ACADEMIC ENGLISH III

November 15, 2013

Today

Business writing: Job applications (continued)

Special Announcement

Date: Monday November 25 (2:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.)

Location: Graduate School Building (대학원 ) 4th floor auditorium and 2nd floor classrooms.

American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) Korea is bringing a special event to the KMU campus.

CEOs for several high-profile international companies will be giving special lecture and small-group/one-on-one mentoring sessions.

Special AnnouncementSome CEOs attending:

- Boeing

- DuPont Chemical

- Hewlett-Packard (HP)

- Delphi

- Intel

- Kim & Chang Law Firm

- Ford Motor Company

Several others.

Good

Bad

Résumé

- A résumé may be the most important document for your job search.

- It proves 3 things to potential employers:

1. Proves you are qualified

2. Proves you care about the job

3. Proves you understand the working world

Résumé - – What is it?- A résumé is a factual and concise summary of your

qualifications.

- A résumé shows prospective employers that you have the education and experience for the job you are applying for.

Think of it like a persuasive advertisement about yourself.

- It’s your billboard

Résumé - What employers like to see1. Honesty – no false is misrepresented information

2. Attractiveness – proper font and layout

3. Organization – proper format

4. Conciseness – brief, and to the point (descriptive)

5. Accuracy – error-free

6. Currency – all information should be up-to-date

7. Relevance – Information should be relevant to the position

Parts of a résumé - summaryNAME

Contact information

Career objective

Credentials (Education and Experience)

Related skills and Achievements

Computer skills

Honors/awards

References

Parts of a résumé

Contact information

Gwen Gao42 Lanark Street, Clayton, VIC 3168Ph: 010-6388-5030gwen.gao@email.com.au

Note: avoid unprofessional e-mail addresses

Cool_guy31@gmail.com princess13@naver.com

Parts of a résumé

Career objective

Create an objective that directly related to the position you have applied for.

Consider:

1. What kind of job am I Iooking for?

2. What kind of job am I qualified for?

3. What abilities do I have that match the position?

Parts of a résumé

Career objective

Avoid:

“I want to join a company.”

“Looking for high-paying job that brings personal satisfaction.”

Real-life example:

Objective: I want a base salary of $50-$60,000 dollars, not including bonus. And some decent benefits. Like a retirement plan, health insurance, personal or sick days.

Parts of a résumé

Career objective

Be focused:

Internship in marketing to apply the training earned through my education.

Regional sales representative using my proven skills in e-commerce and communication to develop and expand a company base.

Parts of a résumé

Credentials (Education & Experience)

- The order can vary.

- If you are a recent (or soon-to-be) graduate with little experience, list education first.

- Only include relevant items!

Balancing Education and ExperienceAny part-time work (paid, or not), vacation job, volunteer experience, or internship show an employer that you are responsible and knowledgeable.

i.e,. If you worked at GS 25, it shows that you can work with money and provide customer service and take responsibility for your own duties without supervision.

Parts of a résumé

Credentials - Education

- Begin with most recent education first, then list everything significant since high school.

Include:

Name(s) of school(s)

Dates attended

Degree/Diploma/Certificate earned.

- This includes relevant training courses or military training.

Parts of a résumé

Credentials - Education

IMPORANT: A résumé is NOT a transcript, though. Do not simply list all the courses you took.

- Instead, concentrate on describing the skills you learned.

Parts of a résumé

Credentials - Experience

- Begin with most recent position (reverse chronological order).

Include:

- Company name

- Location (city, province, country [if necessary])

- Your job title

- Dates of employment

Parts of a résumé

Credentials - Experience

- For each job, provide a short description (one or two lines) of your duties and achievements.

March 2010 – June 2012

Promotions Assistant, Promostaff

- Managed product research studies in supermarkets

- Collated results and highlighted critical feedback items.

- Promoted to team leader due to excellent feedback from clients.

Parts of a résumé

Credentials - Experience

- You may include any relevant volunteer work you have done.

- This may be especially important if you have no work experience.

- Describing your volunteer duties can demonstrate your previous responsibilities.

Parts of a résumé

Related skills and achievements

- Indicate any additional languages you speak or write, extensive travel, certificates or licenses, and memberships to professional organizations or community groups.

i.e., Language skills.

- English: Advanced (spoken and written)

How could I prove this on a résumé?

Parts of a résumé

Computer skills

- Knowledge of computer hardware, software, etc. is extremely valuable in the job market.

Parts of a résumé

Honors/awards

- Include only if they are relevant.

i.e.,

Community service awards

Academic awards

Parts of a résumé

References

- Usually, you state:

References available upon request.

Action-oriented language - ExamplesDuties at my last job:

I made the company website

Designed the company website.

I helped with lab reports

Assisted lab report composition.

I changed programs to suit each customer

Customized programs for customers.

Résumé language: “Action” wordsMade a website for the Daegu Animal Shelter.

Found workplace-related problems and made reports.

Gave advice to customers about products to purchase.

Took existing surveys and changed them for our customers.

Gave presentations about future projects

Made old procedures simpler

Was the leader of 4 other employees

Résumé language: “Action” words

Made a website for the Daegu Animal Shelter.

Designed a website for…

- Designed a website for the Daegu Animal Shelter.

Résumé language: “Action” words

Found workplace-related problems and made reports.

- Identified…and composed follow-up reports

-Analyzed

-Investigated

-- Identified workplace-related problems and composed reports.

Résumé language: “Action” words

Gave advice to customers about products to purchase.

- Advised customers about products.

Résumé language: “Action” words

Took existing surveys and changed them for our customers.

- Customized surveys and implemented them for customers

Résumé language: “Action” words

Gave presentations about future projects

-Presented about future projects

-- Prepared and performed presentations about future projects.

Résumé language: “Action” words

Made old procedures simpler

-Simplified

- Streamlined old procedures

Résumé language: “Action” words

Was the leader of 4 other employees

-Supervised 4 employees.

Fixing a bad (terrible) Résumé

Look at the résumé.

With your partner, identify as many problems as you can.

- Make notes on the paper.