Guardian Advisor - 136685

Department Overview:

Serving over 40,000 undergraduate and graduate students, the Student Life team is responsible for building a welcoming, engaging, safe and inclusive community that generates a sense of belonging for all students. The Student Life team provides services and experiences that range from major concerts to alternative spring break trips abroad. The purpose of Student Life is to foster the development of students beyond the classroom, build community on campus, encourage involvement in student life, meet the daily needs of student through the provision of services and facilities, advocate the needs of students to campus leaders, foster student pride and affiliation with UC San Diego and assist the university in its efforts to recruit and retain students. Student Life is the hub of campus activity and student engagement and is an integral part in UC San Diego being a student-centered, research-focused, service-oriented public university.

Since 1967, The Guardian has been the official independent, student-run, campus newspaper of UC San Diego, serving 40,000+ students and 15,000 employees with its weekly publication both online and in print. In its six coverage sections (News, Opinion, Features, Arts & Entertainment, Lifestyle, and Sports), The Guardian reports on all topics relevant to UC San Diego and the San Diego area. The Guardian also has creative (Art, Photo, and Multimedia) and backend (Web, Marketing, Ads, and Copy) sections. The student staff is entirely volunteer with the exception of the Editorial staff, who receive biweekly stipends.

The Guardian's Editorial staff comprises the editor(s) of each section. Incoming editorial staff are appointed by their outgoing predecessors. They are led by The Guardian's executive team, which includes the Editor-in-Chief, the Managing Editor, the Projects Editor, and the Training & Development Editor. The Guardian's executive team is appointed by each year's EIC, who is elected by a vote of all Guardian members. This structure is subject to change based on the needs of The Guardian's staff. The Guardian is governed by a Constitution and Bylaws that are updated (if needed) and ratified by the Editorial staff annually.

The Guardian's work seeks to amplify and inform the student body and greater San Diego populace through ethical and accessible journalism. The Guardian's mission is to facilitate the open marketplace of ideas, foster a climate of community growth, and uphold the editorial values of public accountability, progress, and communication.

The publication is circulated once a week during the fall, winter and spring quarters, with 30 total issues during the year. Each week during the academic year, issues are published, printed and delivered to a variety of locations on and off campus. The online website is maintained and updated as needed during the week and with each new issue. All work is done hybrid, with editorial student-staff in the office on Sundays all-day to handle production. Regular staff meetings happen on Monday (Editorial) and Tuesday (Creative). Responsibilities and time commitment vary during the week based on content. Student staff work on flexible timelines, coordinating their schedules to meet production deadlines.

Position Overview:

Under the general direction of the Student Life Business Officer, the College Newspaper Advisor supports the editorial, developmental, and organizational success of The Guardian, UC San Diego's student-run newspaper.

The Guardian operates on an annual budget of approximately $400,000 and employs 100+ students, including those who work in paid student-editor positions and those who work in volunteer reporting and production positions. A SLBO career-staff member serves as the Business Manager of the paper and handles the processing and collecting of advertising and procedures. The career-staff member currently works with The Guardian's Editorial staff to manage the hiring and paying of students on staff in paid positions.

The Advisor provides advisory support without controlling content, sharing their expertise as needed in business, journalism, and industry to help students grow into ethical journalists. This includes mentorship in writing, editing, design, multimedia reporting, storytelling, media law, newsroom leadership, and professional development, while upholding the student publication's autonomy and First Amendment protections.

The Advisor assists in educating students to function as a high-performing media team that produces professional-caliber print or broadcast content aligned with ethical journalism standards. The Advisor facilitates hands-on training for all key student roles, including reporting, editing, layout, art, advertising, and photography. To deliver comprehensive development, the Advisor also identifies journalism professionals with expertise in areas outside their own and arranges for them to lead targeted student training workshops.

The Advisor offers advising on content, business, and career development. They do this through coaching, training, and access to resources. Specifically, the Advisor offers their experience in reporting, editing, layout, creative output, multimedia storytelling, and media business management. The Advisor seeks to develop the leadership capabilities of the students, expanding their knowledge and skills in print and digital journalism, and supporting freedom of expression through all forms of student media. The Advisor may be asked to facilitate and coordinate educational workshops, one-on-one advising, and other experiential learning opportunities.

The Advisor supports student staff career development by helping students refine professional goals, build resumes, network in the industry, and pursue internships, scholarships, and full-time media roles after graduation. To deliver comprehensive development, the Advisor may also utilize their professional network to connect students with career journalists.

While the Advisor's primary responsibility is editorial and developmental advising, the position also offers limited transitional support in business-related functions-such as advertising, budgeting, and student payroll-only during periods of student turnover or reorganization. In those instances, the Advisor helps to preserve institutional memory, maintains essential business contacts, and orients new student leaders to support organizational continuity. Operational duties ultimately remain with student staff. The Advisor will guide and aid the student Advertising Director in developing strategies for The Guardian's growth.

Using professional student services theories and concepts, performs a limited range of duties and responsibilities within a Student Life program. Works independently to provide information and interpretation of clearly defined policies, procedures and regulations. Receives direction regarding more complex issues and / or program(s). Identifies individual student needs for programs and services and advises on appropriate programs and resources.

• Bachelor's degree in related area such as Journalism with typically 2 years of professional experience and / or equivalent experience / training.

• Basic knowledge of advising and counseling techniques.

• Ability to observe and assess the skills, abilities and knowledge of a student newspaper or other media and prepare and deliver a training program to improve their skills, abilities and knowledge.

• Interpersonal skills.

• Proven leadership as a mentor in order to provide guidance, communicate high expectations, and show an active interest in student progress, promoting academic success and career development in journalism.

• Abilities in problem identification, reasoning.

• Demonstrated skills to create workshops, seminars, tip sheets, and other training media for the purposes of training and education.

• Proven experience working one-on-one and in groups with students assigned as copy editors with ability to supervise and counsel individuals and groups during copy-editing sessions.

• Skills in service orientation, active listening, critical thinking.

• Works with writers and multimedia creatives at all levels of story idea generation, news gathering and all styles of journalistic writing. This can include guidance as requested before students begin reporting, during the information gathering process, organization, writing, and editing.

• Knowledge of University processes and procedures.

• Understanding of finance and budgets in regards to small organizations within an institution or similar structure.

• Ability to multi-task, verbal communication, written communication and organization skills.

• Demonstrated ability to research and identify best practices and expert practitioners in journalism with tangible results and method of effectively communicating findings.

• Ability to read, evaluate and edit manuscripts or other materials submitted for publication and confer with authors regarding changes in content, style or organization, or publication.

• Identifies problems, provides solutions and advises on long-term decisions concerning the paper's operations, policies, and procedures

• Understanding of advertising and sales strategies for a publication.

• Working knowledge of Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics, as well as legal issues pertaining to journalism; interprets and applies the Code of Ethics to various situations.

• Job offer is contingent upon satisfactory clearance based on Background Check results.

• Occasional evenings and weekends may be required.

• This position offers a hybrid (remote/on-site) work arrangement. The on-site location is on the main campus in La Jolla at the Student Center.

If employed by the University of California, you will be required to comply with our Policy on Vaccination Programs, which may be amended or revised from time to time. Federal, state, or local public health directives may impose additional requirements.

To foster the best possible working and learning environment, UC San Diego strives to cultivate a rich and diverse environment, inclusive and supportive of all students, faculty, staff and visitors. For more information, please visit UC San Diego Principles of Community.

The University of California is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, protected veteran status, or other protected status under state or federal law.

For the University of California's Anti-Discrimination Policy, please visit: https://policy.ucop.edu/doc/1001004/Anti-Discrimination

UC San Diego is a smoke and tobacco free environment. Please visit smokefree.ucsd.edu for more information.