WHAT I THOUGHT THIS JOB WOULD BE LIKE: when i graduated college with my humanities degree, like many people, i believed that becoming an editorial assistant was the most appropriate non-grad school decision i could make. while i knew there would be a lot of grunt work, i believed that being around such prominent editors and authors would inevitably expose me to interesting opportunities and connections.
WHAT IT ACTUALLY WAS: you’re basically working in a dysfunctional, never-ending admin mill. while you may get opportunities to do some editorial-ish tasks, most managers will get annoyed if you at all prioritize these things over the mountain of admin work on your desk, which is literally unavoidable because that mountain is perpetually re-spawning itself.
WHY IS THIS JOB TERRIBLE: in my opinion, OUP prefers to pay an army of smart, eager college grads (most women) $35,000-ish a year to troubleshoot all of their egregious technology and workflow problems day in and day out rather than actually invest in R&D. i’m not going to speak for all EAs, but i think a majority of us felt like we were being forced to roll a boulder up a hill every day. everyone admits that the systems are utterly illogical and outdated, but fewer will recognize that their burden fell mostly on the entry-level and/or lowest paid workers.
IF YOU STILL CHOOSE TO DO IT: have an EXIT strategy. this job isn’t going to help open as many doors as you think it will. know what you want this position to do for you and where you’ll go after. don’t expect this job to answer that question for you. if you stay for too long (in most cases more than a year), you likely will get so burnt out that it will become even harder to leave, so make that promise to yourself right from the start. oh and by the way they hope that AE promotion they vaguely dangle in front of you after a year will stop you from doing that. in my opinion, it’s not worth it, and could actually make you seem overqualified for better EA jobs at other presses, if that’s what you decide to go for.
IN CONCLUSION: love yourself. explore your options. know your worth!!!
