From digital upstarts to legacy media, ONA’s annual conference brings together organizations from all over the digital news industry — which makes it the perfect place to find a new job, learn about a fellowship, consider graduate school or get career advice.
Mariya Lewter, Social Media Producer at NBC Boston and NECN, recently shared with us that she was on a phone interview during ONA17 when she found out the recruiters were also at the conference. They invited her to interview in person, which she said helped her make a bigger impression.
“Though I already had that particular interview scheduled, I also met a lot of other people,” she said. “My tip for anyone heading to the conference this year is to talk to as many people as you can. Also, don’t go into conversations necessarily looking for someone to hire you, but instead to get to know them.”
Whether you’re actively job searching or just getting to know the industry, read on for pointers on how to explore career opportunities while you’re at ONA18.
Jobs
Visit the exhibit space in Griffin Hall to discover work opportunities and talk directly to potential employers. Representatives from these organizations will be on the floor — see what they’re hiring for right now:
- Bloomberg BNA
- CNN
- Cox Media Group
- Gatehouse Media
- Los Angeles Times
- McClatchy
- Meredith Corporation
- NBCUniversal
- New York Times
- NPR
- Sinclair Broadcast Group / Circa
- TEGNA
- USA TODAY NETWORK
- Wall Street Journal
Plus more than a dozen Texas-based media groups, including:
- Austin American-Statesman
- Austin Monitor
- Community Impact
- CultureMap
- Dallas Morning News
- El Paso Times
- Fort Worth Star-Telegram
- Hearst Texas Newspapers
- Rivard Report
- KLRU
- KUT
- Texas Monthly
- Texas Observer
- Texas Tribune
Education and fellowships
Representatives from these universities will be on site to discuss education and fellowship opportunities.
- John S. Knight Journalism Fellowships at Stanford
- Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication – ASU
- CUNY Graduate School of Journalism
- USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism
Samantha Tomaszewski started attending the conference as a student, before she was even job searching, and met someone there who helped her get hired as Associate Social Media Editor at HuffPost three years later.
“I always tell everyone that who you know can really help you break into the industry,” Samantha said. “I got hired at HuffPost right out college because of a connection I had made at the ONA conference. It was a casual friendship I had made that led to an opportunity down the line.”
Resources for students and young professionals
ONA-U — a mini-conference geared toward journalism majors and young professionals looking for practical career advice — returns again for ONA18 on Wednesday, Sept. 12. The event will focus on the importance of product management in the newsroom and in your career. The sessions will bring attendees together for a few hours of learning, training and networking the day before the main ONA conference starts. An ONA18 badge is not required, but an RSVP is and registration is limited.
ONAU is sponsored by the School of Journalism and Moody College of Communication at the University of Texas at Austin and the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Texas State University, and supported by the TEGNA Foundation.
ONA Big Board
Be sure to visit the ONA Big Board near registration to check out job listings. The boards will be up from Wednesday night when registration opens until the start of the Online Journalism Awards on Saturday.
If you’re a recruiter interested in listing a job, internship, fellowship or education opportunity on the Big Board, contact Jessica Strelitz for specs and pricing at jessica@journalists.org.
