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Several weeks ago I posted my lament about job fairs and how few employers
post tech writer vacancies, even though they have them. Many folks sent me
e-mail asking what town I'm in. Technical and personal schedule difficulties
have prevented me from answering until now.
For the record, I'm in the Washington, D.C. market. Specifically I'm in
Northern Virginia in Loudoun county. One of the job fairs I attended was
in the D.C. convention center, and the other was in a hotel in Tyson's Corner,
Virginia (shopping mecca of the world?).
I had numerous inteviews from the jobs fairs and two offers. I turned down
one offer immediately (the commute would have been too long), and I haven't
decided on offer #2 yet.
At one interview I did ask the recruiter why he didn't post the tech writer
vacancy. He said that his company gets too many resumes if they post an ad.
Most of these resumes come from tech writer-wannabees. These include secretaries
and clerical workers who want to "move up", engineers and other techies who are
down on their luck and decide to fall back on tech writing, and anyone in
general
who really wants to be a novelist/journalist/etc. and figures that tech writing
is an easy way to break into the writing industry.
He was tired of sorting through the wannabees with no experience from the
established tech writers with experience. He just lets the unsolicited resumes
that he normally gets be his pool of candidates.
So there's a random sample of one. I'm going to another job fair this morning
(in Tyson's Corner again), and I'll see if I get the same situation as before.
--- John
johnbell -at- mnsinc -dot- com
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Heaven's Scents Distinctive Potpourri Motto: Always take time
Janis Bell, owner to stop and smell the
hevnscnt -at- mnsinc -dot- com rose potpourri!
(703) 444-8630
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