cv & cover letter workshop alison crean careers advisor the university of waikato email:...
TRANSCRIPT
CV & Cover Letter Workshop
Alison CreanCareers Advisor
The University of WaikatoEmail: [email protected]
Copyright - [email protected]
Here is Harvey’s Personal Advertisement
Would you buy him?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dwJaWrTft3Y
Copyright - [email protected]
The main purpose of a CV from an employer’s point of view is to help them to select the right number of candidates for interview as quickly and efficiently as possible.
This is about matching your skills, experience and personality to the culture of the organisations and the key criteria that the company is selecting.
Be Special - Decide what is special about you? What are you offering your
'new‘ or existing employer ? Many people feel that if they are already
employed by the organisation that is enough, so they don't work too hard on
what they have to offer. Think in terms of your unique skills. You need to
have at least 5 unique selling points!
What can you do that would add value to your chosen company?
What are you going to bring to an organisation?
What personal skills do you have to offer? Yes, the focus is on how 'You' can
make a positive difference to your chosen organisation. Just like Harvey did!
Be Sexy – most applications are very dull, boring and lack enthusiasm for the job on offer. Create a bit of intrigue and sex appeal by committing your enthusiasm and talents to paper. Employers love qualifications and experience - they are also looking to recruit the other qualification, which is your personality.
Be Professional – research your chosen profession and put your application together. So many employees see a position they like the look of and just throw anything down on paper in the vain hope that it will get them the job. Researching the company and writing a personalised CV/application form is a far more strategic way to gain an interview.
Want to know why you didn’t get an interview :
Why I Tossed Your CV!
It's only going to take me a short amount of time to read through the files and make my decision. Approximately 15-30 seconds or less!
We weed the stack, we look for red flags that scream "don't interview me!“ – it only takes seconds.
Mistakes that will guarantee your CV a one-way ticket to the shredder.
•You don't meet the minimum criteria. Note the minimums and demonstrate how you meet them.
•Bad grammar - every stack has at least one CV with misspelled words, incomplete sentences, errors - signals laziness, inattention to detail, and the overall sense that you are not taking this seriously.
Here are three pieces of advice: proofread, proofread, proofread.
•Tailor your CV? - "spray gun" method of applying for jobs - rapid-firing your CV to every opening you can – doesn’t work! One of the best things that applicants can do is demonstrate that they know what they are applying for.
• You didn't speak our language. Here's a trick to land jobs - copy specific phrases and buzzwords from the job posting into your CV, build them into bullet points. Don’t use jargon and abbreviations. Recruiters quickly scan CV’s often look for specific phrases they put in the job ad. Some corporate employers use electronic filters to weed out applications.
• You used too much personality fluff - when you use descriptive phrases, "dedicated worker," "innovative thinker” without demonstrating. Your CV should show me why you have the best background and skills for the job. If you enjoy new challenges, I will be able to glean that from the list of achievements you have in your CV.
What does a CV Look Like?
Contact Details:
Your name will be the first thing on your CV – informal, no middle names also include:
AddressMobile and landlineEmail (professional)LinkedIn contact
John Sample
123 University Street, Hamilton 3200Mobile: 021 123 4567Tel: 07 123 4567Email: [email protected]
Profile/Personal Statement
These are optional! Keep it short and concise and make it your marketing statement!
Needs to summarise experience, skills and if you like, what role you are applying for. Often the cover letter can do this – and the profile should be your ‘elevator script’ or marketing statement!
Profile
A confident communicator with 5 years administrative experience including extensive involvement with committees and boards. Offers strong organisational, planning, interpersonal and teamwork skills.
Key Skills
4 to 6 bullet point statements that target the role/company
They must be demonstrated and lead the employer to your CV!
Key Skills
Confident communicator gained through presenting at Board meetings, handling student enquiries and managing and planning extensive reporting and correspondence
Leadership skills developed through managing staff, chairing board meetings and coaching/managing sports teams
Achievements
If you have them – put them on the first page! They can be academic, sporting, cultural, community, work related!
Achievements
Successfully awarded scholarship for post graduate studySelected for timetabling committeeSeconded to FASS to set up and administer employment skills modules Selected to play Soccer for regional competitions
Relevant Experience
A great way to sell relevant roles, community work, volunteer, and related projects.
Do not assume people know you when applying for roles from within your organisation You still need to sell yourself and your skill set.
Relevant Experience
Student Administrator 2008 – 2012Developed student database (Excel VBA)Collaborated with internal teams to produce reports and refine procedure to create streamlined systemsLiaising with students, academics and other staff to resolve timetabling issues, including proficient in use of Jasper and other university databases Achievement – received a positive review on my performance and seconded to FASS
Finance & Economics Tutor – University of Waikato 2007Deliver paper content to first year students – mark assignments and examsAchievements – selected for this role due to my strong knowledge and academic achievement on this topic
Secretary Hospice Waikato 2011-2012Taking and updating minutes and correspondence including managing sponsorship and co ordinating fundraising events
Education/Training List most recent or highest qualifications first, and include majors, and on the job training if it is relevant. If you have relevant experience and then a degree you will want to put the experience first – it will depend on the employer’s priority.
Education/Training
Bachelor of Management Studies 2004 – 2007 Majoring in Finance & Economics The University of Waikato
Training:Women in LeadershipFirst Aid CertificateSecretarial association training daysCustomer Service (KiwiHost)
Other Experience
List any other work experience which does not relate to the role and list responsibilities as transferable skills.
You sell your transferable skills mix rather than concentrating on the day to day mechanics of the role.
Other Experience
Customer Service - 123 Café 2007 • Provided front line customer service and cash handling in a busy fast paced role• Completed stock takes, trained other staff and undertook supervisory duties when required
Achievements – Promoted to supervisor role after three months
Additional Information
Be brief and only put in if you need. Include extra curricular activities, interests, hobbies, nationality, languages, sport, voluntary work, debating, travel (especially if to interesting places), student societies and committees, etc
Additional Information
Volunteer: Community Support Worker –IDEA Services, Hamilton
Interests: Sports (Basketball and Snooker), Travelling (Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, Cambodia), Music, Reading, Fashion Design
Languages: Fluent in English, Spanish, Mandarin
Referees
Not required to list as you will have to provide them anyways! If you have good ones – well respected, well branded, then put them on our CV – reputation marketing! Only 2 or 3!
Name – TitleCompanyMobile: / Tel: Email:
Referees
Richard BransonDirectorVirgin LtdMobile: 021 123 4567 Tel: +44 12 345 6789Email: [email protected]
Donald TrumpTrump Holdings LtdMobile: 098 765 4321 Tel: +11 212 123 45657Email: [email protected]
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Start with the things you know about yourself when putting your CV together save the hard tasks for last.
Interview yourself. Ask yourself: What are my top 5 unique selling points?Do you have any outstanding achievements in your working life – try to find one for each job you have done, such as great performance reviews, being asked to undertake additional responsibilities, training others, committee involvement.Have you undertaken professional development ie conferences, workshops, training days, professional certification etcAre you involved with any organisations outside the workplace, ie Board of trustees, sports, community, health industry, clubs, charities, and affiliations Do you have any interesting hobbies/interests – any achievements in those?
Do’s and Don’ts for Professional CVs
Do’s Use Arial or Times Roman fonts (or associated fonts)Be consistent in headings – font size and formatEnsure your font size is 11 or 12 points-anything too small or large and it is irritating on the eyesPut your name on each page Spell check the document Target the CV for the specific company, position or role Ensure Referees are appropriate for each position you apply for Make sure CV is in Word or pdf format
Don’tsUse fancy fonts that irritate the eyeHave a lot of colour or use graphicsPut a photograph on the CVWaste space repeating informationPut in irrelevant information like date of birth, work visa status, marital status, secondary schooling, drivers licence ….Make spelling errors, typos or have factual errors in job titlesDon’t go into endless detail about job responsibilities on a day to day basis – summarise your transferrable skillsDon’t use first person
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Cover Letters – If you are applying for a job a cover letter can help you inject some personality to your application.
What to include: Your details – make it easy for someone who is hiring to quickly get back to
you – include name, phone, email address A quick introduction – describe yourself and explain achievements,
experience and qualifications in the opening paragraphs – don’t start with I wish to apply for – BORING!!!!
Provide an overview of your main reasons the employer should hire you – this means you need to highlight ‘what the employer wants’ and demonstrate how you have it. Take their key words from their advertisement, job description or website and demonstrate to the reader how you have those skills and abilities – lead them to your CV!
Provide the reader with an explanation of how you are the perfect match – show that you are culturally aligned, why you are well suited and how much you would like to work there
Keep language simple, error free, be confident, be positive (don’t use BUT), triple check details – correct names, addresses, contact details, etc
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From Within: temp, contract, volunteer, intern, work experience, full time….I want to hire someone whose work I have seen
Use Proof: job-hunter who brings proof of what they can do makes an appointment through contacts / research
Contacts: Best friend, family, peers, coaches, teachers, colleagues, former colleagues, academics…
Agencies: recruiter or search
Online or newspapers
Resume
How Employers recruit
How most people look for jobs/roles/work
80% of jobs
What Color is Your Parachute? Richard Bolles 2012