The Best Time to Send Out Resumes

Summary: This Q&A article addresses how soon is too soon to start sending out resumes to potential employers.

Question: I’ll be graduating next May from the University of Montana with a BA in Art/Photography. I’m 23 and have five years of experience in public relations, graphic design, concert promotion and advertising, plus I started my own businesses: a website and a graphic-design firm. My goal is to work either on the East Coast or in Ireland for an advertising agency — I’ll be going to Dublin in December on a job-hunting trip. My question is when the right time to start sending out resumes is? Am I starting too soon? Should I try to find an internship first? I’m eager to get out of Montana and into a city environment.

Answer: These days, where you’re from is irrelevant, so you’ve got just as good of a chance at joining a New York or Dublin ad agency as anyone else. Perhaps better, since your website and company description show initiative and entrepreneurial savvy. But not only isn’t it too early to get your resume out and start responding to job postings, but you could have made contacts as soon as two years before graduation. That way, you might have lined up internships during the past two summers. But with persistence, you can make up lost ground. Before or after your Dublin trip, try to spend a week in New York interviewing. Send potential employers info in advance with the dates when you’re available. For better results, target smaller agencies specializing in web creation where your expertise would be valued most. Be sure to do the same before arriving in Dublin. Thanks to the internet, you can target logical employers there as well in advance of your arrival.