Best Practices for Creating and Customizing Your Application Package

1. Best Practices for Creating and Customizing Your Application Package Dr. Frank Dooley Dept. of Agricultural Economics, Purdue University AAEA Annual Meeting, July 30, 2007, Portland, OR

2. My Background • Graduated from WSU in 1986 • Spent 84-86 at Moorhead State University – 100% teaching in a business dept • Spent 87-91 at a USDOT research job – 100% research • Spent 7 years at NDSU • Last 9 years at Purdue Dooley, 2007 AAEA

3. My points • Importance of EEOC • Reading a job description • What your application packet needs Dooley, 2007 AAEA

4. Importance of EEOC • Hiring practices vary widely by institution • But university jobs must meet EEOC requirements, or • prohibit discrimination against any member of the University community on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, age, national origin or ancestry, marital status, parental status, sexual orientation, disability, or status as a disabled or Vietnam era veteran. • Driven because universities are major federal contractors Dooley, 2007 AAEA

5. Reading a job description • Human resource offices call for job position descriptions • Absolute “must haves” or requirements • “Nice to haves” • Become the basis for evaluating the pool • If you don’t meet the absolute requirements, you are out of the pool Dooley, 2007 AAEA

6. Absolute must haves • Expressed as qualifications or requirements • Includes degree level and acceptable majors • May include types of prior experience • at least five years of demonstrated scientific leadership and administrative experience and an exemplary record of scholarly achievement • May include evidence of course work • “Strong training in trade theory and quantitative methods, including econometrics” • If you don’t meet the “must haves”, your file does not go to the search committee. Dooley, 2007 AAEA

7. Like to haves • A few descriptions will include Preferred qualifications • More often like to haves are buried in the job duties • These are very important and should guide your application letter. The hiring department is sending strong signals as to what the job will entail • Call the contact person for more information/ clarification. • Visit the web site, there may be a more complete job description, a strategic plan, etc. Dooley, 2007 AAEA

8. Application package • A letter of application, • A curriculum vitae with publication list, • Transcripts of all college courses, • & the names, addresses, telephone numbers, and e-mail addresses of three references. • A search committee won’t get your packet until it is complete Dooley, 2007 AAEA

9. The letter • Most important • Go back to the job description • First, assure them that you meet the qualifications • Then, cover every major duty, demonstrate what you can do • If you have no experience, acknowledge that • If you have similar experience, bring that up Dooley, 2007 AAEA

10. Vita and transcript • Account for all time • But don’t oversell yourself • E.g., course work in trade, applying for agribusiness position • E.g., five variations of the same paper Dooley, 2007 AAEA

11. References • Be sure you have their permission • Give them a copy of your vita and the job description • Make sure they know exactly what they need to do • Write a letter by August 10th • Be ready for a phone interview, etc. Dooley, 2007 AAEA