JOB APPLICATION TECHNIQUES, TOOLS & TIPS The job search process is an exciting time, as it means you are going to be starting a new phase in your life. The journey towards that new role, though, can take a lot of time and energy and leave you feeling anxious and uncertain about the future. Today, I’m going to give you some things to think about, to help make that process go smoother and so that you can start that exciting new phase, sooner. We’re going to talk about what should be in a resume and cover letter, so you can get shortlisted quicker, as well as what a good interview looks like. And we’re even going to do a little interview practicing to help you get prepared. I’m also going to give away a few recruitment trade secrets and finally, talk about how to join West Fraser. JOB APPLICATION TECHNIQUES, TOOLS & TIPS

RESUME Keep formatting simple Size 11 font minimum 1-2 pages Consistent! Make sure the reader knows who you are and how to get a hold of you 3. Highlight important areas of expertise and experience 4. For each job, list: Your title How long you worked in this role The company A brief summary of what you were responsible for Highlight accomplishments 5. List education, skills or relevant certifications 6. Always submit a PDF version Let’s start with your resume, as it all starts here. It’s your story. I’m going to give you some tips for writing a strong resume. My suggestion is to prepare a full resume with all of your experience and education. Each time you apply for a role, you’re going to create a copy just for that role and highlight things related to that role and remove things that might not be relevant. The purpose of this is to have a resume that quickly and clearly communicates if you are a good fit for the role and the company and will mean the difference between getting the job and not getting the job. [review slide with these additional points] Unless you are applying for a graphics designer role, where they want to see your creativity. Be sure that the words are presented clearly and in a format that is easy to follow. Ensure there is enough white space so it doesn’t look cluttered and allows room for people to put notes. Your name and contact information should be prominent. Put it at the top and bottom of the first page and the bottom of every other page. Try to limit your resume to 2 pages. Tell them where you will add value and what you are looking for. You cannot list every thing you have done on your resume, so be sure to identify key areas of expertise and experience For each job, list: a. Note that some companies use titles that don’t translate anywhere else. Be sure to standardize your title so the reader knows at first glance what kind of role you were in c. This helps provide some context for your work. List everything important to the role you are applying, from degrees earned, to conferences you participated in.

COVER LETTER Keep it short Draw a connection from your experience to the needs of the role and the business Why you are interested/excited about this role Cover letter formatting consistent with your resume Cover letters are a tricky part of the recruitment process as everyone has a different feeling about them. To me, a cover letter is a way to highlight that your resume is worth looking at, in a world, where a recruiter or hiring manager may have several hundred resumes to review. Here’s some tips: [review slide with these additional points] Be sure to do some research on the role and the company to make sure you are a good fit. Show the reader that you’ve done this research by providing a brief summary of what you understand to be their needs and what experiences you’ve had that would ensure your success and contributions in the role. Also, highlight why you’re excited, which shouldn’t just be that you have the right mix of experiences and education.

REVIEW SOME RESUMES TOGETHER Hand out two resume examples, critique together

INTERVIEWS Research, research, research! If it’s face to face, dress appropriately Be respectful when you check in Answer the question Make eye contact with everyone in the room Make notes Have prepared questions! So, you prepared a good cover letter and resume. You’ve been shortlisted and now they want to interview you. Whether it by a phone or face to face interview, remember the following: [review slide with these additional points] Research the company, who it’s competitors are, what it’s current challenges and success are, as well as any information you can find about who is interviewing you. Coming prepared, shows you are taking this seriously, respect their time and are genuinely interested in the company. Write down any questions you have in advance, so you can be prepared to ask those during the interview. Allow lots of time, so that if there is a traffic issue, you are not late. If you are too early (more than 15 minutes), don’t go into the building. Find a coffee shop nearby or bring something to read and then check in no more than 15 minutes in advance. Try and find out what the dress code. Over dressing can be as detrimental to your chances of being hired as is under dressing. Show the prospective employer that you cared enough about the role to also research what dress is appropriate and exercised good judgement in picking the most appropriate attire. Whomever is checking you in, is the face of the company you are applying for. Be respectful of them as they will surely pass on feedback of rude candidates to the hiring manager. Get to the point fast. If a question is unclear, ask them to repeat the question. Be sure you know what they are asking. Feel free to write the question down (bring a note pad), if you are prone to getting off track, so you can keep referring to it. Also, where possible, answer the question, with a real life example of when you have been involved in a situation related to the question, which shows you understand the situation. If you can’t think of an appropriate example, feel free to ask if you can come back to that question. This allows you time to think. Better to give them an actual answer later in the interview, than to give a non-answer. Making eye contact tells the interviewers you are invested in this meeting and are paying attention to each person in the room. Occasionally making brief notes throughout the meeting, ensures you are capturing any important information, that my help you better understand the role and the company, to help you prepare for upcoming questions, but to also determine if the company and role is the best fit for you and your goals. It also shows that you are interested in the role. Even consider telling them you will be keeping notes, so they know what you are doing and why.

MOCK INTERVIEWS Exercise: Find a partner. 1 person will be the interviewer and 1 will be the candidate. The interviewer will ask the below questions: Why do you want to work for UBC? If you could pave out your next 5 years, what would that look like? If I were to talk to you previous manager, how would they describe you? Let’s take a bit of time to practice interviewing a bit. The key thing we want to work on is answering the question, clearly, to the point and using real life examples to show we understand and have done that. [break people into pairs. Give out a set up questions to each pair and have them ask each other the questions and offer feedback on how well they answered. Walk around and offer feedback as they practice. After the exercise, ask the group:] What was the most difficult part of this exercise? What did you learn about yourself? What will you do with that information?

MOCK INTERVIEWS Exercise: Now switch roles, now the interview will the below questions: What attracted you to the Forestry program at UBC? What are your main strengths? Do you have any questions for me? Let’s take a bit of time to practice interviewing a bit. The key thing we want to work on is answering the question, clearly, to the point and using real life examples to show we understand and have done that. [break people into pairs. Give out a set up questions to each pair and have them ask each other the questions and offer feedback on how well they answered. Walk around and offer feedback as they practice. After the exercise, ask the group:] What was the most difficult part of this exercise? What did you learn about yourself? What will you do with that information?

OTHER INTERVIEW TIPS The interviewer wants you to do well! Be prepared, but don’t give ‘canned’ answers Make sure the company knows why you want that specific role and why you want to work for that Company Follow up with a prompt ‘thank you’, but don’t follow up too many times Today I have talked about what a good resume, cover letter and interview look like. There’s lots of other things that factor in to whether you get the role or even just considered. Can you think of any? [review slide with these additional points after the group has provided their feedback] Depending on the type of role you are in, how long you have stayed in your roles, impacts how a recruiter or hiring manager views you. If you have a series of 1-2 year roles, they may be concerned about how long you will stay with the company. Recruiting costs organizations a lot of money, so they don’t want to be doing it any more than they have to. If you have a number of these, and there’s a valid reason for it, think about how you might explain this in a cover letter, otherwise you might not make it past the screening process. There is a delicate balance here as you don’t want to put too much down as it will increase how long your cover letter is, but you want to make sure they understand the circumstances so you get shortlisted. I can’t tell you how often I get applications from people who do not even remotely have enough experience and education to be successful in the role they have applied for. Be sure to do research on the role and the company BEFORE you apply to ensure you are a fit. If the match isn’t obvious, consider doing a summary of their requirements, versus your education and experience in the cover letter, so they can see the link. Also, as part of your job search, sit down and seriously think about what you want in terms of a role, but also from a company, then check out the following on the internet to find possible matches: Search the job title, to see places where these kinds of jobs are advertised Research the industry you are interested in Check out company websites Google company name to see what other articles come up that tell you about what kind of company they are Look at websites like Glassdoor.com where employees and others provide information on what it is like to work for different companies I know it seems obvious, but don’t swear in any written or verbal exchanges. Even things like shit, crap, etc may turn off a recruiter/hiring manager, who may question your judgement When you apply on a role, note how they acknowledge your application. Follow up on applications can be seen as annoying to some, while to others, it can show initiative. If you choose to follow up, do so respectfully, highlighting that you want to respect their time. After an interview, ask the recruiter or hiring manager what the next steps are. If you don’t hear from them in the time frame they committed to, give a day and then politely follow up, to show you are interested and organized. If you have already secured another role, be sure to contact the recruiter/hiring manager and let them know. Thank them for their time and let them know briefly why you chose the other role if you can. It is a very small world, and simply not showing up for an interview or returning calls, somehow always gets in your way at some point in your life. There may be another time in your life where you want to work for this company, or someone you have dealt with in the process, may show up in some other way in your life, at some point.

THERE’S A TEST! What should be on every page of your resume? What are some of the things you should list for each job on your resume? What goes on your cover letter? What’s the most important thing to do, before an interview? What should you include in your answers to each interview question? What kind of things can stop you from getting shortlisted or getting a role? Looking at your own resume, cover letter and interview techniques, what changes can you make today that will help increase your chances of securing your dream job? Ok – let’s see how well were you listening. [Answers to the questions:] Name and contact information Your title; How long you worked in this role; The company and a summary of the type of business they were; A brief summary of what you were responsible for; A list of your accomplishments or important projects you worked on Draw a connection from your experience to the needs of the role and the business; Why you are interested/excited about this role. Research! A relevant example Swearing in the interview; too many roles; lack of match between you and the role

ACTION PLAN Looking at your own resume, cover letter and interview techniques, what changes can you make today that will help increase your chances of securing your dream job? Make your action plan now!