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Blog Submissions

Writing a blog post for SFU OLC is a great opportunity for you to share your informative advice and knowledge, as well as reflective and inspirational stories with the SFU Community. Whether you are volunteering for an international organization, getting ready to apply for your first or last Co-op work term, looking for professional development opportunities, or if you are already a seasoned industry insider, your contributions belong on Our Learning Community!

OLC Themes

Reminder: Browse through the Inspiration section first to learn more about which topics you can write about for the OLC.

There is a lot of flexibility in terms of what you can write about for the OLC. The OLC covers virtually every aspect of professional, academic, personal development. This includes topics like Job Search, Workplace Success, Convocation, Community Engagement, Life and Health, Research, Sustainability, Communication etc.

Our top blog content on the OLC that our readers LOVE includes reflective and courageous narratives about your learning journey and educational posts on unique learning topics. We encourage you to consider writing about narratives like your International exchange to India, a challenge you encountered at your first work experience, an interview disaster or how you changed your major mid-stream. Posts that include multimedia and Top Tip lists are also favourites among our readers.

Pitch an Idea

Are you interested in writing directly for the OLC? Pitch an idea to our editorial team or send your submission as instructed later on this page. An editor can provide you with assistance such as feedback on your pitch, ideation, story development and multimedia selection.

There are 2 ways to get in touch with us about your pitch: use the Idea Pitch Form or send an email to our editors at sfuolc@sfu.ca.

 

Idea Pitch Form
Email our Editors

STEP 1

Blog Essentials

WRITTEN CONTENT
  • Aim for a post of 500 - 900 words. However a great story may need more (1,000!) and can even be published as a series [sample]

  • Writing should be focused, informative, with a good balance of casual and professional

  • Create an informative and compelling teaser (2-3 sentences) that will compell a reader to click on your story [samples]

  • Open with an engaging paragraph that invites readers to keep reading

  • Create complete and concise paragraphs. Subheading are a great way to separate content and highlight sections. Numbered or bulleted lists can concisely organize content

  • Proofread your posting

  • Use accessible writing and language that a non-expert in the field can understand or someone who may not speak English as their first language 

IMAGES, LINKS, AND CITATIONS
  • Lead images in landscape format 600x280 [sample]. We like images of SFU's people, faces and spaces. We can assist in taking a picture and/or select a stock image where required. Images should be high resolution, taken by you or properly credited and permission gained for anyone else included in the image.

  • Include multimedia - in addition to the lead image, you can add additional images, videos, gifs, audio or documents that compliment your posting. Add captions where appropriate. [sample]

  • Embed hyperlinks to relevant articles, websites, employers, programs, research studies, statistics, etc.

  • When including a statistic or a research study, cite sources using the SFU Library Citation & Style Guides

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  • About the Author - share more on yourself by adding your personal bio to be published at the end of the posting. Bios include an image (portrait 90x90), 2-4 sentences, including links to any social channels, professional websites, blogs, and/or online portfolios that you would like viewers to follow and connect with you [sample]

  • Consider privacy in your posting - your own and anyone else that you may be writing about. Obtain consent to publish images from workplace, of co-workers or children

  • Once published, share your posting on your social channels (LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, etc)

BLOG ESSENTIALS

Written Content

  • Reminder: Read through the Development section for more advice on writing well and proofreading your post

  • Aim for a post of 500 to 900 words. However, a great story may need more (1,000!) and can be published as a series [Example]

  • Create an informative and compelling teaser (2 to 3 sentences) that will compel a reader to click on your story [Examples]

  • Open with an engaging paragraph that invites readers to keep reading

  • Your overall tone should be a balance between casual and professional.

  • Make sure your key message is present throughout your post; this will help to ensure your writing is focused and informative.

  • Create complete and concise paragraphs. Subheadings are a great way to separate content and highlight sections. Numbered or bulleted lists can concisely organize content.

  • Use accessible language so that a non-expert in the field or someone who may not speak English as their first language can understand.

BLOG ESSENTIALS

Image, Links, and Citations

  • Lead images should be submitted in landscape format with the dimensions of 870 x 435 pixels or 870 x 580 pixels [Example].

    • We like images of SFU's people, faces and spaces.

    • We can assist in taking a picture or selecting a stock image where required.

    • Images should be high resolution, taken by you or properly credited, and permission gained for anyone else included in the image.

  • Include multimedia: in addition to the lead image, you can add additional images, videos, GIFs, audio or documents that compliment your blog post. Add captions where appropriate. [Example]

  • Embed hyperlinks to relevant articles, websites, employers, programs, research studies, statistics, etc.

  • When including a statistic or a research study, cite sources using the SFU Library Citation & Style Guides

BLOG ESSENTIALS

About the Author

  • Share more about yourself by adding your personal bio to be published at the end of the posting. 

  • Bios include:

    • A headshot portrait image (200 x 200 pixels)

    • 2 to 4 sentences describing yourself, including links to any social channels, professional websites, blogs, and/or online portfolios that you would like viewers to follow and connect with you [Sample]

  • Consider privacy in your posting: your own and anyone else that you may be writing about. Obtain consent to publish images from your workplace and of co-workers or children

STEP 1

Submission Steps

There are 2 OLC submission processes: direct and indirect. Direct submissions are sent directly to the OLC Editorial team. If you have an indirect submission, follow the instructions and approval processes outlined by the program, course, initiative etc. that you are participating in.

Once your blog is ready to be submitted to the OLC, notify our editorial team by adding your item to the OLC Editorial Queue. Then, forward your complete submission or editorial inquiries to our editor at sfuolc@sfu.ca

A complete submission includes:

  • Word Document that includes your blog post, working title, teaser, and optional author biography
  • Images and other media (links to videos, audio, etc.) to accompany your story. Your images should be in high resolution and .jpeg or .png format. While images can be resized by our editors, please select images with the minimum dimensions:
    • Lead Image (landscape, 870 x 435 pixels or 870 x 580 pixels)
    • Author Image (200 x 200 pixels)
    • Supplemental Multimedia

 

Add a Posting
OLC Editorial Queue
Email our Editors

 

While we endeavor to review and publish all relevant items shared with us, not all submissions sent to the OLC will be approved for publication. The editor will communicate with you on edits and suggestions.

Once your article has been published on the OLC, you will be notified by the editor. Then, share your posting on your social channels (LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, etc)

STEP 2

Convert to Image

  • Convert and save your submission as a PDF and image using the following naming convention:
TEMPLATE
Discipline_Relevant Term_Program_Content Type - R, CL, JD_Name or ID.pdf or .jpeg or .png
EXAMPLE
Engineering_International_Co-op_CL_Smith.pdf
 
 

STEP 3

Submit Your Sample

  • Use the OLC gallery submission form to provide details, consent and upload your sample

Submitting content

Since we have a wide range of content type, each one is submitted following different steps and guidelines. Make sure to read carefully all the instructions for the type of content you will submit

Guide

Remember ot take a look at our Contribute section for all the steps on how to submit content to us

Contribute

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