Dear Ed,
I graduated with a B.A. in journalism. For the past year and a half, I have been applying for entry-level jobs in magazines. I landed a handful of interviews and made great contacts, but I didn’t get any offers. So I recently accepted a newspaper reporting position. Did I just cut off all cords to women’s mags forever? Or could this job be the “1 - 2 yrs. experience” that most EA positions require?
Thank you so much,
Jen, New York, NY
Hi Jen,
Congratulations on your new job! Newspaper reporter experience is great prep for being an EA at a magazine, so you should feel excited about landing this gig. But if magazines are your passion, it’s best to stay at the newspaper for no longer than a year.
While you’re there, keep in touch with your magazine contacts, so that when you’re ready, you can ask them about openings at their magazines. And take advantage of your position as a local reporter. You’ll be exposed to great stories that may be of interest to women’s magazines. Pitch those stories to get freelance writing assignments (if your newspaper is cool with that) at national magazines. This will beef up your resume and show hiring editors that you are interested in—and have experience with—magazines.
Working any longer than a year at your newspaper may overqualify you for EA positions, and it’s difficult, though not impossible, to get hired at a higher level at a magazine without
having worked at one previously. So learn as much as you can in your year at the newspaper, then go after your magazine dream.
-Ed
