What Education is Needed to get into Magazines / Publishing?

[songbirdsel]

Thank you very much, it really does help! I think its just quite daunting to and approach the bigger magazines but I will definetly have a go!

Thanks again

sel xx

[ShockTart55]

What about the people who pick the clothes the models wear?? or who pick the clothes that are featured in the magazine. What are those people called? and what kind of education would I need to become that? Thanks so much by the way.

[BetteT]

That is either a fashion stylist when they work freelance (like me) or a fashion editor when they actually work for the magazine. No specific schooling is needed. People get into styling all sorts of ways.

Freelance styling is usually similar to my experience. With me, a fashion photographer friend needed help in styling some of her shoots and dragged me with her. I discovered I not only could do it, I loved it. So I started my business with her and made connections with others for other gigs. I do get to do some magazine work ... it's competitive to get it ... so it depends on who you know and how well they like your work. In my case, I'm usaully recommended for the job by a makeup artist or photographer that's being considered. BTW ... most freelance magazine styling pays very little if anything ... it's something we do for credits so we can put that into our portolfios and resumes to use to apply for the joabs that do pay ... advertising, catalogs, corporate, lifestye stuff.

If you want to be a fashion editor ... it's one of those jobs that you work up to ... so a background in journalism, fashion design, fasihon merchandising ... any thing like that might get you that entry level job an a fashion magazine. You work up from there. All of that has already discussed before ... about how to get work on a fashion magazine.

[UniqueChic]

Originally Posted by Cicciolina

Thank you UniqueChic! I'm going to start emailing magazines now. Did you organise your work experience yourself or was it through school/uni? As I remember when I was at school I had to take out work experience insurance which my school took care of - as I'm in uni I will have to do this on my own. Where there any other procedures you had to do concerning work experience at magazines? Oh and who would be the best person to ask? Sorry for all the questions *blush*

Sorry it took so long to reply!

Work experience is a non-negotiable for me, if i didn't do it i wouldn't be able to graduate! We have a class called 'Industry Placement,' and we organize the work experience ourselves and it gets okayed by our tutor. I emailed PR people, advertising people and mag people myself and my tutor just gave me the insurance forms to fill out and fax off.

There should be a course co-ordinator who can give you forms for insurance. The process was quite informal.

Who's the best person to ask what?

[adle]

I thought I would jump in here and she if anyone could give me some advice......I am really interested in PhotoJournalism but my university does not offer a Journalism major, only an English major....currently I am a Photography major....will that be enough? Should I try to minor in English even though it isnt Journalism just so I have some writing background with my Photography degree? Any advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated, Thanks!

[Sunkist]

Many of the *writers* at magazines are actually freelancers. However, to be an *editor*, you'll need to typically be an editorial assistant out of college, and then move your way up. Because of the competition, you almost always have to have an internship first if you want to work at a bigger name--some people will intern after graduation, while others will get internships during the school year or over the summers. At the bigger magazines, a lot of the Editorial Assistants will have gone to good colleges (lots of Northeastern private schools represented). They won't necessarily have degrees in journalism or fashion--in fact, many of them have bachelor's degrees in fields like English, History, etc. If you're an EA at a bigger magazine, after a few years, people often leave for positions at smaller magazines, then if they prove themselves, they might return to the bigger names.

For the business end of magazines, you'll also have to start out as an assistant after college, too--usually a Sales Assistant who works under the sales reps. Again, I think that it really, really helps to have an internship experience if you want to get a Sales Assistant job, just to help you stand out from the masses of people applying. I think they typically aren't as picky about your educational background and credentials for sales as for editorial, although you'll still need a college degree...the people who are successful tend to be those that have good basic sales skills.

[LoveMyBoots]

I hope this helps , it actually repeats a lot of what others on this board have said but they also interview fashion editors how they got their jobs :

http://www.fashion.net/howto/fashioneditor/

[tastes_like_chic]

I was going to do work experience at Shop till you Drop but unfortunatly I couldn't come up with the $$$ to get to Sydney (in QLD).... Anyway, as Unique Chic has said, just email a mag directly about work experience. STYD gets back really fast

[nappywun]

Originally Posted by roxe

Hi im just wondering if anyone can give me info Digital/lay out design jobs (art directing?)
What sort of courses would anyone suggest doing- maybe something like graphic design? i am already studying architecture- so i already have quite alot of experience with programs/design.
Again work experience the way to go?

Roxe,
I am a creative director for a magazine (not fashion related) and I will say work experience is the best preparation. Knowing the programs is only 25% of the job. Knowing how ot use the programs to create the look you want is key. Get as much experience as possible. Look to freelancing for individual businesses and friends and family along with internships even if they're not fashion related. The more projects you do, you will become better at balancing creativity and practicallity in your layouts.

Having worked for fashion magazines in the past, I can say that practicality is just as important as creativity. Not every layout can be fresh and exciting. There is a great deal of knowing what graphic elements will support the editorial without overshadowing the content.

Good luck!

[writergal28]

Magazines like to see a degree in journalism or English and an interest in fashion/beauty if you're interested in editorial. I would say that you could get in with a background in PR or advertising if you have enough experience.

[smartarse]

you don't have to go to a fashion school. 4 year college is best. They salivate an elite/ivy league school graduate. And for those in the United States , Columbia University has the best journalism program. Actually, it's the top journalism program in the country.

[MarryMeTomFord]

Does writing for an e-learning company (Content given by client.. we have to chunk it and make it in a teachable format) count as writing experience for a magazine job?
also anyone know any points of contact for a writers job in Mumbai?

[ingvildel]

I'm a graphic designer and I've worked at a newspaper for almoust two years, but would like to try something new and more creative. How should I proceed if I want to work in a magazine? Do magazines anounce graphic work or are these jobs so popular that there's no need for that?

And when it comes to lay-out/graphic design work, what do the "big magazines" value the most: A great portfolio or work experience?

[prosperk]

I cannot think of anyone with a degree in journalism amongst my contacts. In fact, I am not convinced that a degree is a pre-requisite. It helps if you can write but many magazines take on semi-literate people whose copy must then be knocked into shape. An awful lot of magazine journalists whose bylines you see here and there couldn't write their way out of a paper bag to save their coke-fuelled lives. Same applies to the editors. Any aspiring journalist, particularly if looking at fashion and style writing, has a clear choice: quality or quantity. Try to find a magazine with good writing in it and then get in touch with the Editor in Chief, saying that you appreciate the quality of the writing and content and would like to do an internship and the chances are that you will receive a positive or, at least, encouraging response. If you don't know the difference between good writing and bad writing, maybe you need to rethink your career aims. There again, some magazines and publishing houses do not appear to care much about quality of content: pile it high and sell it cheap. It really depends on your personal priorities. If you work for inferior editors at the start of your career, you will probably become one yourself. Try to identify the best out there and focus your energy on aspiring to those standards and you will be pleasantly surprised, if you have the basic talent, intelligence and determination to move yourself. Good recruits are few and far between, believe me, and we value them when we stumble across them...or they stumble across us.

PK

[cric-croc]

Hi people,

I have worked for few fashion houses in the PR departmentbut have lately been thinking about moving into magazines.
now, my only doubt is that I know almost nothing of how a fashion magazine is organized - having done PR , what would be then next logical step?
how is a fashion magazine divided into departments? what departments are they? I do want to stay in the fashion industry but I feel that I cannot and do not want to do PRfor labels and stores forever....thanks