Q. I've been following you for years and can't tell you how much I appreciated your job-hunting tips or how often I've forward a link to your jobs page to a friend, student or colleague. I don't think I would have gotten where I am professionally without your help.
I've recently posted an ad looking for freelance reporters to work for our publication (please don't mention which or my name) and was horrified by some of the e-mails I received.
Rampant misspellings -- including my name and that of my publication -- painful and illogical diction and blatant grammatical errors helped me toss quite a few applicants directly into the trash. There were also a fair number who couldn't follow basic instructions of including a resume and five clips.
And I'm still trying to decide if I should bother clicking on someone's Web site if they didn't bother to take the time to send me specific links to their stories (what do you think?).
But there was a more troubling trend: people whose e-mail addresses don't contain their names (yida_yada was the one that pushed me over the edge and got me to write you this note) and who attach inappropriate quotations as tags at the end of their e-mails.
This is particularly problematic for freelancers: while they're not on the payroll, they are nonetheless still representing our publication. And they need to do so professionally. And, in my opinion, anything beyond basic contact information is not professional.
Given the state of the industry, I supposed I should be grateful for more reasons to thin my pile of applicants (I've been inundated) but it's something editors need to look out for and freelancers should be more aware of. Could you please get the word out?
Dismayed EditorA. I can't think of anything to add.
With so many people looking for jobs, mistakes like these can -- and should -- narrow the field.
As for yida_yada, let's get a professional-sounding e-mail account.
Let's hear from you, recruiters and editors. What are some of the nightmare application or interview stories you have to tell? Click on
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Coming Monday: He has had some stellar internships and an impressive college record. He knows he can compete at a top 10 newspaper. But will one hire him right out of college?
Or maybe the inflexible. During initial interviews for reporters and...
