Work placements at magazines. They remain the holy grail for young people looking to break into journalism, and while a great deal of controversy has surrounded internships and placements recently, I've found them to be one of the key routes into actually getting a paid job within the industry. While the surest bit of advice for securing one of these hallowed placements is to have a good CV backed up with lots of previous work experience slots, I've picked up some other insights along the way too.
Look for alternative ways in
Last summer I applied to many magazines and often received no reply. But an advert on Twitter for a university student-only mentoring scheme caught my eye and through this more selective process, with specific criteria and therefore less people applying, my previous experience was able to shine through and ensure I was able to get myself a placement at Q magazine.
Make new contacts - and use them
My most successful applications have on the whole been to publications where I already knew one of the employees. That personal touch can't be underestimated, and when inboxes are flooded with hundreds of applications, if your name rings a bell, you're going to stand out. With Twitter, it's easier than ever these days to strike up conversations with writers and reporters, getting to know them and showing what kind of person you are. To a degree, I think a good, cleverly written Twitter account is every bit as attractive as a promising CV when seeking placements.
Think about what you can bring to the table
I laid down some basic ground rules for myself – don't waffle in your covering letter, don't beg, don't tell sob stories. In my more successful covering letters, I made sure to stress what I could bring to the publication if they took me on – phrases like "I'm free to start any time within the next four months" and explaining exactly what I hoped to gain from the placement also seemed to garner more positive responses too. My experience showed me that it wasn't so much a case of wanting to do work placements just for the sake of doing them, but making sure I was clear that they would be mutually beneficial to both myself and the publication.
Some of the best placements are also the ones where the staff recognise the skills and previous experience you have. During my time at We Love Pop magazine, because I had interviewed a number of pop-stars for my student newspaper in the past, I was given the duty of interviewing up-and-coming American hip-hop star Kreayshawn at Sony BMG's offices.
When I was at NME, I learned it was vital to not only complete the work given to you, but to enquire about what else you could help out with, and to suggest areas where you feel you could be put to good use. I'd offer to help research content for the news section of the website and in return got asked to do a quick write up of the week's new music videos, parts of which ended up in the magazine itself. The more pro-active you are while on a placement, the more the staff there will remember you, and they'll most definitely appreciate you for lightening their workload – you never know, they may even repay the favour down the line.
Don't do placements just for the sake of it
One thing I was particularly keen to ensure was that placements wouldn't just become a stream of menial jobs – one of the best pieces of advice I received during the application process was to not lose sight of the chief reason for wanting to get into magazines: to write. Long periods with no response to covering letters can become incredibly disheartening, so I found made sure I mixed placements in-house with writing articles for online publications. Many are open to direct contact via Twitter and I found reviewing albums for sites such as musicOMH helped refocus my determination in preparation for continuing my search. Writing online also often leads you to publications actively seeking applicants to assist with web duties – it's a rare day when I don't see at least a handful of roles being advertised for on my Twitter stream due to the media-engaged people I follow.
Also, don't rule out going back to the same publication. I've found that applying to publications where you have been on placement at in the past works well – while you might be keen to get more 'names' down on your CV, it's often far more rewarding in the long term to reapply to return to places you know.
If there's one rule above all others to remember, it's that if you don't ask, you don't get. Sending a prospective email, tweet or phone call is always worth chancing, even if you think you'll sound silly asking. You won't. For every 10 places you apply to, nine may never even reply, but if you get one offer back, that's still a success. Placements take guts, determination and initiative – by crafting a well-worded, succinct application, you're already taking the first step on the route to success.
Laurence Green blogs at Totally Livid. You can find him on Twitter as @LaurenceTGreen
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