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Topic: Silly college question...but I need advice
| Author | Message |
| twoshoes5887 | Posted – 5/7/2008 3:41:21 PM | show profile (I posted this on Ed2010 too, just fyi) Hi all, So here?s the deal: I was a section editor for my college?s yearbook this past year - a pretty large book that required a huge amount of dedication from myself and the rest of the staff. Being that the semester?s ending, the new editors-in-chief want to know whether I want to come back on as an editor for next year. I can?t decide whether or not I should. I figure it?s obviously good experience (to some degree) and I was happy with the end product, however ? the process was nightmareish. The book isn?t run effectively at all and the process for ecruing all of my content was highly stressful and a lot to deal with on top of school. So basically I?m asking how much it would hurt me to not go back next year. I have an internship at a national magazine in New York over the summer, a huge workload next semester as a senior starting to complete major requirements, and I was hoping to intern during the semester, perhaps. I also write and copy-edit very actively for the campus newspaper - where I don?t get much experience as a section editor unfortunately. I?d like going back to the yearbook, but I?m afraid I?ll want to jump off a cliff dealing with all that again and I won?t have time to intern/write as much for the paper/enjoy my senior year. Anyone out there with have any advice for me? Am I missing a good opportunity basically being handed to me or is one year on the yearbook staff as an editor enough to make a statment? Or am I being silly and nothing matters as much as interning? Any help would be great?thanks so much and sorry for my lengthiness. :) |
| kristendkirk | Posted – 5/7/2008 4:23:22 PM | show profile I used to hire interns/entry-level staffers and when looking at a resume, I think I would be more impressed with another internship than a second year of experience at a yearbook. If you loved doing it and it was a smooth process maybe I'd say keep it so you can enjoy something during your upcoming busy year, but you don't seem that happy about the experience. Move on without guilt! |
| cali1296 | Posted – 5/7/2008 4:30:35 PM | show profile It sounds like you don't want to go back to the yearbook. Interning and working at the campus paper is so much more important -- it's actually invaluable to a college student. You did the yearbook thing for a year, and I think that's more than enough time to devote to something that doesn't count that much toward your career. At internships you will meet people who can help you in the future, and you'll get clips at the campus paper. At the yearbook it sounds like you will get a title, plus a ton of responsibility and B.S. that you don't want or need. I'd focus on the campus paper and try to get a fall semester internship. Good luck! |
| Unemployed-gal | Posted – 5/7/2008 4:38:20 PM | show profile I worked as an editor for four years on my college's yearbook, and I can say from personal experience, that not once in a job interview have I been asked about that experience. Every junps right to my internships. I can't stress enough the importance of internships if you want to go into publishing. Its really up to you, but it sounds as though you don't want to go back to the yearbook. |
| JackieRo | Posted – 5/7/2008 5:00:24 PM | show profile I agree with everyone else. I think college juniors and seniors should take on as many DIVERSE internships that they can handle. It will give you a broad resume when you finally decide what track of publishing you want to take. You have the experience of the yearbook from last year, so move on to the next thing. It's no longer fun, so devote your attention to something that will give you real resume experience, or at least broaden your network. |
| mkelly | Posted – 5/8/2008 11:11:06 AM | show profile This is all good advice here: Get diverse experience, do what you like, and of course, in the real world, nobody really gives a sh-t about college yearbooks. Follow this wisdom. HOWEVER... You mention that the process for compiling the yearbook was nightmarish. Right away I saw this as a potential opportunity for you to *improve* the process-- and rest assured, in the media business from here on out, those who can analyze and improve the process of gathering information will go far. That is going to be the key skill because (as I dabble in Com 101 theory here) in the future, we are only going to be more immersed in more information coming from more sources. The vast majority of it will be useless. Those who can create and manage structures to pull the vital information out of this data soup-- whether it's college yearbook photos compiled on a timely basis, or in-depth features on business trends based on analysis of earnings data-- are going to do well. I'm not saying you should go back to the yearbook, even if the sponsors of it give you free reign to clean things up and bring the process under control. But that's the sort of experience you should be looking for in the future if you'd like a paycheck in this business in 2020. |
| twoshoes5887 | Posted – 5/8/2008 11:51:35 AM | show profile Wow, this is all great advice I really appreciate everyone's help! You've given me the impression from both sides of my decision that I hoped I would hear. And I do believe I've gotten valuable experience in learning how to manage a lot of content and I would say I improved my section this year over the school's book in the past. Perhaps it is time to look for other opportunities... If anyone has anything to add, please do. I think this a good topic a lot of college students can relate to to some degree. |
| HisGirlFriday | Posted – 5/8/2008 3:45:54 PM | show profile I'm in the no-more-yearbook camp. No employer is ever going to care. Like Jackie says - get a diverse range of internships. Do the campus paper, offer to work nights at the local paper covering the cops beat (which is really fun, too.) Take an extra photography or web editing course. Even though I graduated about 15 years ago, I still have my broad variety of college work experience on my resume. And just this year an editor commented positively on one of my internships. |
| lifeisbetteredited | Posted – 5/9/2008 9:30:05 PM | show profile As a former yearbook ME, a part of me wants to tell you to stick with it and try to improve it. I got invaluable experience from working on my college book. A lot of people have misconceptions about what goes into a yearbook, as I can tell from most of the other posts. People tend to think that a yearbook is just a collection of student photos, but it actually consists mostly of features on a range of subjects: sports, news, interesting figures, organizations, events. So, there's a lot of valuable reporting, writing, editing, photography, and design experience to be gained from working on a yearbook, not to mention potential awards like Pacemakers. BUT. If working there makes you miserable, don't repeat the experience. You don't have much time left in college, and what you have you should enjoy. And if you're just a section editor, you won't have much sway over the book's overall organization or production process. |
