Advice for Recent College Grads from the Newhouse Network @ Syracuse University

As a recent or potential graduate from a major university like Syracuse, you are certainly at an advantage, but sometimes that advantage just isn't enough. The ranks of the well educated are rich with people just like you and naturally there is a sense of eager frustration mixed with a longing for entitlement to secure a strong position in the workforce. However, to get a real advantage you need the benefits of the legal kind of "insider information". The kind of information that won't get you into trouble with the SEC, but will set you up for success. The alumni network of the Newhouse Communications School at Syracuse provides one of the most integrated, leadership-oriented networks of any university in the world, and if you're looking to enter the lucrative and fast-paced world of media, there's simply no better place from which to start.

The Newhouse Network is a recently created group of alumni focused on helping recent graduates extract value from the well-established graduates of the Newhouse School. The charter is simple; to help bolster and strengthen the Newhouse Alumni Network, for the benefit of recent graduates. The Newhouse alums represent the cream of the crop in the media world and these people can provide just that type of "insider information" to help give recent graduates a leg-up on the competition. If you want a way to stand out in the workforce, then keep reading.

The landscape of media is changing more rapidly now than ever before. From the launch of the printing press through the first television set and the ever-expanding tsunami that has become the Internet, media has evolved and woven its way into the very fabric of our everyday lives. To provide you with nuggets of information that will help ride the wave into the next few years and launch your career we asked some of the Board of Directors for Newhouse as well as some of the Board of Directors for the Newhouse Network what advice they could give to a prospective employee from their beloved alma mater and these are some of what they came up with!

Ed Wise, Vice President of Ad Sales for Funny Or Die and Chairman of the Newhouse Network
- The Focus Is On Digital Now; Be Fluent In Digital Terminology

"As a recent graduate you have a huge knowledge base that many of your elders do not – you've been raised in a digital environment. That being said, you are also lacking a sense of perspective and you will benefit greatly if you can learn it. You need to know the inherent strengths and weaknesses of digital media over traditional media. You will automatically default to the fastest, digital method for solving a problem, but there is a large percentage of the audience that doesn't think like you so you need to know what the terminology is for old media, and be able to apply that with an objective point of view to the world of digital. Understand GRP's and TRP's and reach and frequency. Be fluent in terms of awareness, brand recall, and other concepts that many digital theorists love to debunk or throw out the window. You need a world-view of how digital fits into the landscape so that you can create a rapport with the large percentage of the audience that is not you. If you can do this, you will succeed because you can create a bridge between the old world and the new. Every day in the digital world is a day to learn something new. Remember that Rome wasn't built in a day and the world did not go digital in 4 short years."

Marnie Omanoff, Marketing Consultant, Most Recently Business Insights for American Express
- Understand The Behaviors Of Your Audience; They Are Fragmented

"The audiences for any brand or media company are fragmented. They spend their day ingesting significantly more media than any generation before them. What that means for you as a potential media professional is that your job is infinitely more difficult. You have to be clever. You have to be ingenious. You have to dig deeper to find what interest them, and surface that in a creative way. Your audience will give you two minutes to garner their attention and if you don't succeed, they're gone. Never in history has the old axiom of "You only get one chance to make a first impression" been more true! If you can't grab their attention now, they're lost to you! Additionally, your messaging needs to be consistent and integrated across all channels. That is much more important now than ever before due to all the fragmented media channels/platforms out there. It is imperative that brands be consistent with all messaging. Take the time, do your research and balance that with an understanding of what makes them tick. Be a student of popular culture and learn everything you can from what's going on in the world around them. If you do that, then your creative genius will be sparked and you can achieve professional success far beyond that of your peers."

Cory Treffiletti, Senior Vice President Marketing for BlueKai
- Be Flexible, Not Entitled:There Are New Roles Created Every Day

"One of the biggest knocks against the younger portion of the workforce comes the managers of today – that these newer employees have a sense of entitlement when it comes to their jobs. They act as if they deserve a job and that their managers should want to fulfill their wishes. That is not the case – to get a job and succeed requires hard work, and sometimes that is not even enough. Hard work has to be coupled with patience, lots of networking, and timing. You have to put yourself out there, always be networking to meet people in your industry and ask them questions. Become a professional sponge who soaks in everything you can about your business, and then try to learn how to apply that to your daily routine. Be patient that things may not materialize in the way you thought, and understand that your flexibility will lead to the right chance to shine. The job titles are changing, the responsibilities of the roles are dynamic and digital media has created more jobs in the last ten years than your schooling was able to keep up with. There are jobs out there you don't even know exist, and they only way to find them is to look around and learn. That comes from time and patience. Give it a shot – you might even like it."

There are lots more interesting pieces of advice like this that will come from the Newhouse Network. If you want access, then join up for free at http://newhouse.syr.edu/ and continue reading our blog at www.mediabizbloggers.com.