Joe Grimm's News Jobs Café: Ask the recruiter

Have Cover Letter at Interview?

Q: I have an interview coming up at a large news magazine in New York City, and I was wondering if I should bring a cover letter. I got the interview through a friend. I merely used this friend's name (which has some clout) and sent a copy of my resume in an e-mail and got a reply to come in for an interview. I originally added a short note in the email (like a mini cover letter) but that was about it. Will a cover letter be expected of me when I walk in for the interview?

Also, I don't have a ton of experience for the job but I know I can test well and do a good interview. Plus I have been using the relevant skills needed in other jobs I've done. I have one year in the job experience department for this position, but that was a college paper and a little while back. Considering that I need some luck to land this job, is there any advice you can offer me? I was going to bring in a portfolio of some graduate papers and some clips I copy edited, but beyond that I only have some freelance writing I've done (Web site copy and such). Bottom line is I don't have a sweet portfolio but really, really want this job.

Thanks a lot for your help.

Daniel

A: A cover letter typically flies by mail and accompanies a resume. You should not need one for the interview.

I would plan to write a brief and thoughtful note afterward, however.

To get ready for the interview, do you research into that company and be ready to ask some sharp questions. Do not ask fake questions calculated to show how much you've learned. Better, ask questions about the company's direction, market position or future that will likely touch on some of the issues company insiders are concerned about. Have your portfolio with you, but don't bring it out and take people through it unless they ask to see it. You don't want to lose interviewing time to portfolio showing.

Note: "Ask the Recruiter" is moving to Poynter's new Career Center. The new home is here. Don't forget to change your bookmark.

A Cultural Mismatch?

Q: Before I start, many thanks for the thoughtful responses to my question. "Ask the Recruiter" is an invaluable resource, and even throwaway comments that you make on it probably end up saving reporters years on their careers. This is a true public service.

It's the season for recruiter interviews at the college where I'm a grad student. I have two problems that go together -- I was raised in a very traditional part of the country where terms of address and decorum were extremely, extremely important. Now I have some years of newsroom experience by now out of that region, so I know newsroom culture fairly well. And when I see a guy in a suit, I think that either somebody died or the person is a lawyer. I want to make a good impression on these interviews, so I'm going in a gray sportcoat and a conservative tie, black slacks. My thinking is, this looks formal enough to be respectful and sharp, but not so formal that I look out of place, intimidated/ing, or naive. But the prep school kid in me still looks in the mirror and thinks, "go for the suit." The grownup reporter nixes that idea. Am I on the right track, or could I be showing up to these interviews in the sharpest navy suit I have? I really don't want to look like a kid that just got out of Sunday school, or a law student that went to the wrong interview.

The other problem is one I've had all the time, everywhere. When I meet someone older than I am, I refer to them as Mr. or Ms. so on and so forth, and answer "yes, sir," and "yes, ma'am." This inevitably causes problems when I'm at functions with other journalists and am trying to make contacts, because editors often prefer you call them by their first name. I always come across as being childlike, and it's really just me following my mom and dad's sincerest tableside advice. I think I can solve my problem by going straight to first names, but again, the prep school kid in me shudders at that idea -- it's impolite. I think I have a good idea what I'm doing with the first dilemma, but the second one is one of those lifetime quirks that I've never really solved.

Am I the only person with these nutty sorts of issues?

Grad Student

A: You are not the only person with these issues, and they are not at all nutty. They are about how we are acculturated.

First, your situation: Your instincts on dress are correct. The gray sportcoat, black slacks and tie work well in any context. The blue suit could carry messages that will distract editors from the business at hand. (Is he a lawyer, ex-military, very conservative, etc.?) Dress to impress -- but not to distract.

As for terms of address, it is OK to open with courtesy titles and "yes sir," especially if this seems natural to you, and to become less formal if the recruiter tells you to.

On my first day at the Free Press, I did the same thing, and felt quite fine to be told that we were all on a first-name basis.

Your questions about acculturation apply to a lot of people.

In some cultures, it is considered impolite to look an elder directly in the eyes. People who cast their eyes downward or to the side may be trying to show respect, but can be misinterpretted as being dishonest. What a cruel misunderstanding!

In other cultures, handshakes are soft, more like a touch than a grab. Yet in American business culture, this sign of opennness can be taken as a sign of weakness. Another great misunderstanding.

We all do well -- candidates and recruiters -- to do as you have done. Know yourself, think about where the other person is coming from and find a place in the middle that accommodates both.

Note: "Ask the Recruiter" is moving to Poynter's new Career Center. The new home is here. Don't forget to change your bookmark.

Going to National College Media Convention?

If you're going to the National College Media Convention in St. Louis Oct. 25-29 and would like to meet, e-mail me.

I am especially interested in talking with digital journalists and copy editors.

Too Relaxed in My Job Interview?

Q: I think I've lost my filter for job interviews. While I used to be very nervous, now I've sort of become too relaxed and I end up saying what I don't mean to say. On a job interview I was on recently I told the recruiter that I was a good writer, but not a great writer. I realize now that it's sort of arrogant.

Do you have any advice on how to backtrack if you've said something stupid in an interview? I tried to make it sound like I was telling a joke but to be honest I don't think he was too enamored with me after that.

Embarrassed and Otherwise Clueless

A: You seem to have demonstrated why butterflies can be helpful during an interview. They keep us from acting like turkeys.

Recovery should not be difficult. A follow-up note is always a good idea after an important interview. Use yours to explain what you really meant to say. No need to apologize, but the clarification -- if it demonstrates that you can be a great writer -- could help a lot.

And pack some butterflies for your next interview.

Do Your Job-Hunting Homework

At many job fairs, job-seekers complain about recruiters who ask, "so, what do you know about our newspaper?"

The job-seekers feel they are at an unfair advantage because they have limited ways to quickly check out the background on a paper that just happens to be at the job fair.

Career coach Marie McIntyre answers a question that comes close to these situations.

DIfferent day, new recruiters?

Q: I'll be attending a three-day conference at the end of this month which features a Career Fair. Since the fair is over two days, I imagine the same recruiters will be there both days. What should I do to maximize seeing the same recruiters on the second day?

I don't think it would be advantageous to just walk by them as if we hadn't met yesterday, but I'm not sure if I should stop to have another full-length conversation. And if there are different recruiters from a company I already spoke with, should I make the acquaintance of the new recruiter as well?

Toni

A: I'm a recruiter so, of course, I can think of lots of reasons for you to go both days:

• We often use more than one recruiter, even at a one-day fair, just to handle volume.
• If the job fair is big, you may not be able to get to all the recruiters in one day.
• If you've already paid the costs of being at the conference and job fair, going for a second day probably costs you nothing.
• It is wise to reinforce a good first impression with a second-day visit. Show up with some new questions or points to make about yourself.

Overlapping quotes?

Q: This probably sounds like the dumbest question...but someone asked me how to edit an interview where interviewer and interviewee are both talking at once. Any editorial marking or suggestion how to show this in print? I am at a loss.

Thanks.

Lucy

A: I would put the quotes in whole, ordering them according to the chronology in which they began. If one speaker starts talking and the other speaker then comes in, I'd put the first speaker first, finish off the quote and then put in the whole second quote.

You can handle interspersed quotes by interspersing short paragraphs, but there is not a typographically sensible way to overlap quotes. This is one of the shortcomings of putting quotes down on paper.

If you wish, you could add a phrase like, "talking over each other" or "who sometimes speak at the same time." That should convey the nature of how the interview went.

Printed communication imposes more order on verbal communication than usually occurs.

Don't blow the interview

Business Week online has tips about how to act if you really want that job.

Many are obvious (don't arrive too early; don't use e-mails with words like seduction), but at least they're funny ...

First job interview?

Q: I've been one of those weird, yet lucky, people who has never had to interview for a single journalism internship (and I've interned at two major metro dailies and a major metro alt. weekly.) I've always just been offered the positions outright through phone calls or e-mails.

However, it's time for a real job and I'm heading into my first interview on Wednesday at a fairly large mid-size paper. While I have a very good idea of what will happen (and the massive list of questions I have about the place,) I was wondering if I should bring a clip portfolio of some type. If so, how extensive should it be? How far back in my career should I go? Other than clips, should I bring old letters of recommendation? What about print-outs of raw copy?

This paper is much too big for me to have to do design work or shoot photos, but should I bring along anything that shows those skills?

Thanks for any advice you can give.

S

A: Yes, take a portfolio with you, even if you've already sent one.

It may be that your work does not get to everyone you'll meet. It may be that some folks will want to see more, so make it more extensive than the one you've sent in.

Still, be selective. Do not bring in your whole body of work. It would be a shame if someone judged you on your weakest example. I wouldn't bring the raw copy and would maybe bring just one letter of recommendatyion -- and present it only if asked.

For a paper of this size, stay focused on recent work applicable to the job they're trying to fill.

It's too bad that you didn't get interviewe experience on internships, but not so unusual. Internships may be won by mail; jobs seldom are.

Good luck!

Friend had no interest in job?

Q: A friend of mine recently interviewed for a position where I work but seems to have made two errors in my opinion. From the sound of things, it didn't appear that he even looked at our publication, or if he did, he didn't do a thorough job and apparently it showed during the interview. Also, he wasn't interested in the job and may have said during the interview that he wasn't ready to leave his current position for this one. That made my editors wonder why they spent the money to fly him out here and put him up and spent the time to talk to him if he wasn't serious in the first place.

I don't know this person well.

Should I tell him that he may have left a bad impression?

Embarrassed

A: I would certainly tell him and I would tell him that his cavalier attitude could tarnish your reputation just for having done him the favor of opening a door for him. You did him a favor; he did you none.

I would then go to your editors and apologize for his behavior. They shouldn't hold you accountable for what he did or didn't do, but clear the air and show them you're as mystefied as they are.