interests of their employers.

Education—If you’ve been a journalist for a while, and you have the gift of gab , consider a career in education. K-12 jobs in English, communications, and journalism, should be easy to find.

Copy writing—White papers, manuals, text books– you name it–as a copy writer, you’ll write all kinds of stuff.

Advertising and marketing—Advertising and marketing are writing driven industries. Since you’ll be promoting some new widget, the message is important. Why not get out there and craft it? AP-style, not necessary.

Publishing—Use your journalism skills to become your own boss. Publish your own novel, magazine or newspaper.

One site that lists opportunities for laid-off journalists is getanewsjob.com.

Getanewsjob.com lists thousands of news and communications-related jobs daily.

In addition, the site also provides a forum where journalists can connect with each other.

According to site founder, Tiffany Orr, the site is like Monster.com, but specifically for journalists and communications professionals.

To learn more about us and the work that we do, check out our new Web sites.

Joe Dugan, Managing Editor – http://www.jcdugan.com

Heidi Charlton, Editor – http://www.heidicharlton.com

This past week I came across a Google alert of a story printed in Christianity Today. I still have an alert set up that informs me of news referencing my alma mater. The story itself didn’t reference the school, but the byline statement “so and so is from x location” referenced the writer as my former journalism professor. I scanned the story and realized the prof had shared it in my feature writing class this past spring, mentioning the editing process.

I emailed him to congratulate him on that and to update him on my life post-graduation, including the new job. He responded with an interesting question, and unexpected, frankly.

He asked if I wanted to do a conference call with his Editing class this fall, to discuss my first journalism job experience. This professor loves using conference calls in his classes, so I had a bit of a laugh first, but of course accepted. Most of the people on the other end will be people I’ve worked with on the newspaper staff or had been in classes with. It’s going to be kind of fun, I think.

What’s strange is that I’m actually going to be a part of a syllabus. I was on the other side of the conference call phone two years ago for the same Editing class. That, my friends, is surreality.

I just read a New York Post article on Digg that reported how earning a college degree isn’t worth it, financially and intellectually.

Jack Hough writes:  “A student who secures a degree is increasingly unlikely to make up its cost, despite higher pay, and the employer who requires a degree puts faith in a system whose standards are slipping.”  The basis for this slippage in the degree system’s standards is that degrees are becoming increasingly easy to earn, but increasingly difficult to afford.  According to the U.S. Department of Education, rising tuition and fees outpaced inflation by 36% at private colleges and 51% at public ones from 1995 to 2005.  But the actual substinance of the education these tuition and fees paid for dropped, as the department also reported that literacy levels for college graduates fell sharply over a similar period (1991 to 2003).

In effect, employers are becoming increasingly unimpressed with a college degree, especially as, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, almost 10 percent of the U.S. population is unemployed and competing for work.  Earlier this summer, CNN reported that only 18 percent of students who graduated this May will find a job in the coming months.  In other words, for every 10 students who just graduated, less than two are able to find a full-time job.   That leaves the other 81 percent of us competing with 10 percent of the population (most of which are layoffs from higher positions who have much more experience than us college grads).

In other words, if you just graduated from college, your degree is not enough to an employer.  You have to discover a unique selling point that makes you more valuable than the guy with 25 years of working experience.  That unique selling point for most of you is the fact that just about every employer out there is itching to implement social media into his or her marketing strategy.  These employers are desperate to find people who can help leverage this technology to their strategic advantage, and our generation has the unique ability to naturally fill that void (at usually a much cheaper price).  What they see as a “brand new phenomenon” is the same simple technology we’ve been using since we were all in middle school.  Growing your expertise in this area is the key to standing out among a bunch of “more experienced” job applicants who still use Windows 98 and have no idea what SEO means.

National and statewide newspapers — with the exception of niche publications  and local newspapers — simply cannot compete with a medium as inexpensive and widely used as online content.   It is as natural as survival of the fittest, but it’s not necessarily a bad thing.   The decline of traditional media is more of a threat to people now being laid off than it is to our generation.   The process of retrieving information  and the way people connect with one another is inevitably  shifting to the Web, and employers need people who understand how to strategically use these tools to reach their evolving markets, which is where we fit in.

As more and more companies begin to completely rethink their traditional business models, doors are beginning to open us up to a market geared toward a culture we already know and understand.   The stage is being set for an economy that is increasingly dependant on the unique skills and knowledge our generation learned to embrace years ago.

The Missouri General Assembly passed legislation that would impose stricter controls on transportation development districts, including penalizing them for failing to file mandatory annual financial reports.

The legislature passed the bill, which is waiting to be signed by Gov. Jay Nixon, late in the last week of the 2009 session. The passage came about a week after the Missourian’s three-part investigation into the special sales tax districts that highlighted some of the problems the legislation intends to curtail.

Click here for Jacob Barker’s follow-up story written after I had ceased employment at the Missourian.

Michael Daehn, a social media consultant was sick of using job websites like Monster to search for his next employer.

He set up a website GetMikeAJob, and offered prizes to anyone who could find him any sort of employment.

The prizes he was offering were genius – car washing, Krispy Kremes, a social media or marketing consultation for your business, anything he could think of!

With regular diary updates, readers were informed of Mike’s progress, and of course his frustrations.

Mike “freaking out” on Day 21

But fear not – by Day 25 he got a job!

What a great idea, and with Facebook and Twitter pages too, Mike was demonstrating his skills at the same time.  Watch this space for GetAlisonAJob!

Have you ever read a book, say, Haruki Murakami’s Norwegian Wood or perhaps an article, like one of Jessica Zafra’s Twisted features, which made you realize that you would probably like to have a writer’s job?

You can be a novelist, like JK Rowling or Stephen King or, you can be a poet like Francisco Baltazar or Pablo Neruda if you fancy. But aside from those, there are many other writing-related occupations you can choose from these days.

Depending on your skills and interests, you can enter into journalism, media content writing, and copy-writing among others. In fact, to get you started off figuring out which writing jobs are good for you, you can read about them at the JobsDB Philippines Career Guide.

Additionally, Marion Marking of ChinaBusiness – Philippines magazine offers some useful tips on applying for a writing job in the aptly titled article, How to Apply for a Writer’s Job which include the following:

1) Always write a cover letter. You have no business working as a writer if you can’t even write a simple cover letter. I think sites like JobsDB, which have built in form letters, yield better-quality applicants simply because employers can short list all those who write their own letters! Sending out an original cover letter immediately lets a prospective employer know that you’re a serious applicant and a competent writer.

2) Never misspell ANYTHING. Proofread ALL your application documents: from cover letter to sample work to the last page of your résumé. Proper spelling is a basic requirement that shouldn’t even be a point of discussion. I’ve seen applicants misspell everything from their course to their own name! Appalling! Especially for a writer.

and five other essential guidelines which can serve you in your pursuit for your dream job.

Click to read Marion Marking’s “How to Apply for a Writer’s Job” in its entirety. Or, read other articles from Marion Marking and other experts by entering JobsDB.com Philippines’ Career Advice section.

You can also click on the following to find and apply for the latest writer jobs in JobsDB.com Philippines:

1)      General Writer Jobs

2)      Print Media Jobs

3)      Journalism Jobs

4)      Copywriting Jobs

You may also visit DBJobs.com, the JobsDB Philippines Career Guide, to learn about the ins-and-outs of various career options from Accounting to Transportation.

What happens when a journalist’s job disappears?

From a SF writer’s blog - City Brights – I randomly found via the wonders of Twitter:

“The Mercury News has an e-mail discussion group for reporters and editors who have left the paper in recent years. While a number of them still work as journalists in places as varied as the Washington Post and Los Angeles Times, the bulk has migrated into new professions. More than 20 former Mercury News reporters and editors now work at Stanford, either at the alumni magazine, or at the news service or business school or in some sort of public relations capacity. Others are doing similar jobs in non-profits around the Bay Area. One reporter has just gone to work for the gubernatorial campaign of ex-EBay CEO Meg Whitman.”

One clear theme: Journalists are going PR.

You can use these resources in two ways: to find a publisher for your work or to find possible job leads.

Publisher Catalog
http://www.lights.ca/publisher/

This lists publishers and their Web sites. Obviously, if you’re looking for a publisher it might come in handy. And for the entrepreneur out there, e-mail publishers to ask if they hire freelancers. Granted, for every 100 people that you e-mail, maybe 5 will want your resume, but it can work. I’ve raked in a few dollars with this method. To make it easier on yourself and to save some time, send a mass email addressed to yourself and BCC’d (blind) to the publishers on your list. That way you don’t have to send out individual letters.

Writer’s Market
http://www.writersmarket.com

This is the online version of the monster writer’s bible that comes out every year. Again, you can use the book to both look for writing work (if that’s your gig) or you can use it as a resource for landing editing jobs if you go about it in a similiar fashion as described above.

National Writer’s Union 
http://www.nwu.org/nwu/

The National Writers Union is the trade union for freelance and contract writers: journalists, book authors, business and technical writers, web content providers, and  poets. Check them out if you’ve begun freelancing or if you’re thinking about it.

There are so many ways to go about finding freelance work. Comment or email if you’ve got more ideas or resources to share!