Contribute

There will be no edition following the Easter break (Monday 28 March).  This Week will resume the week commencing Monday 4 April.

This Week welcomes interesting stories and notices that inspire and inform our University staff community.

Below are the specific requirements for contributing to This Week. You should also read our top tips for communicating before submitting your content.

How to submit
Email your submission to the editorial team (thisweek@mq.edu.au). If contributing a story, you must include an image according to the image guidelines below.

Publishing schedules and deadlines
This Week is published on Mondays from mid-February to mid-December. Where the publishing date falls on a public holiday, the issue is published on Tuesday.

All content must be submitted for consideration by close of business the Wednesday prior to publishing.

Publish dates are subject to change. Advance notice will be given for any planned changes to this schedule.

Submission guidelines

Length
Macquarie staff are busy people and ­– like most web users – they scan content. 250 words is the ideal maximum word count, with subheadings and bullets for easy reading. Remember, you can always link to another web page for more information.

Timing and targeting
Consider your audience and the timeliness of your message. Ask yourself why staff would engage with your message or take the desired action, and why is it relevant to them at that particular time?

If you’re not sure whether your story is relevant to staff, you may wish to check with the This Week team before submitting your content (thisweek@mq.edu.au).

Where there is a more targeted audience for your message than all-staff, explore more direct ways to target your audience and consider using This Week to reinforce your targeted message.

For targeted communication, you might consider the following channels:

Tone and context
This Week is sent to the entire Macquarie staff community, so avoid jargon or terms that are not widely understood outside your field. Focus on the elements of your story that are relevant or interesting to a wider audience.

Images
Images should be a large size and of high resolution. Submit the largest versions of the images available, so we can crop and resize as required. An interesting and well composed image will increase your readership. Images of activities or objects relating to the story, as well as profile pictures of the people involved, should be submitted where available.

Our editorial approach
Content will be edited and published at the discretion of the editorial team. We may contact you for additional information, to confirm information provided, or to recommend alternative channels for your message.

Views expressed in This Week are not necessarily the views of the editorial team, the Marketing Unit or Macquarie University.

Types of content

Stories
All story ideas are encouraged, but those that reflect the values and strategic priorities of Our University: A Framing of Futures are given priority. Let us know about collaborative achievements across academic, research and professional units; personal and professional milestones; and the real-world impact that we’re making on campus and beyond.

Make sure you’ve covered ‘who, what, when, where and why‘, and focus on the goals, results, outputs or outcomes, as well as any benefits to the University community.

Events
Events are automatically fed into This Week from the University’s Events Calendar, so your event must be published there in order to appear in This Week.

Notices and participation call-outs
Notices have replaced MQ Announcement emails, and are best used for administrative announcements. Requests for study participants must include ethics approval numbers, and will be published as notices.

Classifieds
Classifieds are free, but only staff may advertise and a valid University email contact address must be provided for publication.

Classifieds remain online for a maximum of two weeks and advertisers are responsible for alerting the editorial team if the item is sold or no longer available during this period.

Classified should roughly follow this format for tone and length:

What: five piece dining table
About: Beechwood, extendable, three years old and in very good condition. Pickup from Beecroft.
Price: $400 ono
Contact: firstname.lastname@mq.edu.au or call ext. 1234.

For all enquiries contact the editorial team (thisweek@mq.edu.au) or call  9850 6766.

Archived issues
This Week has been published since May 2014. Previous stories and notices can be found using the search function on this site. PDFs of our previous fortnightly Staff News publication can be found at the Staff News Archive.