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crash course
on careers
WRITING A WINNING APPLICATION
WHAT ARE EMPLOYERS
               LOOKING FOR?

Photo credit: Okko Pyykko via Flickr
Employers expectations
• Employers do not expect you to have 5+ years
  of working experience as a new grad




                                      careers.ubc.ca
Employers expectations
• New grads typically have 0-2 years of related
  experience considering their:

  – Labs, group projects, individual classes,
    volunteering, internships, family business help,
    work study, part-time work, summer jobs, co-op




                                             careers.ubc.ca
Employer expectations
• Not everyone has done all of these
  experiences, but usually some people have
  had one during their studies



  – Labs, group projects, individual classes,
    volunteering, internships, family business help,
    work study, part-time work, summer jobs, co-op

                                             careers.ubc.ca
HOW DO EMPLOYERS SELECT
         CANDIDATES?

Photo credit: Alex012 via Flickr
Criteria for selecting interviewees
• Employers will usually judge candidates on
  their resume and cover letter
• They are looking for candidates that
  – Meet 50-75% or more of the qualifications
  – Demonstrate relevant experience for the
    particular position
  – Write a unique and customized resume and cover
    letter for each particular position

                                          careers.ubc.ca
TARGETING YOUR RESUME
          AND COVER LETTER

Photo credit: leeroy09481 via Flickr
Now… lets look at your documents
• How many times did you send out the same
  resume?
• How many times have you used the same
  cover letter?




                                     careers.ubc.ca
What your
 resume may
look like now
Targeting Your Resume
• In order to emphasize your most relevant skills
  and experiences, first think of yourself as the
  hiring manager.
• Write a list of all the detailed skills an ideal
  candidate would have. Be really specific here.
     • Avoid “communication skills” on your list. They may
       have listed this, but get more specific.
     • Think about what kind of communication you would
       need to do in this job…
        – Communicate within a team? Communicate with clients?
          Write technical reports? Prepare presentations?
                                                       careers.ubc.ca
How do you share this experience?
• With your detailed list of skills, emphasize
  which skills you have that this particular
  employer is looking for


              Job            My
             Skills         Skills
                                          careers.ubc.ca
Writing it on your resume
• You can summarize your skills at the top of
  your resume in the “Summary of Skills” or
  “Highlights of Qualifications” or “Profile”
  section
• Also add technical skills, language skills, or
  other certifications that may be useful (First
  Aid, HAACP, WHIMIS, Driver’s License, etc.)
• Avoid highlighting points like “Honest,”
  “Dependable” unless asked for in the posting
                                         careers.ubc.ca
Writing it on your resume
• Consider changing your “work experience”
  and “volunteer experience” categories
  – Some options are:
     •   Relevant Experience / Additional Experience
     •   Laboratory Experience / On Campus Involvement
     •   Professional Experience / Community Involvement
     •   Academic Experience / Volunteer Experience




                                                  careers.ubc.ca
Writing it on your resume
• If you plan on applying for a job that requires
  your lab skills and technical knowledge, you’ll
  want to write them in two sections:

1) Below your “Highlights” section include a “Technical Skills
   Summary”

2) Place your most relevant experience in a heading after your
   education on the first page (i.e. Laboratory Experience, or
   Related Experience, etc.)

                                                      careers.ubc.ca
Example of Lab Class on Resume
• Here is a sample resume section
• Note a few things that they have chosen to share
  with employers and HOW they have done it

                          Heading is relevant to the job
                  Course Title and Year is used


                                              Description of work
                                                        performed
Example of Coursework on Resume
                      Heading is relevant to the job




 Highlights accomplishment and shows
 relevance for job being applied for




                                                       careers.ubc.ca
Example of Special Projects in Class

                  Course Title and Year is used




                  Description of work performed
                  And project that makes class relevant
                  to job being applied for




                                            careers.ubc.ca
Example of Involvement on Campus




                 Description of work performed
                 And project that makes experience
                 relevant to job being applied for




                                         careers.ubc.ca
PRIORITIZING CONTENT ON
           YOUR RESUME

Photo credit: pshutterbug via Flickr
1. NAME – Make it big and
noticeable

2. Objective – List the job
title and employer. Keep it
short and sweet

3. Skills – Target the job.
Prioritize your skills from the
employers point of view



4. Formatting – Use
consistent formatting in your
education and experience
sections


4. Experience – Bring your
most relevant experience on to
the first page in one section.
Order all of the experience in
this section by reverse-
chronological order.
MAKING YOUR
     COVER LETTERS STAND OUT

Photo credit: derekGavey via Flickr
Employers get bored
• 90% of cover letters look exactly the same
• Nearly every cover letter has this sentence on
  it:
  – “I feel that my academic background and skills are
    a good fit for this position.”




                                             careers.ubc.ca
Common Mistakes
• Most people try and summarize everything
  from their resume on to their cover letter
  – This adds no new information, thus adding no new
    value of a cover letter to your application
• If you try to summarize everything, you end
  up describing your experience very quickly
  and with little detail
  – Employers can read your resume faster than your
    cover letter. Its formatted to be read quickly with
    bullets and small sections of text
New Approach
• Take the time to write more detail in to your
  cover letters – as if you were practicing for the
  interview
• Delete the general or introductory sentences.
  Instead, get more specific within the one page
  limit



                                          careers.ubc.ca
Strategy Broken Down
•   Paragraph One:
     – Write down which position you are applying for. In one or two sentences explain why you’ve
       picked this kind of work over any other option in the world
•   Paragraph Two/Three:
     – Take your two best skills for this job, and tell me about a time when you used those skills. Get
       into more detail than what I can read on your resume. Tell me about a particular aspect of the
       project you worked on. Tell me about a particular day that went really well. Tell me about one
       of the biggest road bumps you hit and how you overcame it.
     – Imagine that I am sitting in front of you and you are telling me the story as if you were in an
       interview
     – This usually takes 5-7 sentences
•   Paragraph Four:
     – Describe why you’ve picked this employer. What do you know sets them apart? How can you
       contribute to the team?
     – Try looking at the company on LinkedIn for interesting stats and information about their staff
       (it’s a lot like Facebook stalking)
•   Paragraph Five:
    ― Request an opportunity for an interview.



                                                                                      careers.ubc.ca
Sample
Cover Letter
Final Tips
• Resumes
  – Bring only your relevant experience together
  – Target your resume with the specific information that
    the employer is looking for

• Cover Letters
  – Get specific with an example to demonstrate your
    skills
  – Expand on content from your resume
  – Avoid some of the general sentences or phrases that
    waste valuable space
                                                careers.ubc.ca
Crash course: Writing a Winning Application

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Crash course: Writing a Winning Application

  • 1. crash course on careers WRITING A WINNING APPLICATION
  • 2. WHAT ARE EMPLOYERS LOOKING FOR? Photo credit: Okko Pyykko via Flickr
  • 3. Employers expectations • Employers do not expect you to have 5+ years of working experience as a new grad careers.ubc.ca
  • 4. Employers expectations • New grads typically have 0-2 years of related experience considering their: – Labs, group projects, individual classes, volunteering, internships, family business help, work study, part-time work, summer jobs, co-op careers.ubc.ca
  • 5. Employer expectations • Not everyone has done all of these experiences, but usually some people have had one during their studies – Labs, group projects, individual classes, volunteering, internships, family business help, work study, part-time work, summer jobs, co-op careers.ubc.ca
  • 6. HOW DO EMPLOYERS SELECT CANDIDATES? Photo credit: Alex012 via Flickr
  • 7. Criteria for selecting interviewees • Employers will usually judge candidates on their resume and cover letter • They are looking for candidates that – Meet 50-75% or more of the qualifications – Demonstrate relevant experience for the particular position – Write a unique and customized resume and cover letter for each particular position careers.ubc.ca
  • 8. TARGETING YOUR RESUME AND COVER LETTER Photo credit: leeroy09481 via Flickr
  • 9. Now… lets look at your documents • How many times did you send out the same resume? • How many times have you used the same cover letter? careers.ubc.ca
  • 10. What your resume may look like now
  • 11. Targeting Your Resume • In order to emphasize your most relevant skills and experiences, first think of yourself as the hiring manager. • Write a list of all the detailed skills an ideal candidate would have. Be really specific here. • Avoid “communication skills” on your list. They may have listed this, but get more specific. • Think about what kind of communication you would need to do in this job… – Communicate within a team? Communicate with clients? Write technical reports? Prepare presentations? careers.ubc.ca
  • 12. How do you share this experience? • With your detailed list of skills, emphasize which skills you have that this particular employer is looking for Job My Skills Skills careers.ubc.ca
  • 13. Writing it on your resume • You can summarize your skills at the top of your resume in the “Summary of Skills” or “Highlights of Qualifications” or “Profile” section • Also add technical skills, language skills, or other certifications that may be useful (First Aid, HAACP, WHIMIS, Driver’s License, etc.) • Avoid highlighting points like “Honest,” “Dependable” unless asked for in the posting careers.ubc.ca
  • 14. Writing it on your resume • Consider changing your “work experience” and “volunteer experience” categories – Some options are: • Relevant Experience / Additional Experience • Laboratory Experience / On Campus Involvement • Professional Experience / Community Involvement • Academic Experience / Volunteer Experience careers.ubc.ca
  • 15. Writing it on your resume • If you plan on applying for a job that requires your lab skills and technical knowledge, you’ll want to write them in two sections: 1) Below your “Highlights” section include a “Technical Skills Summary” 2) Place your most relevant experience in a heading after your education on the first page (i.e. Laboratory Experience, or Related Experience, etc.) careers.ubc.ca
  • 16. Example of Lab Class on Resume • Here is a sample resume section • Note a few things that they have chosen to share with employers and HOW they have done it Heading is relevant to the job Course Title and Year is used Description of work performed
  • 17. Example of Coursework on Resume Heading is relevant to the job Highlights accomplishment and shows relevance for job being applied for careers.ubc.ca
  • 18. Example of Special Projects in Class Course Title and Year is used Description of work performed And project that makes class relevant to job being applied for careers.ubc.ca
  • 19. Example of Involvement on Campus Description of work performed And project that makes experience relevant to job being applied for careers.ubc.ca
  • 20. PRIORITIZING CONTENT ON YOUR RESUME Photo credit: pshutterbug via Flickr
  • 21. 1. NAME – Make it big and noticeable 2. Objective – List the job title and employer. Keep it short and sweet 3. Skills – Target the job. Prioritize your skills from the employers point of view 4. Formatting – Use consistent formatting in your education and experience sections 4. Experience – Bring your most relevant experience on to the first page in one section. Order all of the experience in this section by reverse- chronological order.
  • 22. MAKING YOUR COVER LETTERS STAND OUT Photo credit: derekGavey via Flickr
  • 23. Employers get bored • 90% of cover letters look exactly the same • Nearly every cover letter has this sentence on it: – “I feel that my academic background and skills are a good fit for this position.” careers.ubc.ca
  • 24. Common Mistakes • Most people try and summarize everything from their resume on to their cover letter – This adds no new information, thus adding no new value of a cover letter to your application • If you try to summarize everything, you end up describing your experience very quickly and with little detail – Employers can read your resume faster than your cover letter. Its formatted to be read quickly with bullets and small sections of text
  • 25. New Approach • Take the time to write more detail in to your cover letters – as if you were practicing for the interview • Delete the general or introductory sentences. Instead, get more specific within the one page limit careers.ubc.ca
  • 26. Strategy Broken Down • Paragraph One: – Write down which position you are applying for. In one or two sentences explain why you’ve picked this kind of work over any other option in the world • Paragraph Two/Three: – Take your two best skills for this job, and tell me about a time when you used those skills. Get into more detail than what I can read on your resume. Tell me about a particular aspect of the project you worked on. Tell me about a particular day that went really well. Tell me about one of the biggest road bumps you hit and how you overcame it. – Imagine that I am sitting in front of you and you are telling me the story as if you were in an interview – This usually takes 5-7 sentences • Paragraph Four: – Describe why you’ve picked this employer. What do you know sets them apart? How can you contribute to the team? – Try looking at the company on LinkedIn for interesting stats and information about their staff (it’s a lot like Facebook stalking) • Paragraph Five: ― Request an opportunity for an interview. careers.ubc.ca
  • 28. Final Tips • Resumes – Bring only your relevant experience together – Target your resume with the specific information that the employer is looking for • Cover Letters – Get specific with an example to demonstrate your skills – Expand on content from your resume – Avoid some of the general sentences or phrases that waste valuable space careers.ubc.ca