Real Communication An Introduction

516 Appendix A   Competent Interviewing

Placement centers are another source of jobs. Most college campuses have a

centralized placement center where recruiters from major companies come to inter-

view potential employees. And don’t forget print media; search for career-specific

publications that will help you better focus on your chosen career path, such as Me-

dia Career Guide: Preparing for Jobs in the 21st Century (Culver & Seguin, 2013).

Finally, start looking for specific job openings. Although general

employment Web sites (like Monster.com) can be starting places, they may

not yield significant results simply because they attract a large number of

applicants (O’Loughlin, 2010); you have less chance of being noticed in a pool

of a thousand (or more) than in one of a hundred. A more productive search

uses sites that cater to specific industries or even an organization’s site (Pearce

& Tuten, 2001; Young & Foot, 2005). For example, mediabistro.com and

entertainmentcareers.net focus on jobs in the media and entertainment industries,

respectively. You can also find job postings on the Web sites for most major

companies and organizations (look for links to “Careers” or “Employment”).

Consider using job information and posting aggregators (such as LexisNexis)

that will let you set criteria or parameters for the types or even geographic loca-

tions of positions you want. Doing so will put you in touch with sites that have

less traffic and give you a better chance of being noticed.

Prepare Your Materials

Once you’ve identified potential jobs, you’ll need to make contact with the people

in a position to hire you. As a job applicant, the crucial first impression you make

on a potential employer will likely be via your written materials—a formal cover

THERE ARE many dif-

ferent avenues that you can

explore when you begin your

job hunt. Industry-specific

magazines like Variety, job

placement centers, and

employment Web sites are all

good places to start. (left) Vari-

ety Media, LLC; (top right) Courtesy of

careeronestop.org; (bottom right) JOE

SKIPPER/Reuters/Landov

CONNECT

Preparing for a job inter-

view is similar to preparing

for a speech. In Chapter 12,

we suggest studying your

audience to know how to

present information they’ll

find useful and interesting;

in a job interview, you must

do the same. Your goal is

to learn about the organiza-

tion’s culture (Chapter 11):

Is it a formal or informal

place? What does the

organization value? This

information helps you

adapt your communication

competently and impress a

hiring manager.

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