For this, I looked a current advertisement for a News Reporter/ Journalist position at Portland Press Herald. Some specific qualities they are looking for this position include:
- Someone who is aggressive and confident, but not arrogant. This includes working collaboratively with editors.
- Be able to juggle multiple stories at. once.
- Reliable to commute or move toward Portland for position.
- Be able to work with data and comfortable with a digital-first environment.
- Ability to work quickly on deadline and be self-motivated.
- Show several years fo experience in an important role, demonstrating ability with public record requests and other documents.
My skills:
- I am a junior who is majoring in both Communications and English, minoring in Writing.
- I am the Editor-in-Chief of UNE’s student newspaper, The Bolt.
- I am a Writing Fellow for students at UNE, where I work closely with students to strengthen their writing abilities.
- I work closely and collaboratively with the members of The Bolt, and consider hard deadlines the road to achievement for good journalism.
- I have written press releases, staff showcases, and sports coverage. This demonstrates my ability to work in multiple areas of journalism coverage..
- I consider myself self-motivated when it comes to writing because it is critical in order to be a leader. I am confident in my writing abilities, but can admit to fault when it is not up to publishing standards.
- I have taken a Digital Media course and consider myself proficient in digital skills.
I believe there is a lot of positives when it comes to comparing the two lists here. Where I lack is in the professional world experience of being in an actual newsroom. Some of this can be made up for with my experience in being a leader of our student paper. I haven’t had the ability to work with public records and other documents yet due to still being in college. I fault most in these two areas because it is the basis of their search. If I was older, and had more professional experience, I may fit their mold more for hire.
