Chapter 15The Job Search, Résumés, and Cover Letters

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

2

The Job Search

Résumé Categories

Poor and Improved Résumé Samples

Optimizing Your Résumé for Today‘s Technologies

Topics in This Chapter

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

3

Submitting Your Résumé

The Customized Cover Letter

Sending Your Cover Letter by E-Mail

Preview Employment Quiz

Topics in This Chapter

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

4

Preparing Identify your

interests and goals.

Evaluate your qualifications.

Recognize today’s employment trends.

Choose a career path.

The Job Search

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

5

Today’s employment trends More people work for smaller companies,

or they start their own business. Fewer people have permanent positions. Teams complete special projects and

then disband. Companies outsource work to outsiders. Contingency employees work temporarily

and then leave the company.

The Job Search

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

6

Searching electronically Visit big job boards, such as

CareerBuilder, Indeed, Monster, CollegeGrad, CareerJournal, and so on.

Look beyond the big boards to company Web sites, professional associations, local sites, niche sites, and social media sites.

The Job Search

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

7

Tips for conducting a safe, effective Web job search Use reputable sites. Limit the number of sites on which you

post your résumé. Use a dedicated, professional-sounding

e-mail address. Limit personal information. Post your résumé privately, if possible.

The Job Search

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

8

Tips for conducting a safe, effective Web job search Renew your résumé posting every 14

days. Keep careful records of where you post

your résumé. Omit references when posting. Avoid replying to a “blind” job posting.

The Job Search

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

9

Searching traditionally See announcements of professional

organizations. Visit career centers, attend career fairs,

ask advice of instructors. Contact companies directly. Develop your own network. Check classified ads.

The Job Search

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

10

Searching by using online resources Join a career networking group. Participate in a discussion group or

mailing list. Locate a relevant blog. Start tweeting.

The Job Search

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

11

The Job Search

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

12

Heading and objective List your name,

address, e-mail, and phone.

Include a career objective customized for a targeted job.

Résumé Categories

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

13

Summary of qualifications Provide 3 to 8 bulleted statements. List your most impressive qualifications:

experience, skills, education, awards. Customize the statements to fit the

requirements of the targeted job.

Résumé Categories

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

14

Education Name your

degree, date of graduation, and institution.

List your major and GPA.

Give information about your studies, but don’t inventory all your courses.

Résumé Categories

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

15

Work experience List your jobs. Start with the most recent.

Include employer's name and city, dates of employment (month, year), and most significant title.

Résumé Categories

Salesperson, Kmart, Dayton, Ohio. April 2010 to May 2011.Manager, Fleet Equipment, Kettering, Ohio. June 2011 to present.

Tax Preparer, Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program (VITA).March 2011 to present. Sinclair College, Dayton, Ohio.

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

16

Work experience Use action verbs to describe your

experience.  Summarize your achievements and skills

relevant to the targeted job.

Résumé Categories

Prepared state and federal tax returns for individuals with incomes under $25,000. Conducted interviews with over 50 individuals to elicit data regarding taxes. Determined legitimate tax deductions and recorded them accurately.

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

17

Capabilities and skills Highlight your technical skills. Mention

word processing, database, spreadsheet, and Internet proficiency.

Emphasize your nontechnical skills. Give evidence of communication, management, and interpersonal skills. Employers want more than empty assurances. Try to quantify your skills.

Résumé Categories

Organized holiday awards program for 1200 attendees and 140 awardees. Praised by top management for enthusiastic teamwork and achievement.

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

18

Awards, honors, and activities Show that you are well-rounded. List awards and extracurricular activities,

especially if they demonstrate leadership, teamwork, reliability, loyalty, initiative, efficiency, and self-sufficiency.

Résumé Categories

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

19

Final tips Omit references unless specifically

required. Look for ways to condense your data. Double-check for parallel phrasing. Project professionalism and quality.

Résumé Categories

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

20

Final tips Avoid personal pronouns. Omit humor. Use quality paper and a quality printer. Have a friend or colleague critique your

résumé. Proofread! Proofread! Proofread!

Résumé Categories

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

21

Poor Résumé

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

22

Poor Résumé

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

23

Improved Résumé

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

24

Improved Résumé

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

25

You will need three résumé versions:1. Print-based

presentation résumé

2. Scannable résumé

3. Plain-text resume

Optimizing Your Résuméfor Today‘s Technologies

Print-based presentation résumé

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

26

Convert your print résumé.

Use 10- to 14-point font such as Times New Roman or Arial.

Be sure your name is on first line.

Avoid underlining, italics, borders, shading.

Include keywords mentioned in job description.

Optimizing Your Résuméfor Today‘s Technologies

To prepare a scannable résumé

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

27

Reformat with shorter lines (no more than 65 characters).

Move all text to the left.

Consider using equals signs (= = =) or tildes (~ ~ ~) to separate items and enhance format.

Save file in plain-text (.txt) or rich text (.rtf) format.

Send to yourself to check layout.

Optimizing Your Résuméfor Today‘s Technologies

To prepare a plain-text résumé

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

28

Word document Send your

presentation résumé by surface mail or as an e-mail attachment. 

PDF document Use Adobe

software to convert your presentation résumé. Send as an attachment.

Submitting Your Résumé

By John S. Donnellan

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

29

Plain-text, ASCII document Embed within e-mail or send as an

attachment.  Company database

Complete online form with your résumé information. 

Fax Send your presentation résumé.

Submitting Your Résumé

If you are faxing or sending a résumé by e-mail, consider following up with a copy of your presentation résumé.

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

30

The Customized Cover Letter

Opening Body Closin

g

Address the letter to an individual by name. Name the source, and include job title,

date, and publication for advertised jobs. Name the person who referred you, if

applicable. Tell how your qualifications fit the job

specifications, show knowledge of the reader’s business, or describe how your special talents will be assets to the company.

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

31

The Customized Cover Letter

Opening Body Closin

g

Demonstrate how your background and training fill the job requirements.

Summarize your principal assets from education, experience, and special skills.

Avoid repeating specific data from your résumé.

Refer to your résumé.

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

32

The Customized Cover Letter

Opening Body Closin

g

Ask for an interview. Consider hooking the request to a statement reviewing your strongest points.

Make it easy to respond. Tell when you can be reached (during office hours). Some recruiters prefer that you call them.

©2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Ch. 15, Slide

33

END