In today’s uncertain employment environment, magazine articles on job hunting and careers are more popular than ever. Slanted appropriately, these are published in trade magazines such as Women in Business, Minority MBA and Nursing Spectrum, all aimed at working professionals. Other magazines, such as Equal Opportunity and Black Collegian, target graduating college students. Broader interest magazines such as Self and Woman’s World occasionally publish articles covering career concerns.

These magazines offer publication opportunities to both experienced writers and talented novices. Writing articles for job hunting/career magazines can be an excellent way for part-time freelancers to break into print because they can capitalize on their workplace experience to tailor articles to readers in their field.

Some publishers such as Equal Opportunity Publications and Career Recruitment Media publish more than one job hunting/career magazine, often using a common editorial staff. For example, Equal Opportunity Publications publishes seven magazines covering job hunting and career subjects while Career Recruitment Media publishes five magazines in this category and Career Communications Group three. A published article in one of their publications can open the door to sales to their other magazines.

Manuscript requirements for this market are changing. Basic primers on writing résumés and cover letters considered quite publishable several years ago are no longer good enough for many magazines. This is because college placement centers have improved the coaching they provide graduating students on basic job- hunting techniques. To get published, writers need to find unique slants to classic subjects such as résumé writing and employment interviewing. In addition, there is an increased emphasis on articles targeted at mid- career professionals trying to manage their careers in today’s increasingly uncertain employment environment.

Query standards can be rigorous for this niche. Thorough knowledge of the subject matter, as evidenced by work samples or listing the experts whom one will interview, is often essential. One reason for this requirement is the need for fresh perspectives on common topics. The second requirement is ability to meet deadlines. Editors are often spread thin and don’t have time to “ride herd” on their writers. Third would be good writing style. Some editors prefer a brief outline of the proposed article. However, if the writer has worked for an editor before, a short paragraph usually suffices.

Jim Schneider, editor of several job hunting/career magazines published by Equal Opportunity Publications, looks for experienced writers who have published career guidance articles and role model profiles. The quality of the writing in their query letters is also important in deciding whether Schneider gives a writer an assignment. He observes that it is helpful if query letters are written in the same style as the authors would write their article.

Given the specialized nature of the various EOP magazines, Schneider notes that the queries must be tailored to a magazine’s readership and center on the interests of that group of readers. If the writer does so, he/she could reslant the query (and later the manuscript) to customize it for the readers of a different magazine. For example, the writer could customize a query for Minority Engineer using examples that engineering students would find particularly relevant to their own situations. The query and subsequent manuscript could then be reslanted to the interests of the readers of Black MBA using examples from the business world so that students majoring in business would find the article interesting and relevant to their needs.

Magazines targeting college students, such as Graduating Engineer and Computer Careers, The Black Collegian and those produced by Equal Opportunity Publications, base their editorial calendars on the academic year. As a result, authors must time their query subjects appropriately. For example, Jim Schneider likes to see queries three months in advance of the issue in which an article on that subject would be published.

Writing articles for these magazines provides both earning opportunities and the rewards of helping your readers achieve career success.

Markets

Equal Opportunity Publications (EOP)
445 Broad Hollow Rd., Suite 425
Melville NY 11747
https://www.eop.com
James Schneider, Director, Editorial & Production – jschneider – at – eop.com

Magazines published by EOP

Minority Engineer
Lana Russo, Managing Editor – lrusso – at – eop.com
Pays $0.10/word

Equal Opportunity
Jim Schneider – jschneider – at – eop.com
Pays $0.10/word

Woman Engineer
Lana Russo, Managing Editor – lrusso – at – eop.com
Pays $0.10/word

Workforce Diversity
Jim Schneider – jschneider – at – eop.com
Pays $0.10/word

Careers & the disabled
Jim Schneider – jschneider – at – eop.com
Pays $0.10/word

Hispanic Career World
Jim Schneider – jschneider – at – eop.com
Pays $0.10/word

African-American Career World
Jim Schneider – jschneider – at – eop.com
Pays $0.10/word

Career Recruitment Media (CRM)
211 W. Wacker Dr. #900
Chicago, IL 60606

Magazines published by CRM

Graduating Engineer & Computer Careers
Valerie Anderson – vanderson – at – alloymarketing.com

Diversity: Allied Health Careers
Valerie Anderson – vanderson – at – alloymarketing.com
https://www.diversityalliedhealth.com/

Minority MBA
Pam Chwedyk – pchwedyk – at – alloymarketing.com

Minority Nurse
Pam Chwedyk – pchwedyk – at – alloymarketing.com
https://www.minoritynurse.com/

Placement Manuals
Tim Clancy – tim.clancy – at – careermedia.com

The Placement Manuals are published for the career offices of more than 150 colleges and universities. Many of the articles are the same in all the manuals.

Career Communications Group (CCG)
Eric Addison – eaddison – at – ccgmag.com
729 E. Pratt St, 5th flr,
Baltimore MD 21202
Fax : 410-752-1837
https://www.ccgmedia.com

Magazine published by CCG

U.S. Black Engineer & Information Technology Magazine
https://www.blackengineer.com

Hispanic Engineer & Information Technology Magazine
https://www.hispanicengineer.com

Women of Color Conference Magazine
https://www.ccgmedia.com

P&L Publishing Ltd. (P&LP)
Robert Miller, Managing Editor – robert – at – blackmbamagazine.net
9730 S. Western Avenue, Suite 605
Evergreen Park, IL 60805
FAX: 708-422-1507

Magazines published by P&LP

Black IT Professional
https://www.blackitprofessional.com

The Black Collegian
140 Carondelet Street
New Orleans, LA 70130
https://www.black-collegian.com/aboutus/index.shtml

More

American Careers
Mary Pitchford, Editor
Career Communications, Inc.
6701 W. 64th St.
Overland Park KS 66202
Fax: (913)362-7788
https://www.carcom.com

Legal Assistant Today
James Publishing, Inc.
Rod Hughes – rhughes – at – jamespublishing.com
P.O. Box 25202
Santa Ana CA 92799
Fax: (714)751-5508
https://www.legalassistanttoday.com

Circle K Magazine
Kiwanis International
Kasey Jackson, Executive Editor – ckimagazine – at – kiwanis.org
3636 Woodview Trace
Indianapolis IN 46268-3196
Fax: 317-879-0204
https://www.circlek.org

DECA DIMENSIONS
1908 Association Dr.
Reston VA 20191
Fax: (703)860-4013
decainc – at – aol.com
https://www.deca.org

Back to College®
D. Rickerd, Editor
Pays: $60.00 – 75.00 for feature articles
$30.00 – 35.00 for reprints
Guidelines: https://www.back2college.com/guide.htm

Working Nurse Magazine and Working World Magazine
Ronald A. Reis, Editor in Chief – Ronelect – at – aol.com
3600 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 1526
Los Angeles, CA 90010
Fax:(213)385-3782
https://www.workingworld.com/magazine/workingnurse.asp
Payment: Generally, for articles from 250 to 850 words, $50 to $75; from 850 to 1,200 words, $100 to $125; for 1,500 to 2,500 words, $150 to $200.

John Borchardt is a full-time writer specializing in science, technology, careers and the workplace. He has more than 1,100 articles published in magazines, newspapers, encyclopedias and online. He is also author of the book Career Management for Scientists and Engineers, a Library of Science monthly selection.