Work Experience & Entry Level Resources

Work Experience and Entry Level Publishing

Work Experience & Entry Level Resources

As a publishing recruitment agency we cover all levels of publishing from entry-level to senior. But entry-level positions are very rare. Publishing companies usually handle these roles themselves as they are extremely popular and often over-subscribed. So they do not require an agency’s assistance.

We do take on entry-level candidates however. When you register with us your details become logged in our system. When we do get entry level roles in, which suit your preferences and experiences, we will get in touch.

If we respond with a suggestion that you gain more experience you are still registered with Atwood Tate. It simply means that we probably can’t help you at this time, but could in future if you gain some experience.

As you gain experience you can update your CV on our website. We will get an alert and can contact you when we feel we have a job that would suit your experience.

Whilst we don’t handle internships or work experience placements we do have a temp desk, which is effectively paid work experience. We will refer you to the temp team if we feel that you have transferable skills that they can use.

But for now, we offer the resources, advice and suggestions below, for ways to find and gain work experience in publishing! To jump to any of the topics below, here are the shortcuts you’ll need:

Blog

Read our blog posts!

We post regular advice and news updates covering a range of topics from industry news to our office reading lists! We’re a building a resource for all those that work in publishing and it is worth bookmarking our page so that you don’t miss out!

We have specifically tailored work experience, entry-level and temping advice on our blog as well!

You can also read these blogs on temping here:

With regards to work experience and entry level roles; if you require more information or advice contact us for more details.

We also recommend you read these blogs for advice on where to find work experience, what we’re looking for and how to register:

With regards to Applications advice we suggest you familiarise yourself with these blog posts:

Social Media

We are on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram as well as having a blog.

We recommend that you familiarise yourself with social media, particularly Twitter, as this is a great platform for networking and learning more about publishing.

There are regular Twitter events within publishing, which are great to get involved in. Such as #WorkinPublishing week in November, and Academic Book Week (#AcBookWeek) in February.

These events offer resources to up and coming publishers, as well as opportunities to network, attend events and discuss the industry.

A lot of publishers offer advice, Q&As and insight into publishing life. Many are happy to answer questions or discuss books, jobs and career development with you. It’s a great way to integrate yourself into the community and learn.

You can also familiarise yourself with publishing brands across many sectors from Trade publishers (Penguin, Faber, Hachette), Academic (Oxford University Press, Springer Nature) and other B2B, Educational and Professional publishers.

Also, a lot of publishers advertise their work experience, internships and entry-level roles on social media first! There are also several twitter accounts dedicated to listing such roles as well.

We recommend you take a lot at some of these social media accounts for regular work experience and entry-level advertisements:

Relevant Websites

We have a blog post on where to find work experience and entry level jobs but here a few websites to check daily:

We also suggest you look at the Society of Young Publishers. The SYP is a subscription based society: annual membership costs £24 for students/unwaged workers and £30 for those in employment. The membership includes access to a private jobs board regularly updated with the latest entry level roles and internship schemes.

Also included in your membership is access to events, courses and access to networking opportunities. It’s also a society to meet people within the same situation as yourself: looking to enter the publishing industry.

University Publishing Courses

We are often asked about the relevance of a Publishing MA  on a CV. There are a lot of courses out there, and they are a great way to learn about the publishing industry as a whole. Most courses will cover all sectors and all job types within publishing; some also include work experience placements.

Here is a list of some universities which offer courses in publishing!

Note: a BA/MA in Publishing does not guarantee you a job in publishing once you’ve completed your course. Most publishing companies will still require a candidate to have some form of work experience before considering them for a role. This is due to the amount of graduates and candidates who will be going up for each entry-level role.

Also, you do not always need to have a degree to get a job within publishing. A lot of large companies, such as Penguin, are dropping the requirement of a university degree in applications.

Whilst having a degree can be beneficial, particularly with regards to Academic and STM (Science, Technical, Medical) publishing, it is not always necessary. So do not fret if you have a degree in an ‘unrelated’ topic or have no degree at all.

Job Type & Sectors

One of the best things about doing publishing experience is the ability to decipher where in publishing you want to work. Most commonly a lot of entry-level candidates say they want to work in Trade, in Editorial. This is primarily because most people enjoy reading fiction/non-fiction, and so think that their skill set sits in Editorial and Trade publishing.

For some it does, but you’ll be surprised by the variety within publishing, and completing work experience is the perfect time to discover your tastes.

If you’re set on trade publishing have you also considered work in a literary agency? Agencies discover and nurture authors throughout the process of editing, publication, publicity and rights. Also if you’re looking to go into Academic have you considered roles such as STM (Science, Technical, Medical) or are you more interested in historical/social sciences publishing?

With regards to job types there are many different forms other than editorial, sales and marketing. There’s also Rights, Design, Production, Publicity, Contracts, Royalties and many more!

Take a look at this blog post we did for more information:

And also websites like Creative Skillset and Target Jobs for more details on the types of roles within publishing.

Other Skills

Publishing doesn’t entirely revolve around in-house experience. Sometimes to gain an internship or an entry-level role it helps to have some evidential interest in the industry.

If you’re interested in publicity, have you attended many book and publishing events? A book launch, the London Book Fair, a Q&A or a course?

If you’re interested in Editorial, Design or Marketing have you got a blog? Do you write regularly content, design your own website and market your own brand?

Do you know how to code? Or have experience in InDesign or speak another language?

These skills are all relevant to a publisher, across all sectors.

If you are unable to attend work experience due to finances or travel, why not build your CV with other skills and integrate yourself into the publishing industry this way?

Other Advice

Keep up to date with what is happening in the publishing industry. It shows interest and can be helpful in developing your career. Check out some of these websites for interesting articles, news, podcasts and more!

We hope that helps you on your path to entering the publishing industry. And if you have any more questions, or suggestions for future blog posts or Twitter events just let us know!

Make sure you keep up to date with our social media too! Follow us here: Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube or Instagram.

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