Embarking on a Quality- Versus Quantity-Job Search

Defining your goals in the job search will dictate many choices you make along the way. When I graduated, I had the time and money to conduct a quality job search. Others may not be in the same position after receiving their degrees and choose a quantity job search to increase the numerical probability of getting an offer.

Here was my basic game plan:

1-Reconnaisance. Take the time to be selective and find quality places. I believe there's a higher success rate by doing things that way than shooting applications willy-nilly everywhere.

2-Input. Get input from people but trust my own methods as well.

3-Trifecta. Make sure I'm strong in every step of the application process--on paper/portfolio, during the interview, and have great references.

Donna Jenkins, editor of the Courier-Post (the fourth largest daily in New Jersey), labeled my approach as excellent. Then she added in an email to me, "You don't want to send out tons of packets without thought -- doing some research and 'recon' makes sense. You want to know as much as possible about a potential employer before even applying."

Donna and I started communicating a couple months before I graduated, and she remains one of my go-to people for professional advice because we hold such similar convictions and thought-patterns. Actually, she took my fiancee and I out to lunch and showed us around the newsroom for fun one day when we were visiting relatives in NJ.

On the quantity side, Joe Bonikowski, staff writer for the Palm Beach Post, encouraged me not to limit my options in any way. He said to send off as many as you can and see what kind of opportunities present themselves. When he graduated, Bonikowski sent off 50 applications and received 6 job offers.

I met Joe when he spoke at a Leadership Conference, which I attended for high school SGA. He has been a major source of input for me since I was 17 years old. Like Donna, he took my fiancee and I out to lunch and showed us around the newsroom for fun.

The point of this post is to show that there are valid points on both sides of the quality and quantity debate. The choices you make will depend on so many factors and circumstances.

To reiterate my advice from my first post: Pick the path that's best for you, especially in the goal-definingprocess.