SAIS Observer -- Application for Our Editorial Staff
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Note To All Applicants
Thank you for your interest in joining The SAIS Observer, the official student-run newspaper of Johns Hopkins SAIS. Established in 2002, the Observer has grown into a unique staple of student journalism, representing the only IR graduate school weekly with foreign bureaus and staff on three continents. Our mission is to capture a pulse of SAIS and offer a platform for commentary on pressing global issues. Last year, we also inaugurated the "First Draft of History" series with CNN's Peter Bergen and a panel of international journalists.


First-Round applications for SAIS DC/Bologna are due by Saturday, 9/12/15, 5pm EST.

First-Round applications for HNC students are due by Saturday, 9/26/15, 5pm EST.

Applications received after these dates will be considered on a rolling basis.

To learn more details about each role, please visit our recruiting page:
www.saisobserver.org/joinus.

We look forward to reading your application.
Your name?
Where are you from?
What is your e-mail address (JHU account)?
In what year are you at SAIS?
Which campus will you be at during the 2015-2016 academic year?
Clear selection
What SAIS program are you in?
Clear selection
What was your previous role with The SAIS Observer? If applicable.
Are you interested in any of the following leadership roles?
All four roles are considerable yet rewarding time commitments on a weekly basis.
Clear selection
(For DC Students) What role are you interested in? Check your top two (read the descriptions below for details).
Note the section editor roles are the gatekeepers of content for each issue -- responsible for recruiting writers and stories, communicating and collaborating with counterparts in Bologna and Nanjing, and also writing stories for your assigned section.
(For Bologna/HNC Students) What role are you interested in? Check your top two (read the descriptions below for details).
Note the section editor roles are the gatekeepers of content for each issue -- responsible for recruiting writers and stories, communicating and collaborating with the D.C.-based section editors, and also writing stories for your assigned section.
Campus News
Responsible for recruiting, writing, and ‘copy editing’ stories related to Campus News -- issues with existing and new policies, administrative matters and changes, new courses or academic changes at SAIS, new facilities or provisions for students, and more. Will be responsible for generating at least two stories per week. These can come from staff writers or contributing writers from all three campuses. Will also be the point person for the staff writers of campus news in Bologna and Nanjing, namely coordinating stories with them. This will include ensuring that the two stories every week are rotationally representative of each campus (i.e. three weeks should ideally feature stories from DC-Nanjing, Nanjing-Bologna, Bologna-DC).
Student Life
Responsible for recruiting, writing, and ‘copy editing’ one story related to Student Life per week -- student events, trips, student profiles, social events, speaker events, and more. *Pieces can be written by the DC Section Editor, staff section editors in Bologna and Nanjing, or from staff and contributing writers from any campus. Pieces not written by the Section Editor must be recruited and assigned by the Section Editor.
Careers
Responsible for generating one piece per week on any topic career-related: career treks, employment trends for SAISers, industries, and/or sectors, career fairs, etc. *Pieces can be written by the DC Section Editor, staff section editors in Bologna and Nanjing, or from staff and contributing writers from any campus. Pieces not written by the Section Editor must be recruited and assigned by the Section Editor.
Alumni
Responsible for generating one SAIS alumni profile per week as part of the “Paths After SAIS” column. Format for alumni profiles should follow a narrative format (with question & answer format for ‘crunch time’ staying within 10 questions). *Pieces can be written by the DC Section Editor, staff section editors in Bologna and Nanjing, or from staff and contributing writers from any campus. Pieces not written by the Section Editor must be recruited and assigned by the Section Editor.
Continuing the Discussion
Responsible for recruiting and generating two differing perspectives on a specific theme within IR news, chosen by the CTD Section Editor. Previous topics have included NSA leaks, US and illiberal democracies, US drone strikes, chauvinism and exceptionalism, the responsibility to protect doctrine, the International Criminal Court, the Ukraine crisis, etc. Responsible for drafting the prompt, soliciting pieces from students and/or faculty, and assigned each perspective to two people. *Pieces can be written by the DC Section Editor, staff section editors in Bologna and Nanjing, or from staff and contributing writers from any campus. Pieces not written by the Section Editor must be recruited and assigned by the Section Editor.
Faculty and Experts
Responsible for generating one “faculty experts” Q&A interview per week on a specific topic chosen by the F&E Section Editor (with suggestions from the editorial team too). Will proactively reach out to faculty (and staff writers in charge of the section on other campuses) across all three campuses to ensure at least one interview runs each week, will ensure the interview time and location is schedule, and will develop and manage rapport with SAIS faculty. *Pieces can be written by the DC Section Editor, staff section editors in Bologna and Nanjing, or from staff and contributing writers from any campus. Pieces not written by the Section Editor must be recruited and assigned by the Section Editor.
Opinion
Responsible for generating one to two opinion pieces per week from SAIS students on a topic chosen by either the Opinion Section Editor or the students themselves (which must be cleared with the Section Editor). Will proactively reach out to students and encourage opinion pieces on trending topics and outline editorial guidelines to non-editorial writers. *Pieces can be written by the DC Section Editor, staff section editors in Bologna and Nanjing, or from staff and contributing writers from any campus. Pieces not written by the Section Editor must be recruited and assigned by the Section Editor.
SAIS Speak
Responsible for keeping the “SAIS Speak” column continuously up-to-date with official SAIS events published through the weekly “Next Week at SAIS” email. Will work closely with the Technology Editor to ensure that events are accurately posted on the website and also has the necessary event information such as speaker name and title, topic, location, host, allowed guests, and RSVP information. Will also locate a professional photo of the speaker for a particular event, document the source, and send along to the Technology Editor.
SAIS Around Town
Responsible for keeping the “Around Town” column up-to-date with all SGA and non-official SAIS social events happening in Washington, D.C., Bologna, and Nanjing. With develop rapport with SGA to ensure major social events are relayed to the Section Editor on happy hours, cultural events, and other festive gatherings. Will also actively scout urban happenings in the city -- such as embassy day, food tastings, theatre reviews, market reviews, concerts, politics and prose speakers, new restaurant reviews, and more -- and relay these to the Technology editor with the following parameters: event type, title, date, brief description or review, and photo reflecting the event.
Technology Editor
Responsible for marketing all Observer content to the SAIS community and external veiewers through management of the website -- www.saisobserver.org -- and social media platforms (facebook and twitter). Will ensure all content is continuously up-to-date and work closely with the Copy Editor to queue and publish stories as they become available. Will also upload appealing photos (with source information) with all social media posts, and will collaborate with the Photo Editor and Film Editor on uploading content.
Photo Editor
Responsible for taking photos for all relevant stories on the Washington, D.C. campus. Will also coordinate, plan, and also publish “photo essays” in collaboration with the Technology Editor. Will be flexible to take pictures on short notice (in cases of stories involving faculty and senior administrators) and will consistently and proactively upload photos in a timely manner for the Technology Editor to access.
Film Editor
Responsible for producing film content around a theme on a recurring basis. This role has flexibility as there has not been a precedent for film with the paper, and the editor is encouraged to pitch ideas for new projects and content to the editorial staff.
Staff Writer
Responsible for contributing two articles per month with the flexibility to write for any section. Will be assigned stories from Section Editors and will also work directly with them on generating story ideas, writing content, and communicating any follow-up tasks.
Please select any non-editorial areas in which you have experience or interest in supporting:
Please write a brief paragraph describing your journalism experience and/or interest in writing for The SAIS Observer. *
Please share any other ideas you might have for the editorial staff or any other aspect of the paper.
Last Step: Please e-mail us your latest CV (resume) and one writing sample (if applicable) at sais.observer@gmail.com. We look forward to reading your application.
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