In this day and age just simply sending out 200 cover letters and resumes doesn’t cut it. Employers will not remember you and you will more than likely not achieve the results you deserve. However, with the rapid expansion of social media on the web, some employers are looking beyond the desk and into the Internet to find potential employees.
Antonia Harler’s article provides a personal testament about the struggles freshly graduated students face in the real world job market. The world of journalism is seeing a decline in availability for jobs for both veterans of the market and newcomers. This means that as young and aspiring journalists we will have the hardest time making it to the top or even at an entry level job.
We all blog. We blog about our families, clothing, relationships and dreams but never truly believe in the impact these posts can have. Ms. Harler went through the same struggles as any new graduate would but came out on top because of her ability to reach out via her blog. Creating important web connections is vital to employment success and in this economy those relationship mean everything.
You must remember that although Ms. Harler was successful, not everyone will achieve the same success. However, this does not mean you should give up. Harler gives great examples of ways to achieve the jobs you want from the employers you dream about.
She explains that asking for help, blogging, being pro-active and patient are always important things to remember as we set forth on our employment-out-of-college journey. Some of you may roll your eyes at the advice given and simply chose to believe you are one of the “unlucky” ones but I promise you are wrong.
This blog post was so relatable to me it was unsettling. Last year I decided to join the world of Twitter and LinkedIn just for the hell of it. At first I was confused, irritated and pissed off that these so-called “awesome” websites were so confusing to deal with and look at. However, as time went on I began to understand the importance each outlet had.
As my junior year of school ended, I knew it was time for me to find a summer internship. I did not have the faintest idea what I would do and ended up wasting several hours sending resumes to posts on cragislists and to the classified section of every newspaper I knew. It wasn’t until my roommate told me to follow some internship guru’s on Twitter that I had even thought about using the site for that.
By following several internship sites along with the University of Oregon Journalism twitter I was able to find the perfect internship at a local Portland radio station, KINK FM. Since then I found almost every job, volunteer, and internship opportunity via my Twitter or random blogs I have stumbled upon. So trust me, what Antonia Harler speaks is the truth.
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