Joe Grimm's News Jobs Café: Ask the recruiter

State job-location desire?

Q: I'm in moving mode again.

The goal is to find a newspaper in Southern California. So the location and size of the paper matter as much, if not more than the position. Is it stepping over the line to mention in the cover letter that I wish to relocate to the West Coast, hence the r´esumé?

And how do I handle applying for two different positions at the same paper?

Bill

A: It is wise to say that you are interested in being in the area that you are applying to. I met with the editor of a small newspaper last week and he would be greatly encouraged if applicants would state their reasons for applying. He often feels they are just applying to a list of places. So, a specific interest can help.

Be a little more careful in applying for two different jobs at the same paper. You might come across as not-too-choosy and that can be misconstrued as not-too-interested or not-too-focused.

Write a cover letter that embraces both positions without getting specific. Make the editor come up with the idea of considering you for two positions.

Deadline creep

This month's issue of Presstime, published by the Newspaper Association of America, says that internship deadlines are creeping ever earlier. This is happening despite rising enrollments in schools of journalism and mass communications and a shrinking pool of opportunities.

So, resolve to get your applications for next summer out by the end of October -- unless your favorite papers have even earlier deadlines.

Be early, but don't panic. I have seen deadlines creep earlier ever since I started recruiting in 1990. At thetime, I moved the deadline at the Detroit Free Press from Jan. 1 to Dec. 1 and have no plans to make it earlier.

Now, where did I leave that?

Last week's news that two laptops with information on 31,000 Navy recruiters and their prospects were stolen in New Jersey reminds me of the time I lost my Palm Pilot in the D.C. area.

Attention Washington Post: If you find it, please return. No questions asked.

Timing on new job?

Q: I notice in your blog you use the term "live job ad." What precisely does that mean? Is it common for a company to put a job ad out during a hiring freeze (say, as a Tribune paper may be doing now) with no immediate intention of filling that position?

Perhaps they're looking to fill a position when things start looking up again and they just want to get it out there that they're looking?

Also, I am in a situation right now where I'm a master's student in the middle of a joint masters program (journalism and Latin American Studies).  The way I've got my studies structured, I could walk out of grad school right now and still have a master's degree of some kind. If I stay on till May, I finish the journalism side and get my joint masters (I'd also have three quality magazine-length articles to boot, would have experience working with Flash, Dreamweaver and HTML, and gotten a year's experience working for an NPR affiliate). I did this intentionally -- if I can find an outstanding reporting job somewhere then I can leave to take it and still have something to show for it. I'm trying to avoid taking the first thing that comes up in the summertime.

But I haven't had to bridge this topic to an employer yet. My school has recruiters visit from some pretty great papers -- if I sat down and spoke with one of them about possibly working there, and things go well and they ask me to interview, and then when I could start, I figured I would just tell them the truth, that:

a) I do have a master's degree, but
b) am still in my graduate program, and
c) would be willing to start work ASAP if necessary.

The only downside I can see with that is that they may end up thinking that I'm wasting either my time or their time or both. It may also send the message to the potential employer that I have a problem with commitment.

How should I handle this?

Grad student

A: Thanks for the question. The second part of it helps me answer the first. I was probably being redundant when I wrote "live job ad." Ads are generally for real positions. Many, many editors post only when they want to attract candidates. We do, however, go to job fairs and campus interviews even when we have no immediate openings.

If you get into a conversation about starting times with an editor, be honest. That is almost always the best policy. Say, "My calendar is more flexible than you might expect. I would be happy to come work for you now and would still be meeting my academic goals. If nothing turns up till later, I am in a good place in school and can continue my studies till May. While my education is certainly important -- it brought me to where I am today -- the career is No. 1 for me now and I have built a program that puts my career first."

Bigger paper or better one?

Q: I've always turned to your site for advice. I have a question. Does it look bad to continue to work at newspapers that have the same circulation? When I graduated college I always wanted to work for a larger circulation newspaper but now I feel like my priorities have changed. For me, quality matters more. Does that make me look unmotivated?

Wondering

A: Congratulations.

You have learned something valuable about yourself and newspapers. It is usually better to work for a larger newspaper. It is ALWAYS better to work for a better one.

Trust your instincts on this and don't worry too much about what others will think. You will have a good explanation for them.

Watch this space

Something exciting is about to happen to "Ask the Recruiter."

Stay tuned.

International student journalist?

Q: I know you're extremely busy but this question is really important, and will affect my future career a great deal. I should have asked you before.

English is not my first language and I don't have U.S. citizenship. I'm an international student from Vietnam. My dream is to cover Vietnam for wire services, such as the AP. But for now, I need a newsroom job in the U.S. and I also can't go back to Vietnam and work as a reporter anyway, due to state regulation.

Under the law, I can work in the U.S. for a year. After 12 months, if the paper still wants me working, it will have to sponsor me for the B-1 or H-1 visa (working visa)

My fear is that small newspapers won't hire me, even if I have the skills, because they don't want to have to go through the whole process of completing paper works. They would rather hire an American.

Bigger newspapers, like the New York Times, do have foreigners work for them. But I'm not good enough for bigger newspapers anyway.The only thing I can add to a newsroom is diversity, which is a lame excuse. However, I have been chosen to some of the programs for student journalists partly because I'm from Vietnam. So, I'm not sure whether it will play a role in my job searching. Or it will prevent me from getting a job in the U.S.

So, I'm facing a dilemma here: can't go back home and work, and can't get a job in the U.S.

I know you have thousand of questions coming in. I really hope you would answer me, maybe not immediately, but in the near future.

Best regards,

Huong

A: You are not alone. I hear almost weekly from journalists in the same situation. In fact, I was talking about this with an editor in Wisconsin just this week. He was frustrated by his inability to land a journalist we both know who he dearly wanted to keep. The U.S. government denied the application and she is working at home in Canada now.

When the market is tight, as it is now, international journalists have an even tougher time. The extra costs and red tape are hard to justify.

One thing that can push them to make the effort is the chance to acquire someone with fluency in a language ot skill they need.

So, a few strategies for international journalists looking to get work visas:

• Become knowledgeable about the process. Get help from an immigration lawyer. If a university encouraged you to come here to go to study, press it to help you with the work visa. (It is a disservice for universities to attract international students without providing this kind of support.)
• Apply to places where your unique qualifications -- a language, most likely -- are in demand.
• Don't be afraid to apply to small newspapers. They are sometimes willing to sponsor, and you're right that larger newspapers are looking for more journalistic experience.
• Don't ask the newspaper to pay your share of the costs on this. After all, American candidates don't come with that extra expense.
• When you take internships or jobs for part of the 12-month practical training period that student visas allow, be sure that the papers you go with are open to sponsoring you. If a newspaper takes you on as a student intern but has no interntion of hiring your or sponsoring you, that costs you months you should be spending to impress a prospective employer.

East Coast job?

Q: recently won a best reporter first place award at a SPJ awards ceremony in a state in the western part of the U.S. I am originally from the eastern part of the country and want to return there. How hard will it be to find a job across the country? How willing will employers be to interview me? Will they frown on doing phone interviews? What should I say in my application to better my chances.

Thanks,

C.P.

A: Congratulations on the award! That can't hurt.

It is probably unwise to move across the country to work in a newsroom you have never even seen, so I would avoid places that might hire on the basis of a phone interview. Go for the in-person interviews.

Is it difficult? Yes. You can improve your odds by being very good and applying to places where you are a competitive candidate. Sometimes that means applying in specialty areas, sometimes that means applying to smaller places. It always means talking with people who are seriously trying to fill live openings.

Arresting interview

Police in Opa-locka, Fla., arrested a man and accused him of impersonating a police officer, the Miami Herald reports.

How did they catch him? They called him in for a job interview.

Getting that first job?

Q: I'm worried and scared as hell. I didn't graduate from a good school and I'm dreaming of starting out with a daily as an intern reporter. Does having four or five daily internships make any difference?

Worried

A: Get a grip and get to work.

Not everyone who wants to get into journalism this year will get in, that is true.

But some people will get in -- ahead of seemingly more qualified candidates -- because they will be more willing to do what it takes to get started.

What does it take? It may take moving, starting at a smaller daily or compromising on the position you take.

Hard work, adaptability and the ability to grow on the job will count more than the prestige of your sheepskin.

So, dont be intimidated by others' degrees. Outwork them, outthink them and look outside of the boundaries they may place on their job search.