Sports reporter, The Courier-Journal

You should have my info Creig. Thanks for such a detailed post.

 

The post from Creig should be replicated somewhere else so everyone can use it as a resource.

That's how it's done.

 

I'm one of those recent grads who applied, and am admittedly guilty of a couple of the smaller offenses that Creig listed. I don't suppose it would be helpful to correct those mistakes and then send an email again. lol.

 

Attaching a cover letter does not indicate you are taking the easy route. It is professional to attach it as I've seen my cover letter as part of the material an interviewer has in front of them.

What type of applicant wouldn't send a resume or clips in the first email?

 

Yeah, I agree, I thought that was kind of a weird complaint.

 

This is great advice in applying for ANY job.

 

My track record in getting jobs far outstrips my actual value to newsrooms, and this is the biggest reason why. Having been on the other side a few times, too, I think that 90% of job applicants don't get that.

 

I used to attach the cover letter, but recently decided it just felt stupid. Why am I writing the body of an email essentially to do what a cover letter should do?

 

I think the best way to handle it is to use the body of the e-mail as a second, shorter, less formal cover letter. It should be more than "here I am, here's my stuff," but it doesn't have to be the whole cover letter either.

 

Slight tangent, but wondering how/why the CJ has had five guys with more than 100 years of service combined (Ray Hall, Bozich, Crawford, Demling and Brett Dawson) either leave or retire in a year. That's 2 of your 3 biggest beats, your takeout guy and both columnists. I'm not saying it's not a good gig, but man doesn't that kind of exodus scare ya just a little?

 

I too am one of the recent grads who applied and luckily I didn't make any of the mistakes listed, although I didn't include references either.

 

If someone wants references, include the request in a job listing. Many career help websites and colleges tell job hunters not to include them if it's not requested.

Mistakes in a job ad are also warning signs for applicants. It does not mean an immediate supervisor is careless or sloppy, but it is indicative of the performance of the department responsible for writing the ad.