Publishing careers

What if you don't find the perfect job?

Realistically, you may find yourself having to settle for something that's not quite what you had set your heart on. Perhaps you were determined to work in editorial and have found a job in marketing, or perhaps you wanted to work for a big trade publisher, and have found a job at a small academic press.

The first thing to say is that you might just find that you enjoy your new job more than you had expected. You never really know what it's like to work for a company until you actually do it.

Secondly, it is possible to change companies and departments, and your experience in your current job may stand you in good stead.

For example, commissioning editors will benefit from knowing something about marketing, and marketers need to know about print and production, etc. If you have experience of publishing academic journals electronically, you might have skills that would be very useful to a trade publisher venturing into the digital arena for the first time.

The caveat here is that, as a general rule, the longer you spend in one job or one company, the harder it is to make a big change. This is because your role will inevitably become increasingly specialised as you get better at it.

However, we hope that the advice in this guide will help you take a step towards that perfect role.

Good luck!

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