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Re my last tweet: through the CV/cover letter vetting process I often wanted to email individuals to give feedback. Sadly there are too many to make this practical, so instead I want to use this as a thread to offer advice for entry level academic publishing applicants.
I would encourage any colleagues, present and former, that recruit for roles like this in the industry to chime in here as well.
Seems obvious, but ensure you're sending CV and cover letter over in common file formats - Word or PDF, please.
A concern for managers in academic publishing is that applicants actually want to work in trade and use anacademic job as a stepping stone. Use your cover letter to show why academic appeals to you over trade. Try to obtain, if possible, rounded experience in academic as well.
'I'm right for this job because I love books' is a phrase that comes up all the time. Avoid using it. Convey your love of literature in the cover letter, but a love of books does not automatically make for a suitable candidate. Cover letter words are precious - use them wisely.
Show you've researched not only the publisher, but also the list you'll be working on. Pull out specific titles that appeal to you in the cover letter but don't just choose the ones on the list's homepage (as many others will choose the same ones!)
A controversial one: don't open with 'Hey'/'Hi' or similar. I know publishing is an informal industry but the cover letter is all we have to go on to see how you'll correspond with authors. Why risk it? Dear Hiring Manager or similar is fine, or a name if you know who's hiring.
Find out as much as poss about the day-to-day of the role and demonstrate it in the CL. ESSENTIAL. Eg: writing copy is only a small part of the Ed Ass role & if you play this up too much we could assume you're a frustrated copywriter and the role wouldn't match your expectations
Think carefully about content you're linking to in your CL and what it says about you. If it's a blog, for example, think about whether you'd want your manager to read all of the entries.
If you're currently at university, make it clear when you'll be finished.
If asked for salary expectations, look at the industry standard and be realistic. If salary expectations are unrealistic you won't beat the sift. I know there's the old saying 'if you don't ask, you won't get' but hoping for investment banker wages may be a little optimistic.
Make sure you remove tracked changes/comments/highlights from the text before sending.
Don't place too much importance in your academic achievements and research ability. These both certainly count in your favour but, again, entry level editorial jobs are often heavy on administration and light on research/hands-on content interaction
Ask not what we can do for you, but what you can do for us...! While it's good to hear how you feel the role could help you professionally you should be selling yourself to us - why are you worth giving the job to - not telling us what getting the job would do for you.
Editorial, Sales or Marketing? Another worry for hiring managers is that candidates are using the role as a foot in the door to move sideways within the company. If you're applying for an editorial job, be clear why editorial particularly appeals. Ditto marketing/sales.
Can't believe I haven't mentioned this yet but PROOFREAD. Not just once or twice but many. Get friends/family/postperson to read it & THEN read it again yourself. Stupid errors = excuse to sift. And they almost ALWAYS occur in the 'I have great attention to detail' line in the CL
Check the filenames for your CV and cover letter before attaching. Filenames like 'Speculative Cover Letter.pdf' or 'Fifth Choice Job Application.docx' are likely to get short shrift.
Be sure to flag up all the absolutely key points you want the recruiter to register in your cover letter, regardless of whether they're in your CV. Particularly any relevant work experience.
If you're currently living abroad, be sure to confirm in your cover letter/CV that you have permission to work in the UK on a permanent basis.
If you're work experience and academic history don't scream 'publishing', make it extra clear in the cover letter why you want the job and think you're a good fit for it (beyond 'I love reading/books'). Otherwise there's a risk that it'll be viewed as a speculative application.
Don't expect your CV to do all the talking for you, regardless of how wonderful your academic credentials and work experience are. Generic cover letters = easy sift.
Try to get a sense of what industry-wide conversations are going on at the moment. Things like open access. Blogs like the @scholarlykitchn are excellent resources for keeping up-to-date.
Again, it may seem obvious but your cover letter should be written as a letter and not simply a list of bullet points. Bulleting in the body of the letter is fine but the application shouldn't read like a shopping list.
Make absolutely sure that you're addressing the cover letter to the correct publisher and that any references in the body of the letter are to the correct publisher. This time around I've had a few 'it has long been my dream to work at Harper Collins' CLs. Again, easy sift.
Please break cover letters down into paragraphs. Massive WALLS OF TEXT in 11 pt Times New Roman are intimidating and difficult to read.
Another concern (we're a paranoid bunch) is that the candidate will up and leave us within a year to do a Master's/PhD. I've been hurt like this before *sniff*. Definitely avoid mention of any plans along these lines in cover letters.
