Chapter 15 The 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 SearchRésumé CategoriesPoor and Improved Résumé SamplesOptimizing 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 RésuméThe Customized Cover LetterSending Your Cover Letter by 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 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, , 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 Manager, Fleet Equipment, Kettering, Ohio. June 2011 to present. Tax Preparer, Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program (VITA). March 2011 to June Sinclair College, Dayton, Ohio. Salesperson, Kmart, Dayton, Ohio. April 2010 to May 2011.

©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 The Customized Cover Letter OpeningBodyClosing  Address the letter to an individual by name.  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 26 The Customized Cover Letter OpeningBodyClosing  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 27 The Customized Cover Letter OpeningBodyClosing  Ask for an interview. Consider hooking the request to a statement reviewing your strongest points.  Make it easy to respond. Tell them 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 28 Sending Your Cover Letter by