Breaking in part time

Absolutely correct. When I was hired full time it came down to two part-timers. I had plans of moving on to a full-time job, the other part-timer would still be there either way. The hiring editor admitted to me that he wanted to find a way to have both of us. The only way to do that was to offer me the job full-time. Not to say I wasn't more deserving (I think I am, but who knows).

 

Sunshine Scooter, it might help us to know what you are doing now. If you have a job at a smaller paper, I would not give that up to take a part-time position at a larger one. The part-time position is a gamble and as likely to hurt you in your pursuit of a full-time position there as help.

Honestly, a lot depends on the editor. Is he the kind of guy who will choose the best person no matter what and give some consideration to the good work you've done? Or is he going to take advantage of you if he can find a decent full-time candidate elsewhere?

I started out as a part-timer out a couple of months after graduating from college, but I never stopped looking for full-time jobs. I did end up turning down a full-time gig at a tiny paper, in part because I was going to be putting in more work for only a slight pay bump, not to mention an extra hour round trip in my commute. I asked for more money and they said they couldn't do it, so I stayed.

I got lucky. The company decided to look internally first the next full-time opening they had. Even then, one of the higher-ups didn't want to hire me. The SE stood up for me because he knew I deserved it. Looking back I realize a lot of sports editors wouldn't have done that.

 

Add me to the list of people who don't understand college kids who choose the school paper over a part-time gig at a real shop. We run into this all the time where I am, which is the second-largest circ. paper in the area. It's a major university and we're one of a handful of papers that cover the school.

When we need part-timers and stringers, we always try to get 'em from the school paper, which seems like a no-brainer, right? You can either write shitty columns in your school paper that no editor wants to see in a clip file, or you can work at a professional paper doing things you'll actually have to do when you get your first job. Plus, you'll get paid (many school papers don't pay) and you'll have a foot in the door at the real paper. An amazingly large number of kids turn that down. Plus, for whatever (probably arrogant) reason, the head of the J-school is of absolutely no help in getting jobs for his kids. He rarely even returns our phone calls. I think he lives in some fantasy world (also known as academia) where all his precious students immediately take jobs at the Washington Post. (By the way, this university is neither Missouri nor Syracuse)

 

What's to understand? The girls at the school paper are tons hotter.

 

Sorry, play. I'll chat up the beer-cart girl a while. You got ahead and hit on.

 

OK. But the red stuff'll give you the yips.

 

Sorry to interrupt, but to get back to the main point, I would say getting a job as a part-timer is a great way to break into the business. You can meet editors and writers who might help you down the line. You can get great clips and pitch ideas that might work out to be clips you can use with your resume.

That said, I would expect to be overworked, and not to get a full-time job at the paper you work for. Also, you should put a time limit on the job. I've seen part-timers do great work and settle in an area only to be passed over again and again. Use the experience, but don't let them use you up.

 

I'll never knock a kid for choosing the college paper, because a lot of times that place becomes their socializing agent in school. Some people have frats ... some people are jocks ... these are OUR people.

And at that point in life, that's more important than the difference in clips accrued.

 

Excellent point. That's exactly what my school paper was for me. I did do some freelancing for a local paper, but working at my college paper was a great experience for me.

 

I would agree as well and I was lucky enough to be part of a senior class that is actually going places, meaning I made good contacts that are now spread across the country.

Plus, depending on what you want to do, working for the school paper can give you a chance to try different things. I entered school wanting to be a reporter but my design and editing work at the paper peaked my interest and led me to be a desker. And as someone with management goals in mind, the experience of running a section and eventually the whole paper was invaluable. The best way to go about things, in my opinion, is to do a bit of both. Work at the school rag and help out at the local paper, if you can.