Websites for Jobs

Websites for Internships
and Jobs

http://www.byu.edu/intern

http://byu.erecruiting.com

http://www.careerbuilder.com personal agent checks database for applicant job matches

http://www.flipdog.com the flipdog website

http://www.monster.com Monster Board for job openings

http://www.hotjobs.com

http://www.nationjob.com

A cover letter is an excellent way to provide

Cover Letters

A cover letter is an excellent way to provide pertinent information that is not available on your resume. However, if the letter only announces your resume and does not add new information, don’t send a cover letter.

Outline for Cover Letter

We recommends that you attach a well written cover letter to your resume, even though an on-campus recruiter may not request it. This is a good way to draw attention to the main story — you

Date

Name
Title
COMPANY (all caps adds nice contrast)
Address
City, ST ZIP

Salutation:

Explain why you are writing the letter. Capture the employer’s attention by focusing on the company rather than yourself. Explain why you are interested in the company. Mention a personal interest you have in the company, a common acquaintance, or contacts you have who are employees of the company. Another approach is to research the company and mention something you read about the company or industry that is exciting to you.

In this paragraph explain why the company would be interested in you — what you have to offer/what you can bring to the company. The information should expand on your resume and bring it to life. Bullet your strengths and accomplishments, quantifying as much as possible. Point out any experience or background you have that relates to the particular industry of the company.

Be aggressive in you closing, mentioning a plan for further action (call, contact, letter, visit), and then follow-through.

Sincerely,

Your Name

Your name
Address
City, ST ZIP
Phone number

Enclosure

Thank-You Letters

A thank-you letter is essential to keeping your options open. Write thank you notes to each person who has interviewed you within 48 hours of the interview. This small detail may make the difference between you and other applicants. A handwritten personal letter is also appropriate.

Thank You Letter Outline

Date

Name
Title
COMPANY
Address
City ST ZIP

Salutation:

Express thanks for the opportunity of meeting with the recruiter and for the courtesy extended. Mention the specifics of the interview — position, date, and place. Mention something positive about the interviewer.

Next, emphasize your interest in the company and the job. Reiterate what you learned in the interview about the skills and experience the company values most and how your background fits. Bring out any qualifications or accomplishments not covered in the interview.

Refer to issues discussed in the interview.

This last paragraph should be positive and suggest further action, such as your availability for follow-up interviews.

Sincerely,

Sign

Your name
Address
City ST ZIP
Phone number

Enclosure

Suggestions

When writing cover or thank you letters, refer to the examples on the following pages and keep the following tips in mind:

• Be concise — limit the body of your letter to approximately three paragraphs.
• Left justification is recommended over full justification (margins lined up on both sides) because it is easier to read.
• Quantify and qualify whenever feasible.
• Always address your letter to a specific person. If no person is available, address letter as Dear Department + Position. (i.e. Dear Human Resources Director:)
• Center the letter vertically on the page.
• Provide ample margins and white space.
• Avoid starting the letter and every paragraph with the word “I.”
• Use perfect grammar and spelling.
• Have a friend proofread for you.
• Convey a personal warmth that is missing from the resume.
• Use action verbs instead of flowery phrases to describe yourself.
• Emphasize your functional skills.
• Be bold, convincing, and assertive.
• Use bond paper and a laser printer for a professional look.
• Don’t forget to sign the letter!

Resume Format

NAME

Street address, City, State ZIP Code ,Phone No

 

OBJECTIVE Type of wok, type of company, skills, long-term expectations

EDUCATION Degree, University, College, City, State (2 SPACES) Year

Emphasis:
Honors:

Degree, University, College, City, State (2 SPACES) Year

EXPERIENCEJob Title, Company, Location (2 SPACES) Years (Group together multiple jobs at one company)

Bullet accomplishments, beginning each with an action verb

Job Title, Company, Location (2 SPACES) Years (Group together multiple jobs at one company)

Bullet accomplishments, beginning each with an action verb

(MISSION)

Voluntary Representative, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
country or state, Years

Bullet activities showing transferable business or leadership skills

SKILLS

(Languages) Speak, read and write conversational German (list mode, fluency and languages)

  (Computers)

List programs, languages and/or types of systems

ACTIVITIES & MEMBERSHIPS

Put in order of importance with the most important first

INTERESTS

(Not so many that it looks like you don’t have time to work)

PERSONAL

Willing to relocate (add this one only if you really are willing to move)

Action Verbs

abolished accomplished acquainted acted adapted addressed administered advanced allocated analyzed anticipated applied arranged assembled assisted audited authorized automated bargained broadened built centralized coached collaborated collected communicated compiled completed conceived conducted configured consolidated constructed consulted controlled coordinated corrected counseled created decentralized defined designed determined

developed devised directed discovered disseminated distributed documented doubled eliminated employed engineered established evaluated examined exceeded executed exercised expanded expedited extended facilitated forecasted formulated fostered generated hired implemented improved increased influenced initiated installed instituted instructed integrated interacted interviewed introduced investigated justified launched led liquidated

located maintained managed minimized mobilized modified monitored motivated negotiated organized originated overcame overhauled performed persisted persuaded pinpointed prepared presented presided processed produced programmed projected promoted proposed provided quantified raised received recommended reconciled rectified redesigned reestablished regulated reorganized represented researched resolved restructured revised revived

selected shaped simplified solved specialized sponsored standardized stimulated streamlined strengthened structured supervised supported surpassed systematized tailored taught tested trained transacted transferred transformed translated trimmed tripled uncovered updated utilized verified vitalized widened

 

 

 

A resume is a marketing tool

A resume is a marketing tool. It should portray your unique qualifications, help you stand out from other candidates, and make an employer want to meet you in person. It is your advertisement to help you obtain an interview.

FormatOrganize your education and experience in such a way that it is quickly accessible and enables the reader to draw clear conclusions. It should be arranged logically and attractively and be absolutely free of misspellings. A chronological format is usually favored unless you are changing fields, in which case a functional format may be more appropriate. Students should limit their resume to one page. Design it for skimmers, not readers. The most important items should be at the top. Be concise, but complete, and make statements parallel. If you have so much information that it will not fit on one page, cut it down or consider making an addendum. An addendum can provide greater detail, giving employers the option to read more details if they are interested. Resume Format Example

Objective Statement The objective should add to the resume information. If it doesn’t help to clarify or enhance, it should not be used. This statement may include the type of work desired, strengths and skills you want to use, and long-term expectations. It may also specify a type of business (such as multinational, technical, etc.). State your objective in terms of how you would like to contribute to the success of the company. Experience To determine which aspects of your experience to include, take time to brainstorm. Think about the following questions: What are key skills needed in the industry? What attributes does the company seek? How can you best articulate skills that you possess? Begin bulleted accomplishments with action verbs . Use all past tense verbs (preferred) or all present tense verbs, making sure all statements are parallel. Be positive. Stress transferable skills and capabilities. Quantify as often as possible. List tasks in order of importance. Only include those qualifications which are relevant to, and consistent with, the known requirements and circumstances of a specific employer. If you are short on experience in the area of your chosen occupation, list key classes you have taken, participation in group projects which apply, and comment on specific desires to further that which you have learned. Mission Experience Write out The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Mission experience may be included in work experience and can be identified as “volunteer representative” or “missionary.” Express your accomplishments in business terms. Specify number of people trained or supervised and the length of time of the leadership experience. Elements of a Good Resume Once you have clearly and concisely articulated your experience, organize your resume in a way that employers can easily follow. An employer’s first impression of a resume is based on appearance. Print on high quality white or neutral-tone bond paper. Use a variety of font sizes and features to enhance important parts. Italics, bolding, CAPITALIZATION, Small Caps and bullets draw the reader’s eye to areas of significance and add to the resume’s overall appearance. Bullet size should be appropriate for the type size. Underlining is discouraged because it obscures readability. Type size should be 11 or 12 point. “Lead with your ace.” Put the most important or pertinent information at the beginning of your resume–if the recruiters don’t see it right away, they may not bother to read the rest. Avoid using the pronoun “I” and any unnecessary articles, prepositions, conjunctions, or punctuation. Save the editorializing for the interview. Spelling and grammatical errors in a resume can be fatal to employment chances. When in doubt, use the dictionary. Accuracy and neatness are viewed as a projection of a job candidate’s qualities on paper. A sloppy, careless resume indicates a sloppy, careless employee. Have someone else proofread for you.

Common Errors to Avoid on Your Resume

Punctuation DO NOT USE PERIODS No “HANGING” commas (at end of line, leave comma if series continues on next line) NO Courier font. It makes your resume look like it was typed on a typewriter Numbers one through ten spelled out; numbers 11 and larger take numerals (one, two but 11 to 100) Millions or billions of dollars can be expressed as $20 million or $1 billion Spelling If you used UT in heading, use two-letter state abbreviations; if Utah in heading, spell out states’ names Master of _____ (no ‘s) or MBA and BS (not M.S. or B.S.) Marriott School The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints cum/ magna cum/ summa cum laude (italics, lower case) Computer Terminology BASIC FORTRAN COBOL (all caps) / PageMaker (capital M, no space) DataDesk (capital D, no space) / Pascal (upper/lower case) / Novell (two l’s) PowerPoint (capital P, no space) / iThink (small i, capital T) / WordPerfect (capital P, no space) / NetWare (capital W, no space) / Quattro Pro (two t’s, two words) / QuarkXPress (no spaces) Do you have little experience? Many of you may be wondering how you can entice prospective employers to look at your resume when you don’t have significant work experience or when you have experience in a field not related to your desired job preference. Take a look at some of the following suggestions. Maybe one or two will be helpful. Make your objective statement tell what you have to offer. For instance, if you do not have work experience in finance, or another desired occupation, include in your objective statement that you want a career where the state-of-the-art finance skills you have obtained, along with other skills, such as leadership, etc., can be utilized to build a lasting career with the company. Tell them what you have to offer, particularly if it isn’t shown elsewhere on the resume. If your resume does not show work experience in the area of your chosen occupation, do something to make it visible. Include transferable skills that you gained in previous jobs. You can list relevant classes you have taken and significant group projects which apply. Work hard to get an internship in the functional area of your choice, even if you have to volunteer and work for free during the summer or the coming school year. These efforts will pay worthwhile dividends. Tell the company how you will contribute to its success. Companies appreciate students who take the time to understand their market and its future.

The Ten Commandments For Job Interviews

The Ten Commandments

For Job Interviews

Your Chances of Finding a Job Are Vastly Increased

I. Go after small organizations with twenty or fewer employees, since they create 2/3 of all new jobs.

II. Hunt for interviews using the aid of friends and acquaintances, because a job-hunt requires eighty pairs of eyes and ears.

III. Do thorough homework on an organization before going there, using Informational Interviews plus the library.

IV. At any organization, identify who has the power to hire you there, for the position you want, and use your friends and acquaintances’ contacts, to get in to see that person.

V. Ask for just 20 minutes of their time, when asking for the appointment; and keep to your word.

VI. Go to the interview with your own agenda, your own questions and curiosities about whether or not this job fits you.

VII. Talk about yourself only if what you say offers some benefit to that organization, and their ‘problems.’

VIII. When answering a question of theirs, talk only between 20 seconds and 2 minutes, at any one time.

IX. Basically approach them as if you were a resource person, able to produce better work for that organization than any predecessor.

X. Always write a thank-you note the same evening of the interview, and mail it at the latest by the next morning.