Job Application Advice

[harangatang]

I'm applying for my first real job as I'll be graduating from college in less than a month. I'm completing my cover letter and resume which will be ready shortly. I actually went down to my college bookstore and bought a nice (but cheap) folder to hold my information in. Any other advice on how to get an edge or advice in general?

[westofyou]

Resume - Be concise and highlight your work experience or anything pertinent to the job you are after, be ready to morph it based on each position, it's good to have a couple of versions... have people you trust look it over, don't fill it with fluff to make it look richer.

[SunDeck]

I have had to go through stacks and stacks of applications, resumes and cover letters before and I don't recall anything like a folder, or special paper, etc. really catching my attention. What does catch my eye is when a person has taken the time to show me why they are worth the interview.

It could be something simple like making it clear in the cover letter that you are familiar with the company, or that you understand something about their products, position in the marketplace, etc. Additionally, showing that you know something about the competition in general helps. It doesn't have to be overwhelming, just find some things about the company's situation that interests you and show off your knowledge and show that you have taken time to research this position rather than spraying around applications like buckshot.

Edit each resume to highlight that you are right for this job. I don't mean embellish, but since each job and company is a little different, just make sure you take the time to create a resume for each position you apply for rather than a generic one. They may all have the same information on them, but phrased and organized somewhat differently.

Make finding a job your full time job. Research the companies, research the market; there is no excuse for not doing the homework and you can bet your competitors will be doing theirs. The whole purpose of a resume and cover letter is to keep yourself from being rejected. Show them that you are rock solid for the job at hand then knock them out in the interview.

[durl]

Find someone who can help you get your foot in the door. Relationships are key. A personal recommendation means a lot these days.

Keep your resume concise and to the point. Give them just enough info to make them want to call you and learn more.

Be prepared for the "What's your biggest weakness" question. We all have them but it's good to let the interviewer know how you work to overcome a weakness.

I've had a hard time thinking of a way to word this, but I guess to sum it up: be flexible and willing to learn. More and more these days people change careers, not just jobs, many times. Someone who continually learns and adapts will make themselves more valuable to an employer. Don't just interview for a position, show how your abilities (not just your degree) can be of value to an employer.

[SunDeck]

Originally Posted by durl

Be prepared for the "What's your biggest weakness" question. We all have them but it's good to let the interviewer know how you work to overcome a weakness.

That's an easy one, Chocolate!



Do I get the job?

Hello?

[KittyDuran]

Originally Posted by SunDeck

I have had to go through stacks and stacks of applications, resumes and cover letters before and I don't recall anything like a folder, or special paper, etc. really catching my attention. What does catch my eye is when a person has taken the time to show me why they are worth the interview.

It could be something simple like making it clear in the cover letter that you are familiar with the company, or that you understand something about their products, position in the marketplace, etc. Additionally, showing that you know something about the competition in general helps. It doesn't have to be overwhelming, just find some things about the company's situation that interests you and show off your knowledge and show that you have taken time to research this position rather than spraying around applications like buckshot.

Edit each resume to highlight that you are right for this job. I don't mean embellish, but since each job and company is a little different, just make sure you take the time to create a resume for each position you apply for rather than a generic one. They may all have the same information on them, but phrased and organized somewhat differently.

Make finding a job your full time job. Research the companies, research the market; there is no excuse for not doing the homework and you can bet your competitors will be doing theirs. The whole purpose of a resume and cover letter is to keep yourself from being rejected. Show them that you are rock solid for the job at hand then knock them out in the interview.

Ditto... I "do" resumes for a living (well, that my job - getting ready to format one right now). It's best to have not only a standard version with either Arial or Times New Roman fonts, but also a text version of the resume in case the company would like you to send it electronically.

[durl]

For the record, I do NOT recommend smearing chocolate on your face for a job interview.

However, in my first month or so at my current job, I was getting tired of how "stuffy" things seemed so I found a christmas stocking in a stack of stuff and walked around with it on my head for awhile. The cool thing is that I avoided any kind of therapy afterwards.

[Yachtzee]

In this economy, all I can say is, keep at it and don't let the rejection letters get you down.

[savafan]

I would listen to what Sundeck had to say. He helped me a lot on my job search, and now I'm a supervisor and hiring my own employees.

What I look for is how a person sells their experience. If you've waited tables, and you're applying to work at a law firm, don't just tell me that you waited on tables and served food, tell me that you strong customer service skills, strong ability to work with the public, and are very good at problem solving. It goes a long way with me if a person can make their possibly mundane job relate to a seemingly unrelated position.

[deltachi8]

Originally Posted by savafan

What I look for is how a person sells their experience. If you've waited tables, and you're applying to work at a law firm, don't just tell me that you waited on tables and served food, tell me that you strong customer service skills, strong ability to work with the public, and are very good at problem solving. It goes a long way with me if a person can make their possibly mundane job relate to a seemingly unrelated position.

That is outstanding advice. As an HR Director I review resumes every day and the ones that stand out are those that tell me what a person can do for me (the company), not what they did for someone else.

[cincinnati chili]

1,402 posts on Redszone should count for something.

[SunDeck]

Originally Posted by savafan

I would listen to what Sundeck had to say. He helped me a lot on my job search, and now I'm a supervisor and hiring my own employees.

Wow, you actually took my advice? Even the part about the fake social security number?

Nice.

[15fan]

Looked over my fair share of resumes in the past decade.

Spell check and proper punctuation are your friends. The only thing that disqualifies someone quicker from consideration than poor spelling/punctuation is one of those awful objective statements at the top of the resume.

"Highly motivated individual with xx years of experience seeking challenging professional responsibilities in a dynamic organization with potential for rapid career advancement."



I'm also a big fan of bullets. Prose and paragraphs are for term papers, not resumes.

I see your resume and I'm going to scan it for about 30 seconds to determine whether or not you make the first cut or if you're an easy one for me to push to the side. Make it easy for me to learn in those 30 seconds what your qualifications are.

Also, you keep your resume to 1 page until you have a decade of work experience.

[KittyDuran]

Spell check and proper punctuation are your friends. The only thing that disqualifies someone quicker from consideration than poor spelling/punctuation is one of those awful objective statements at the top of the resume.

Also abbreviations and ampersands (&) make a resume look unfinished as if you're in a hurry or do not know how to spell a word, even the word "and". Another thing to avoid is CAPs, just like on the internet its akin to screaming - there are exceptions including software, i.e. AutoCAD - then there is capitalizing the first letter of every other word or keywords.

I'm also a big fan of bullets.

So I am - especially in listing software or skills.

Another thing which might not be to everyone's liking but I put past job descriptions in past tense.
Example: [Current job] Design various mechanical parts using AutoCAD 2007. [past job] Designed various mechanical parts using AutoCAD 2000.

[Yachtzee]

Originally Posted by KittyDuran

Also abbreviations and ampersands (&) make a resume look unfinished as if you're in a hurry or do not know how to spell a word, even the word "and". Another thing to avoid is CAPs, just like on the internet its akin to screaming - there are exceptions including software, i.e. AutoCAD - then there is capitalizing the first letter of every other word or keywords.

So I am - especially in listing software or skills.

Another thing which might not be to everyone's liking but I put past job descriptions in past tense.
Example: [Current job] Design various mechanical parts using AutoCAD 2007. [past job] Designed various mechanical parts using AutoCAD 2000.

I've found that the focus of a resume can change when moving from one career path to another. As an IT guy, my resume detailed my experience on a project-to-project basis, focusing on my role within the project team and the technical skillsets used on the project. As an attorney, I've pretty much removed all references to technical skillsets in favor of highlighting major achievements for each job. My old IT resume was two pages because I had a lot of experience in a variety of programming languages on a variety of platforms. My law resume is one page and discusses some of the highlights of my legal intern work and I just list my non-legal technical work and the position I held. Different fields prioritize experience differently. So talk to people who have hiring or recruiting experience in your field and find out what kind of information hiring managers in your field are looking for. You don't want to waste people's time with overly detailed job descriptions, but you don't want to leave out important relevant experience either.