Job hunt questions for upcoming grads

PM me.

I can't help on the Baltimore/D.C. thing, but I can on the copy editing front.

 

Here's a really specific question: My sister is getting married the last weekend in July in Nashville. I'm going to the wedding no matter what, so I'm going to need that Friday-Sunday off. How do I bring this up with a prospective employer without seeming like I'm asking for slack right off the bat?

 

Aschaefe, I had the same 'time off' problem -- only mine was for an annual trip and if I had to miss it, well, I would miss it. But I don't want to.

I didn't bring it up until after I was hired -- actually it was during the phone call offering me the job. In my case, it was no problem, I have the time off.

You will need to feel out a prospective employer. Don't be afraid to ask questions. I look at a job interview as going both ways. They may be interviewing me to see if they want me, but I am also checking them out to see if I want to work for them.

After all, if I'm going to be giving my all, it better be somewhere I want to be.

I would hope that an employer would be understanding of a sibling's wedding. If not, then it's time to say "next!" and look elsewhere for employment.

 

Just bring it up. It's not a deal-breaker. It's your sister's wedding.

Just don't be surprised if they make you take it off as unpaid vacation.

 

WashingtonPost.com has regular and helpful chats on job and job-hunting related issues. The advice on there is pretty consistent: bring it up after the offer. As was just posted, expect that you'll have to take it as unpaid. And do be sure to use it as a gauge of how you'd be treated there.

 

That was pretty much what I expected and exactly what my mom told me I should do. Thanks all.

 

This is very good advice. I have interviewed for jobs that seemed great on paper, but when I got into the office and talked to the prospective boss/coworkers, I was able to say 'hell, no!' Gotta make sure it's a good fit in both directions.

 

Another good resource for those looking for jobs is Joe Grimm's "Ask the recruiter" on Poynter.
http://poynter.org/column.asp?id=77

 

I have a quick question about clips. One of mine is from an online archive that I had to pay to access, making it impossible for editors to see. I've got the article myself for mailed copies, but what's the best way to send it out in email? My thought is to scan it and save it as a pdf.

 

Another about clips...

Is it an absolute no-no to copy and paste clips into a word document, with the headline, byline, rundate? If my resume and clips are all just on MS word am I doing it all wrong?

Or does it even matter?

 

I'll let the experts chime in, but I've been told it's best if editors can see your clips as they appeared in the paper, i.e. on the page.

 

Those days are gone, especially since most places take e-mail apps