In media there is no way that you can definitely get a job. There are many different routes that you could take, some better for different jobs. Many jobs in media look for certain things when hiring someone as they are trying to find the best person suited to the job, these are things like experience or degrees. Some ways to get a job in the media sector are:
Job Application
A job application is quite self explanatory. It is an application form in which you apply for a job from which you could probably guess. Job application forms are usually handed out by the company or employer. They are given out when a company is in need of new employees and then unemployed people can hand a completed one back so the employer can see if they are right for the job and then move them into a further process. If someone returns a good application form then they usually have to follow this up with an interview or a trial shift or both. After this the employer should know whether they are suitable for the job. In media, you might often find job applications come when freelance jobs are needed. These kind of applications would usually require you to show some of your previous work that relates to this job. By doing this the employer can see how skilled you are in this area and whether or not you would be suitable enough for the job.
CV and Covering Letter
A CV stands for Curriculum Vitae. They are used to show a persons experience and qualifications. They can also be used to tell a bit of personal detail about someone. A CV is used when applying for jobs as it shows the employer what the person has achieved. CV's are almost always required when applying for a job because the employer will compare them all and see who is most fit for the job. A CV will often contain:
- GCSE results,
- College qualifications
- Degrees,
- Previous work
- References.
Portfolio
A portfolio is a folder of work that you have previously created. These are used to show employers that you are capable to take on their job. Portfolios can be made up of work that you have done from previous jobs or work that you have done on your own in which you have been self employed. In media, a portfolio can come in the form of a film reel. This is a short production in which clips of everything you have done are shown. If you are trying to get a film job then it is vital that you have a good show reel because then the employer can judge you off how good your past work has been and can decide whether or not you're capable of carrying out this project. The better the film reel or portfolio, the better the job you can get. Portfolios are not usually judged on how much work you have done however it is good if you have done a lot because it shows experience. Portfolios are more judged on the quality of the work you have done. Sometimes people show some of the not so good work they have done and their best work in a portfolio because this shows they can learn and are improving. This can give the employer the impression that they will have improved since their last job and therefore will produce good work.
Professional Website
A Professional website is another way that you can earn a job. This can be done in two ways. One way is that you could go on to someone's website and apply for a job through there. A website might have links to application forms or simply give you information to a job interview that would be available. On a website you are probably most likely to find out what they are looking for and be able to check to see if the job is right for you. The other way that a professional website can help you get a job is if it is your own website. You could set up a website with information about you and all your previous work. The website can contain your CV and portfolio in one. Employers might stumble across this when looking to hire and contact you about a job vacancy. Otherwise you could send employers the link to your website so they can find out everything they need to know straight away online. In media there are many jobs that would make you a freelance worker so having your own website would be very useful as you would always be looking to work and so it would be even more sufficient if people were easily able to contact you about hiring.
Networking Online
Networking online is when you as a business or company try to meet other businesses or companies over the internet. This is useful as you can get more work through them. You can pick up jobs that others want to get rid of or find out where other companies are struggling and help them out. Being your own business does not necessarily mean working as part of a big organisation. Being self employed would make you own your own business. Networking online is useful as you can reach people who can actually help you progress with your career a lot easier than trying to go out and find them yourself. An example of this in media is if you have a degree and skills in radio then you could use online networking to find a radio station that could take you on.
Recommendation From Clients
This is one of the best ways to get into work. A recommendation would usually mean you can skip the application process. After being recommended by a client, depending on the job you could either go straight in to an interview or go straight into the job. An interview after a recommendation is generally to find out if you are who you have been made out to be. By being recommended, someone will have mentioned, to whoever is in charge, the good work you can produce and let them know that you would be suitable for the job. This can put you above everyone else who would want the job as they may not have been recommended. This way of earning a job is not exactly the easiest and it should not be relied on because you generally need to know someone who is already involved with the business or media project. It would be very rare that someone you didn't know would recommend you as they will have had to have seen a lot of your work. For this reason the other procedures of finding a job should still be carried out and through these you could meet someone who would late recommend you for a job.
Work Experience/Voluntary Work
Work experience and voluntary work can help out massively when looking for a job. It is usually easy to get as well. When taking part in work experience you would not be earning any money which means that there are many companies that would be willing to take someone on to do it. Work experience allows you to get vital knowledge on a workplace in which you could see a career in. Employers look for this kind of experience as it means that they are risking less mess ups because the employee will already know what they are doing and what is around them. By doing work experience you can also improve your skills in that particular area so when the time comes that a job is available to you ,you will be more prepared to take it on, Work experience can also build on your portfolio meaning more people are likely to hire you as you will look more professional. Companies that take on people for work experience can often hire them later on when they need someone as they know that this person is familiar with the work they do and they know of the standard of work they produce.
When you have a job, there are a lot of standards and procedures that you would need to follow. If these are not followed then you are risking and are likely to lose the job you have. Some aspects of professional behavior that you should have are:
Reliability
It is important to be reliable in a job otherwise your employer won't be able to trust you to work for them. Being reliable can range from a lot of things. This can be getting all your work done on it's deadline. If you can do this then your employer can rely on you to get work done and you could be looking at a promotion if you continue to be reliable. This is because the employer will want someone that they can rely on to do more important work. If you are not reliable then you are looking at being fired because if you are not getting work done on time then there is no point in you doing that job at all. If you work in media as a health and safety officer and you are not getting your safety reports in on time then you would be holding up the whole media project. This would mean you are not reliable and you would probably be fired so everyone else can do their job to a schedule.
Attendance and Punctuality
This is a very important part of having a job. Attendance and punctuality mean that you are at work all the time and on time. If you never show up to work then you are being paid for nothing so you would be fired as anyone would rather hire someone who is actually willing to work. Bad punctuality is not as serious of an issue as bad attendance but it can still lead to getting you fired. If you are late then you are holding everyone up and all the work will be held back and will mess up a schedule. There are some exceptions to missing days or being late such as if you are ill however there are no exceptions if you don't work because you don't want to. In media you could be working on a big project and if you don't show up then everyone else might have to cancel that days work as what they want to do can't be done without your work. If you are late then you could push back everyone's work which would not go down well with others.
Commitment
Being committed to your job is an important aspect, especially in big media related jobs. Being committed to your job means that you don't let other things get in the way of your work and your work always gets done appropriately. If you are not committed then you are not reliable and so an employer might hesitate to give you work. In the media sectors it is important that you are committed to your work because if you are not then there is the risk that the final product of your work will not be to a good standard, Because almost every sector in media produces final products that go to the public, every product should be to the best it can be. If you weren't committed then you probably won't put everything you can into the work you done.
Efficiency
Efficiency in work is basically saying that you should get a good amount of work done. If you have to hand in work then you would hand in lots of work if you had been working a lot. This would make you efficient. If you weren't efficient then you would be getting no work done or not the amount expected of you, A job in media where you would need to be efficient would be a story board artist. You might be expected to create a set amount of storyboards in a week and if you can't do that then you are not being efficient and you would probably not be hired in the future as you are taking to long to produce work. Also not being efficient could mean that you aren't producing work to a good standard that would match the supplies you have and the time you have. You should produce the best work you can to be efficient.
Self Presentation
Self presentation is how you portray yourself to others. You should always look appropriate to what you are doing at work. If you are going to be discussing business with clients then you will want to look smart and presentable. This is because many people judge others on their appearance and if you look scruffy then someone might think you don't know what you are doing and you're not prepared. This can put someone off doing business with you. Self Presentation is not always about how you look. This can be how you present your personality to others. It is important to know who you are presenting yourself to. For example if you were serving customers then you would need to be polite and kind towards the other person. In media it is important to portray yourself correctly as you might be trying to sell a production of yours on to a distributor. If this was the case then you would want the distributor to think that you are a smart client that knows what they are doing and knows how to make money for everyone. If you are not portraying yourself correctly then you would probably not make any clients and in turn not make any money.
Communication Skills
Communication skills are important in every job. If you have good communication skills then you will make your job a a lot easier. You need to be able to communicate with the people you work with and any other people you might come across when working. If you don't communicate with the people you work with then you are risking more mistakes and you will probably clash with each other as you are not all doing what each other expected. You also need to be able to communicate with clients to give yourself the best chance of making money. If you are working on a film set then you need to be able to communicate with other film crew so you all know what needs to be done and how it should be done. This way your production will be done quicker and the way you want it. Communication skills can be anything like listening to other people's ideas. This can be helpful because then you can get the best idea through and finish with the best possible product.
Contribution
Contribution is important because no employer will want to pay you to do nothing. Some jobs measure the amount of work you do and pay you off that so if you didn't contribute then you wouldn't get paid and it would be pointless having a job. If you don't contribute when working in the media sector then the final product that would come of the project you were working on would not be as good as it could be and you would have let everyone down. Another reason why contribution is important is because only by contributing can you improve your skills in that job and earn vital experience that it useful for other jobs. If you work on a radio station as a presenter and you don't contribute then you would be leaving all the work to other presenters and no one would be interested in listening to you and you would make the station less entertaining.
Personal responsibility
An important aspect is to take responsibility for yourself. You can't rely on other people to watch out for you as then it is taking them away from their job and less work is getting done. Being responsible for yourself is making sure everything you do is appropriate to your job. Making sure you don't do anything wrong. It can also mean that you look after yourself. You will be putting a hold on everyone's work if you are constantly getting hurt and need seeing to so if you look after yourself then there is no need to stop working. Personal responsibility can also mean that you take responsibility for your actions and that means your mistakes as well. It is important that you know where you went wrong and can admit to it so that there is no delay in working. Other people can't be blamed for your mistakes otherwise some unnecessary actions could take place towards to that person that they don't deserve and you would probably have to face worse consequences if you do not own up to your mistakes and get caught.
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