Resumes, Selection Criteria and Cover Letters

1. Resumes, Selection Criteria and Cover Letters Strategies for Getting Employers’ Attention Careers Centre, UWA July 2006

2. Getting an Employer’s Attention No employer is interested in what you want until you can interest him or her in what you can offer! Your job application must convince him or her that you are the person they need for the job!

3. What Employers Want • Skills to do the job • Technical knowledge (eg IT, physiotherapy) • Transferable skills (eg communication, team-work, problem-solving, planning and organising, self-management) • A good track record • Relevant experiences such as academic studies, work experience, extracurricular activities • Positive personal qualities • Commitment, enthusiasm, confidence, motivation, adaptability, reliability, willingness to learn

4. Gathering the Facts • Think about and identify your work and study experiences. Make a list of them. • Know what your technical knowledge and transferable skills are. Make a list. • Find evidence of your strengths eg • Academic grades, personal and work achievements • Details of activities, tasks or projects you have undertaken

5. Identify your Experiences Achievements Skills Evidence What I have What I can do Here’s my proof 2004 - 2005 * Customer service * Advised customers Part-time work * Interpersonal skills making computer & Sales Assistant * Supervisory skills software purchases Harvey Norman * Resolved customer complaints * Supervised two new staff members

6. Identify your Experiences Achievements SkillsEvidence What I have What I can do Here’s my proof 2005 – 2006 * Teamwork * Managed budget for PSA Vice-President * Administration social programs * Organisation * Planned careers forum for postgraduate students * Arranged employers as guest speakers

7. Are you suitable for the job?

8. Key Application Documents • Cover letter (if asked for) • provides a personal introduction. • Resume or CV • provides specific details of your experiences. • Selection Criteria • provides specific examples to demonstrate you have the skills and abilities needed for the position.

9. CV and Criteria must be easy to read • CV - no more than 3 pages long (2 is best). • Selection Criteria - each 300-400 words long • Use active verbs and keywords which will appeal to the employer. • Format your CV and Selection Criteria clearly so they are easy for the employer to read.

10. CV • Contact Details • Name: • Address: • Telephone: • Mobile: • Email:

11. Education Education • List all University qualifications - degree, post-graduate award, honours • Include the name of the University. • Include dates of your study.

12. Relevant Skills/Experience Relevant Skills/Experience • Chinese – fluent oral and written • Oracle Database skills (Intermediate) • MS Word (Advanced) • Internet research skills (Advanced)

13. Work History Date: August 2005 – Sept 2006 Western Power Pty Ltd, Perth Position: Systems Consultant Duties: Managed the Data Warehouse Group Business Intelligence Project Management Implemented new WEB-based Business Intelligence Tools

14. Referees • Three is plenty. If you are a new graduate, ask a lecturer or tutor if he or she is happy to be a referee for you. • List your referees, including: • Full Name • Position • Address • Contact telephone, mobile & email

15. A Good Cover Letter • Write a cover letter only if the job description asks for one. • Say who you are and why you’re writing • State why you are suitable for the job • Say why you are interested in the job or the organisation

16. Cover Letter Guidelines • Use formal business letter format • Find out name of contact to whom application is being sent

18. Selection Criteria • This is the most important part of your job application. Look carefully at the list of Selection Criteria. (criterion/criteria) • If you cannot meet the criteria, you do not have the skills or experience the employer wants. Your application will go in the bin. • You must answer all criteria and answer each part of each criterion.

19. Selection Criteria contd Qualifications, skills and experience • Essential criteria – you must meet these to gain an interview. • Desirable criteria – you do not need to have them, but if the employer receives many applications, he will consider these criteria in deciding who to interview.

20. Demonstrating Your Skills • Address each criterion separately. Write it as a heading, in bold. Now write a paragraph showing how your experience meets this criterion. • Use the STAR technique to give specific examples of your past behaviour. • Situation • Task undertaken • Actions or behaviours exhibited • Results or outcomes of those actions

21. Criteria – keep it simple! • This is not an academic essay. You must describe a situation in clear, straight-forward English (like a simple story). • Use the first person – I, me, my, our. • Use active verbs – I wrote, I organised, I prepared, I solved, I advised, I decided ….

22. STAR Method

23. Context of Your Actions(Situation & Task) • “An integral element of my postgraduate studies in IT was to design a …..” • “During my 4 years part-time work in the hospitality industry……” • “As a member of the Postgraduate Student Association Committee ……”

24. What You Did(Action You Took) • “My skills were evident in the projects I undertook as part of my Masters in IT research. These included: …….” • “Duties in my part-time job included….” • “To produce the student association newsletter, I commissioned articles from student writers, organised editorial meetings …”

25. How Well You Did It(Result) • “As a result of my efforts, two of my articles have been published in the AustralianJournal of Communication.” • “After only 6 months, I was promoted to Deputy Project Team Leader because of my strong IT abilities.” • “The Club’s President commended me on my success in increasing the club’s membership.”

26. Examples of Criteria Proven capacity to work effectively as part of a multidisciplinary research team. Evidence of ability to take initiative, make informed decisions and take responsibility for them. Proven ability to operate independently, prioritise and organise own workload. Knowledge, understanding and commitment to principles of Equal Employment Opportunity & Occupational Health & Safety.

27. Helpful Hints • Do not say anything that is untrue or which you cannot substantiate in your CV. • In your Criteria, focus on your actions and their results. • Support your claims with clear, relevant examples of your past conduct in situations • If you can, use examples linked to the duties in the job description.