Cv For Interviews

Posts Tagged ‘Applying For A Job’

Are you looking for a new job or a new career?  If you are, your first step should be examining job listings.  When it comes to finding job listings, you have a number of different options.  For instance, you can use your local newspaper, the internet, or career counseling centers.  In a way, finding job listings is the easy part.  Actually getting the job that you want is the hard part.

When it comes to landing a job that you applied for, your interview will play an important part in whether or not you are hired.  If you are able to get a job interview for one of the jobs that you applied for, you are advised to proceed with caution.  Your actions or your responses during an interview can either make or break you.  To increase your chances of landing your dream job, or at least the one that you applied for, you will want to continue reading on, as some helpful tips are outlined below.

When going to a job interview, it is important that you are properly dressed.  You would actually be surprised to learn how many job applicants show up to a job interview in unattractive, unprofessional attire.  Even if you are just applying for a job as a cashier at one of your local supermarkets, you are still advised to dress professionally for a job interview.  Depending on the job you are applying for, a dress or a business suit may be called for; however, a simple pair of black pants and a white shirt is much better than a pair of jeans.

You are also advised to bring a couple of copies of your resume to your job interview.  This is something that many job applicants do not think to do, but it is actually a wise move.  Yes, you may have already submitted your resume to the employer giving you the interview, but it is important to remember that they probably received hundreds, if not thousands, of resumes.  It is not unheard of for resumes to get lost or misplaced.  Bringing along an extra copy of your resume shows that you are responsible and likely to always be prepared.  In addition to brining an extra resume for the interviewer, it is also advised that you bring a copy for yourself.  This will make reviewing your work history and education easier, as everyone would be on the same page.

During the interview, you will be asked a number of different questions by the interviewer.  One of the most common questions asked is about your strengths and your weaknesses.  One of the biggest mistakes that a job applicant makes is stating that they don’t have any weaknesses.  Everyone has at least one weakness or something that they wish that they could chance about themselves.  You will want to be honest and admit this.  Of course, you don’t want to go overboard.  What you will want to do is try and make your weakness a strength as well.

At the end of most interviews, most interviewers ask the interviewee, which would be you, if you have any questions. You are advised to ask questions.  In all honesty, even if you don’t have any questions to ask, you are advised to come up with some.  Many interviewers use the “do you have any questions,” as a ploy.  Many are turned off by interviewees who do not have any questions.  Some even associated it with not be interested in the job or the company.  Even if you ask about how the company got started or what the chances are for moving up the company ladder, you are advised to ask questions.  Of course, be careful with the questions that you do ask.  You don’t want to sound too pushy or overbearing.

At the end of your interview, it is extremely important that you shake the hand of your interviewer and thank them for the opportunity.  This is very important.  It is hard for some to imagine, but a simple thank you actually goes a long way nowadays, as it is hardly spoken anymore.  It is also advised that you send a thank you note the interviewer you met with.  This may not necessarily increase your chances of landing the job, but it will make you look professional.

By keeping the above mentioned tips in mind, you should be able to have a successful interview.  As a reminder, interviews are the most important part of landing a new job.

Creating a résumé or CV is central to the search for a job, but is something most of us hate doing.  Unfortunately, very few people are adept at presenting themselves in the best possible light and this can mean their application is rejected at the first hurdle.

One of the biggest mistakes most people make is sending out the same résumé for every application. It’s a big temptation – you’ve spent hours getting the details and layout just right, or perhaps you’ve paid a considerable amount of money to have someone write it professionally. The trouble is, each résumé needs to be tailored to the job in question, and it’s vital that you do this if you want to stand out from the crowd.

What does tailoring a résumé mean? It simply means writing it specifically for the post you are targeting. To do this you must recognise the keywords the employer will be looking for and relate them to your own experience. Keywords will be found in the job description and person specification, or in the job advertisement and on the company website. They describe the skills, qualifications and experience needed for the post. Keywords should stand out on your résumé – don’t forget that in the first round of the selection process, résumé s are usually only given a 20 second glance. So if the interviewer doesn’t see what he’s looking for, your résumé is destined for the shredder.

Here’s an example of targeting: let’s say you are a secretary who speaks several languages and can take shorthand in all of them, but are applying for a job in an office where only English and audio are used. Languages and shorthand, impressive as they are, would not be the most prominent skills on your résumé. Instead, you would focus on the skills required, which might be fast typing, advanced Excel or Powerpoint. Languages and shorthand would be mentioned briefly, perhaps under the heading “Additional Skills.”

Another common mistake, usually made by older applicants, is including their entire work and educational history. It’s usual (in the UK) for CVs to go back only 10 years in terms of work and if you have a degree, school qualifications can be omitted, unless specifically requested or relevant. Employers occasionally ask for a full CV, in which case you do have to include everything.

Choosing the wrong format can also condemn your résumé to the bin - different styles work best in specific situations. Many people stick to the chronological résumé, but this is not always the most appropriate. It works well if you have been steadily progressing up the ladder in a particular career, or if your most recent jobs are likely to impress the company you hope to work for.

A skills-based or functional résumé is great if you have gaps in your work history, as you can use it to highlight the fact that you have exactly the skills the employer is looking for. It’s also useful if you are moving to a new career or area of work and your work experience isn’t completely relevant.

A targeted résumé is aimed at a precise job or career, for example if you retrained as a teacher in your 30s or 40s and were applying for a teaching post, your work-related heading might be “Teaching Experience” and your main skills would all be relevant to teaching, for example using IT in the classroom and curriculum development. For soft skills, such as communication skills and team work, you would use examples from your teaching career.

You may need to have different styles of résumé for different applications. If we use the previous example of the secretary, she might have had a series of language related jobs and is now applying for linguist and non linguist posts. She could choose a chronological résumé for the language jobs and a functional résumé for the others.

To sum up, individualise every résumé for the job concerned, choose the most suitable format for the situation and remember: keywords must jump out at the reader in the first 20 seconds.

© Waller Jamison 2005

When you are applying for a job you should always include a resume cover letter along with your resume.  The cover letter serves a very important purpose in that it introduces you as well as your resume for your future (hopefully) employer’s consideration.  Crafting a good resume cover letter can be just as important as making a good resume because it gives you the opportunity not only to introduce yourself but also to provide some additional information to the potential employer that does not really belong on a resume.

A resume cover letter lets you state more than what you can put in your objective statement on the resume.  It lets you expound on why you are perfect for this job and why they MUST call you for an interview.  There are some guidelines when writing a resume cover letter.  You won’t want to ramble on and on, so consider a few of these suggestions.

To begin your resume cover letter, refer to how you found out about the job you are applying for.  If you saw an ad in the newspaper, be sure to underline the name of the newspaper (grammatical rules count!)  Tell the employer that you are enclosing your resume for their consideration (even though it is a given!) and then go on to make additional statements about yourself.

Now, my problem with the resume cover letter is that I make mine way too long.  I have a lot to say, and I’m a writer (obviously) so I tend to ramble in my resume cover letters.  DO NOT DO THIS!  The purpose of a resume cover letter is simply to introduce yourself and to let the prospective employer know that you are totally interested in this job and you are so qualified it isn’t even funny!

In a nutshell, be brief in your resume cover letter.  State where you saw the ad, give a little information about yourself and what the employer can expect to find in your resume.  The resume cover letter is sort of an extended version of the objective statement you made on your resume.  You will, however, want to make it creative as well.  Get their attention and then compel them to look at your resume as they realize that they want to meet you for a personal interview.

The most important part about the resume cover letter is to end it with several ways to get in touch with you.  I like to use a simple statement like “I can be reached or a message may be left at (555) 555-5555”.  Then I sit back and wait for my phone call for the interview!

There are a few things that you need to do in order to land your dream job and that requires you write a compelling cover letter and write a professional resume.  You do not necessarily need to hire someone to write a cover letter and resume for you when applying for a job.  Of course, if you have money to throw around, by all means, do so!  But you can write your own cover letter and write a professional resume with just a little bit of research and some creativity!

Your cover letter should introduce you and your resume.  It should compel the prospective employer to want to move on to your resume and realize that you are the right person for the job.  Of course, your resume needs to be up to par as well!  You should take a moment to look at all available resources you have available both online as well as in book form.  There are plenty of places where you can find examples of great cover letters and resumes that will make you stand out from the competition.

There are people who make a business out of making a cover letter and write a professional resume.  If you have the money to utilize their services, by all means, do so.  They have the experience and the know-how to make you look your very best on paper and could be well worth the money.  But not everyone has the luxury of paying for something that they can really do themselves.  If you can write a cover letter, you can write a professional resume.

The cover letter should introduce you and your resume.  It should give any additional information that you are not able to include on your resume.  These things could be about your personality, your passion for the job, your qualifications, and your education.  Then, when the personnel director looks at your resume, he should have the feeling that you are a true professional who can not only adequately do the job, but excel at the job and be a real asset to the company.

In order to get to that all important interview, you need to write a great cover letter and write a professional resume.  Be sure that both documents accurately reflect you, your abilities, your desires in the business world, and where you want to eventually end up.  Be professional in all of the wording, but make your cover letter and write a professional resume that compels the person reading it to want to meet you in person.  Then, you can concentrate on getting the job!

If you are trying to find a new job that is out of the realm of what you are used to, you may want to look for a free printable resume that you can take and alter with your own information.  These types of files are like resume templates that you can download to your computer’s hard drive and then change to reflect your own experience, education, and skills.

You can find a lot of free printable resumes when you take the time to look for them.  The thing about a free printable resume is that you will have to revise it so that it reflects your own education and experience.  You do not want to send out a generic template that has information on it that is not your own!  But then, that should be an obvious statement, shouldn’t it?

The thing about a free printable resume is that you can use it as a guideline to make your own resume.  All you have to do is change the information that is already included and then you are ready to go.  Applying for a job is not the easiest thing to do.  Having a resume that really reflects your talents and abilities can make the difference between getting an interview and not getting an interview.

When you are trying to find a job, one of the best tools you can have at your disposal is a free printable resume.  Not everyone is savvy at putting together a resume that will get the attention of a personnel manager.  When you have a sample resume to look at, you can get a head start on the competition because you have the expertise of a professional who has taken the time to put a free printable resume on the Internet for you to use.

It can be confusing when you are trying to apply for a job.  Your resume says a lot about you, who you are, and what you are capable of doing.  When you have a free printable resume to refer to, your chances of getting that all important interview are truly increased.  After all, the real final objective is that you get the job, right?  So take advantage of the tools that are out there and then use them to your advantage.

Having a free printable resume is just start in your job search, but it could be the best start you ever had.  Once you have something to refer to, you can rest assured that you will be able to shine in your interview that is sure to come.  After that, you are on your own!