This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/the-northerner/2013/mar/05/youngpeople-employability
The article has changed 6 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| From Rochdale to Prague: find your own path, would-be journalists. The demand is out there | From Rochdale to Prague: find your own path, would-be journalists. The demand is out there |
| (30 days later) | |
| I can understand Glen Keogh's frustration, in his post which began this Guardian Northerner debate, at still not having found a job despite following all the advice. As we're increasingly finding that this advice no longer works, more and more would-be journalists now have to make their own opportunities in order to get ahead. | I can understand Glen Keogh's frustration, in his post which began this Guardian Northerner debate, at still not having found a job despite following all the advice. As we're increasingly finding that this advice no longer works, more and more would-be journalists now have to make their own opportunities in order to get ahead. |
| Technological advances and budget cuts mean that the publishing industry has seen big changes in the last few years, and the traditional route of university followed by an unpaid internship or two, firing off applications and then hopefully getting a staff reporter job simply no longer applies. Staff positions are disappearing, and for most of us, doing an unpaid internship in London is about as practical and affordable as two weeks on the moon. There are other ways in though, and you don't have to work in a call centre whilst waiting for your big break either. | Technological advances and budget cuts mean that the publishing industry has seen big changes in the last few years, and the traditional route of university followed by an unpaid internship or two, firing off applications and then hopefully getting a staff reporter job simply no longer applies. Staff positions are disappearing, and for most of us, doing an unpaid internship in London is about as practical and affordable as two weeks on the moon. There are other ways in though, and you don't have to work in a call centre whilst waiting for your big break either. |
| Like Mischa Wilmers in his contribution to the debate, I looked abroad in lieu of any decent work opportunities at home, though I didn't have quite such a well laid-out plan. Unemployed and with no better ideas, I decided to do TEFL (teaching English as a foreign language) as it would allow me to travel and do something with my love of the subject. I moved to Prague in 2009 to start teaching, with a vague hope that by the time my little adventure abroad was over, the job market at home might have picked up. | Like Mischa Wilmers in his contribution to the debate, I looked abroad in lieu of any decent work opportunities at home, though I didn't have quite such a well laid-out plan. Unemployed and with no better ideas, I decided to do TEFL (teaching English as a foreign language) as it would allow me to travel and do something with my love of the subject. I moved to Prague in 2009 to start teaching, with a vague hope that by the time my little adventure abroad was over, the job market at home might have picked up. |
| As it turns out, I never came back. After a few years of doing freelance work on the side of teaching or admin jobs, I've decided to stay in the Czech Republic and freelance full time from here. I'm in no rush to join the hordes chasing a few staff jobs in London, or to go back to my home town of Rochdale to brush up on my waitressing skills. Although I earn less here than I would at home, my standard of living is higher: taxes are lower, the sun shines more often, trains come on time and the beer is £1 a half-litre. Need I go on? | As it turns out, I never came back. After a few years of doing freelance work on the side of teaching or admin jobs, I've decided to stay in the Czech Republic and freelance full time from here. I'm in no rush to join the hordes chasing a few staff jobs in London, or to go back to my home town of Rochdale to brush up on my waitressing skills. Although I earn less here than I would at home, my standard of living is higher: taxes are lower, the sun shines more often, trains come on time and the beer is £1 a half-litre. Need I go on? |
| Obviously not everyone can just swan off to a foreign country – or to London – but there's nothing stopping you from getting some experience wherever you are. I'm not a big fan of internships, but writing the occasional unpaid piece from home isn't quite on a par with six months' free labour. | Obviously not everyone can just swan off to a foreign country – or to London – but there's nothing stopping you from getting some experience wherever you are. I'm not a big fan of internships, but writing the occasional unpaid piece from home isn't quite on a par with six months' free labour. |
| Freelancing can get you anything from a bit of work experience to a full-time occupation. Forget filling out application forms, and bypass the HR department. If you've got a dazzling story idea, approach the editor directly. What have you got to lose? If you can't chase down an editor to ask for a few assignments, what hope have you got of chasing down the information needed to write a great story? | Freelancing can get you anything from a bit of work experience to a full-time occupation. Forget filling out application forms, and bypass the HR department. If you've got a dazzling story idea, approach the editor directly. What have you got to lose? If you can't chase down an editor to ask for a few assignments, what hope have you got of chasing down the information needed to write a great story? |
| With more and more companies looking to cut costs and outsource work to freelancers, it's really not a bad time to start. Increasingly fewer publications have the financial security to hire people on permanent contracts, meaning that freelancers are becoming ever more important. Not to mention that as the industry continues to contract, working for a company no longer offers more security than being self-employed. | With more and more companies looking to cut costs and outsource work to freelancers, it's really not a bad time to start. Increasingly fewer publications have the financial security to hire people on permanent contracts, meaning that freelancers are becoming ever more important. Not to mention that as the industry continues to contract, working for a company no longer offers more security than being self-employed. |
| And being far from London (or Salford) is no disadvantage. In fact, I'm convinced that the further you are from the editors you work for, the more valuable you can be to them. As budgets decrease, fewer publications can afford to send staff out to wherever the story is. | And being far from London (or Salford) is no disadvantage. In fact, I'm convinced that the further you are from the editors you work for, the more valuable you can be to them. As budgets decrease, fewer publications can afford to send staff out to wherever the story is. |
| Freelancing is often seen as the domain of seasoned pros who've spent 20 years working in staff positions, but there's no reason why it should be. As long as your ideas are good, you can do the work. In reality, I've found that no editor will be interested in your life story or which school you went to, as long as you can write something interesting which doesn't take a full afternoon to edit. | Freelancing is often seen as the domain of seasoned pros who've spent 20 years working in staff positions, but there's no reason why it should be. As long as your ideas are good, you can do the work. In reality, I've found that no editor will be interested in your life story or which school you went to, as long as you can write something interesting which doesn't take a full afternoon to edit. |
| New freelancers and those looking for a staff position alike often trip themselves up by focusing only on working for 'glamorous' and well-known titles. Go for the nationals if you like, though a much better bet would be the local paper (as Grace Newton argues in her contribution to the Guardian Northerner debate), niche magazines or trade publications. | New freelancers and those looking for a staff position alike often trip themselves up by focusing only on working for 'glamorous' and well-known titles. Go for the nationals if you like, though a much better bet would be the local paper (as Grace Newton argues in her contribution to the Guardian Northerner debate), niche magazines or trade publications. |
| Carving out your own path is never easy, but if you're not prepared to do something difficult to get where you want to be, maybe you should reconsider your decision to work in such an intensely competitive profession. | Carving out your own path is never easy, but if you're not prepared to do something difficult to get where you want to be, maybe you should reconsider your decision to work in such an intensely competitive profession. |
| Clare Speak is a freelance writer based in Prague, specialising in business, technology and travel. She is on clare.speak@seznam.cz and Tweets here. | Clare Speak is a freelance writer based in Prague, specialising in business, technology and travel. She is on clare.speak@seznam.cz and Tweets here. |
| This concludes our debate. You can read previous contributions - and join the wonderful world of the Guardian Northerner - via our home page here. Many thanks to all who have taken part both by sending posts and contributing to threads, and warm wishes and good luck to you all. | This concludes our debate. You can read previous contributions - and join the wonderful world of the Guardian Northerner - via our home page here. Many thanks to all who have taken part both by sending posts and contributing to threads, and warm wishes and good luck to you all. |
| Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning. | |
| Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning. Enter your email address to subscribe. |