Helen Gregory’s PR Week feature on graduate recruitment is good – capped by a photo of all 16 of Weber Shandwick’s 2006 graduate recruits. Yes, 16.
The box on using blogs as online CVs (p 26) reads like several previous entries on PR Studies (and Forward): it names Stephen Davies, Erin Caldwell and Alex Pullin (for links see previous post). Don’t bother interviewing me – read my blog instead.
Yet the assertion that public affairs is more attractive among graduates than healthcare or technology PR surprises me. Perhaps this is where Politics, Philosophy and Economics graduates from Oxford aspire to work?
PR Studies 
I strongly believe that when I finish my course in 2010 my current blog, or the equivalent at the time will be my strongest tool for getting a job.
Portfolio’s, amazingly helpful as they are, cannot yet work with the current technology to attract employment opportunities. I am in no way blasting the idea of a portfolio, it’s a fantastic thing, but the social networking boom I deem is demanding that we work just as hard on something that at the minute is seen more of a extra curriculum activity.
Controversial….? maybe.
To agree or disagree, or simply see if anyone else cares, visit my //discuss blog.
Paddy Doyle
“…when I finish my course in 2010…”
I never thought I’d feel so old with one comment!
I don’t think it is massively controversial to say that in some cases the traditional portfolio is outdated, but remember an online version is still not good enough for the majority of bosses.
Part of the charm of using a portfolio when jobhunting is tailoring it to your industry sector of choice, so if that means an online version is more relevent then so be it.
I think that having a blog is immaterial to being successful at interview. What really counts and always has done is relevant work experience and evidences of PR key competencies.
There may well be a danger in relying too heavily on what after all is a social communication tool at the expense of hard graft and real PR experience.
PR companies are looking for innovative, creative practitioners, however I think there is still a lot to be said for old fashioned PR tactics and new technology must be used sparingly and strategically.
Mark’s right: a blog perhaps isn’t such a great asset at an interview. But there are compelling examples to suggest that a blog can improve your chances of getting an interview. It’s the power of the network, as exemplified by Stephen Davies, Erin Caldwell, Alex Pullin and others.
Paddy Doyle: Your blog may well be a useful string to your bow, but I fear its efficacy might be negated somewhat by your use of “Portfolio’s”.
Tongue slightly less in cheek, Mark and Richard are spot on: A decent blog might get you in the door, but so will a well-written covering letter or an included copy of a cogently argued article or paper. But it’s the interview – and very often the first five minutes of the interview – that decides.