COMM 202Tutorial 5: Resumes & Cover Letter

Peer Review

Minyoung HwangT27 & T34

Lecture: LinkedIn & Networking

Due: Resumes & Cover Letters on Turnitin AND COOL on Tuesday March 7 at 2PM

Course Outline

Week 7 Week 8 Week 9

Tutorial: Resume & Cover Letter Peer Review

Due: 2 Copies of Resume Draft, Cover Letter Draft and Job Posting

Reading Week!

You Should: Update Docs With Peer Review Feedback

Today’s Agenda

TA Feedback1

Resume & Cover Letter Peer Review

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What’s Next3

What should Istop, start and continue?

Remember…No resume or cover

letter is perfect.

Time for some swappity swapping!

Instructions

1. Write down your name on ALL documents & make sure they’re attached.

2. Put all documents in the middle of the table.3. Swappity swap!4. Get those pens out - this is your chance to pretend you’re

Minyoung.5. Grab the real Minyoung if you have any questions.

First up,cover letters!

Grab a set!!!

Cover Letter Formatting

● Left aligned (NOT justified)● No indents on paragraphs ● Bullet points vs. paragraphs ● 2-3 relevant skills● Consistent font size (minimum size 10)● Appropriate font● Margin sizes● Spacing between paragraphs● White space● One page

Addressing the Cover LetterDate

Contact Name Title Company Address 1 City, Province Postal Code

Re: Position Title (reference number if given)

Dear [First name Last name], or Dear Hiring Manager/Committee,

Addressing the Cover Letter - Examples

Unknown Person Specific Person

Ending the Cover Letter

Sincerely, / Regards, / Best,

(Written signature if you want)

Your nameBCom Candidate 20XXSauder School of Business

Enclosed or Attached*: Resume

* Enclosed: physical copy* Attached: electronic copy

Opening: What to Include

● Expresses very keen genuine interest and/or passion for position

● Makes a clear expression of the skills/experience matching the job description

● Integrates genuine and unique primary or secondary research indicating interest in firm

● Name drop (when applicable)● HOOK

RememberCAN-WANT-FIT!

Opening: Branding

● Provides strong, insightful research that demonstrates knowledge and interest in the industry or organization

● Clearly illustrates how the candidate will “fit” into the industry or organization

“I want to belong to Devon Canada because its mantra “be a good neighbor” aligns with my goal of building relationships to enrich the area where I work and live. This desire, along with the skills I have gained from my previous work experiences in the Calgary energy industry, will allow me to make valuable contributions to Devon Canada’s initiatives.”

Skills Matching● Describes specific skills that are clearly

matched to the job description, referencing specific examples that leverage experiences and qualifications

● Experiences highlighted are specific and concise linking past experiences through transferable skills

● Results show success or strength in past experiences

● STARL format – emphasizes actions and creating links where applicable

● Emphasizing individual action in team experiences

SHOW the employer, don’t

tell them!

Link: why should the employer

care?

Skills Matching: Link Example

“I spent this past summer at Total E&P Canada, where I compiled and calculated information for numerous government payment and application documents. I had to prioritize my tasks and organize my progress as I updated versions of multiple documents, and was constantly in correspondence with external auditors and other departments. At Devon Canada, the accounting department faces numerous deadlines and supports a variety of different parties. My ability to efficiently manage multiple projects will be vital to my success.”

Closing

● Very clear reference to specific skillsInterest and request for meeting aka “call to action”

● Graciously thanks the employer for their consideration

● Ties back to hook/intro● Demonstrates branding

RememberCAN-WANT-FIT!

Next up,Resumes!

Move documents to the next table!!!

Resume Formatting● Titles formatted the same● Spacing is consistent● Margins are reasonable (≥1.5cm)● Phrases either ALL end in period or not● Dates

○ Usually right-aligned○ All have month and year, or just year○ All months are abbreviated to same # of

letters● Uses hyphens (–) OR dashes (-)● Font size is 10-12 and generally no more

than two types of font● Numbers under 10 spelled out (i.e. two vs. 2)● Bullets: same size/style, aligned● One to two pages

Resume FormattingHeader● Name is preferred name with (given name)

in brackets● Phone and address are included● LinkedIn URL is personalized

General● No personal pronouns (I, we, he, she)● Reasonable amount of white space – is it

easy to read?● Experiences listed in reverse chronological

order by start date

Profile● No more than 5 lines for key competencies (4 for profile)● Can include languages● Does it clearly and convincingly summarize strengths/experiences/skills?● Does it match the job posting (multiple references)?● Does it provide a clear, convincing link to the rest of the resume (i.e. is

there PROOF elsewhere in the document?)

Education● Does it clearly summarize education experiences (i.e. including academic

projects / relevant courses / grades / awards)?● Is there any ambiguity with respect to the info provided?● Does it match the job description?

Education

● Bachelor of Commerce, not BCOMM or B.Comm● Start with the degree● List expected date of completion (either as “Completion: …” or “Expected

Completion: ...”)● No laundry lists of courses: only specific, relevant courses● GPA – score/%/letter grade, indicating the school scale● Key/relevant projects and awards: write in accomplishment statement form

Work Experience● Reverse chronological order by start date● You can include explanation sentences of companies/experiences if

necessary ● Eliminate filler words● Written in third person● Keep it to one sentence (2 lines is best)● The elements of the RATS statement should be apparent (but not

necessarily in RATS order)

Work Experience

● Are experiences achievement based?● Do numbers clearly quantify achievements where appropriate?● Do statements have Accomplishment, Proof, Transferrable skills, and

Scope of Action?● Are the result verbs varied and strong?● Does language indicate familiarity with industry/company? Does it match

the job description?

Accomplishment StatementsRemoved ambiguity from taxation budget by correctly coding over 250 invoices, through the research of taxation legislation and analysis of archived invoices for the cost control department’s budget report

Qualitative:Reduced stress among new BCom students by providing academic support and mentorship, through the creation of individualized exam preparation schedules during one-on-one coaching sessions.

Quantitative: Doubled previous year’s number of appointments with new BCom students by creating individualized exam preparation schedules and building authentic, trust-based relationships during one-on-one coaching sessions

Interests● Do the interests show personality? Are they specific? Are they relevant to

the job (not always necessary)?● Do they differentiate the candidate? Are they memorable?● Be fun! And appropriate

Branding

● Personal qualifications are well tailored to requirements of job (clear 60-70% match)

● Multiple words from job description are included in resume (5+)

● Interests section show personality and relevant specific interests

RememberCAN-WANT-FIT!

Consistency Between Resume & CL

Are headers the same?

Are margins the same?

Font style and size?

Done! Grab your documents after class!But first, let’s wrap up!

Watch For Errors

Too many errors:-20% per document

How to Have a Killer Resume & Cover Letter

1 Ask friends for feedback.

2 Sign up for office hours.

3 Edit your documents multiple times.

What’s Coming UpSign up for office hours and/or career peer advising and/or BCC coaching appointments (available on COOL) & work on your documents over reading breakBook off the evening of Thursday March 9th for the202 networking event

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Remember it’s lecture week after reading break - your LinkedIn profile assignment is due before your lecture time (assignment details on the course blog)

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HAVE AWONDERFUL

READINGWEEK!