Resumes and Cover letters

Writing cover letters can be extremely important today when it comes to applying to your desired job. In writing these, we can give you some tips that will give you an edge over those competing for your position.

First, It is important to write something that separates you from your peers in, whether it be a narrative that highlights an interesting event in your past that ties into your work experience, or having a humorous and playful tone in your writing. It is also in your best interests to keep your cover letters around a page’s length. Keeping it short and concise aligns it with today’s demands for speed and precision. This strategy is most effective for someone who has just graduated, having limited work experience.

If you already have around 5 years of experience, your cover letter should be longer, as it should highlight work experience you’ve had previously that could be beneficial to the new job you’re applying to. For example, an having found a new algorithm that reduced run time by 20% at a previous company will likely give you a higher chance at landing a job at Google or facebook. However, it is still very important to keep your cover letter concise (under 2 pages).

In applying for senior job positions, you should take a different approach. By now, you have probably had a plethora of experience, and in your cover letter, you will likely have diminished many of your accomplishments. Don't do this! Senior workers will benefit from longer cover letters which boast their many achievements. It could also be beneficial to explain your abilities and experiences in different sectors, as it is expected for those of higher positions to have competency in different areas.

Writing resumes is simular to writing cover letters, but they are usually written with paragraphs and bullet points. They cover your many additional achievements and areas of expertise you were unable to cover in your cover letter. In doing so, make sure every bullet point begins with an action verb!

Resume checklist-

Contact Information

Name(First and Last)

Address

Phone number

Email address is professional and contain legal name

Properly spaced, and centered

Professional Experience

Experiences includes concise descriptions of responsibilities and achievements

Each experience includes employer’s name and location

Experiences are either chronological or sorted by relevance of experience

Experiences listed are relatable, applicable or transferable in some way to position being applied to

After Graduation

Include College or High School

If you have a strong gpa, state so

List any honors received upon graduation

State degree earned

Additional Skills

Focus on skills related to the position being applied to

Include certifications or 3rd party training achievements

Exclude irrelevant personal information

Formatting

Ensure borders are even, text is all properly indented and the formatting retains throughout entire document

Recommended to have at least one numerical quantity in the resume.

Check for grammar errors

Example Cover Letter

HR Manager

Company Name

Company Address

Date

With great willingness, I am applying for the position of POSITION which was advertised on the (COMPANY NAME) website. I believe that my education, skill-set, and experience make me a suitable candidate for this vacancy.

I am a highly organized and self-driven individual, passionate about developing my career in the field of Accounting as a Corporate Banker. My commitment can be gauged from the fact that I am an accredited holder of a MBA degree with finance as specialization from Poloma College.

Possessing more than 5 years of experience of working in diverse financial positions with multiple companies, I have gained an extensive insight within this field. My key competencies include, but are not limited to, maintaining financial records, managing budgets, risk assessments and business strategy reviews.

In my current position with Langford Partnership where I work in the capacity of Financial Analyst, I am responsible for leading a team of 5 and carrying out a wide range of commercial processes. During the course of my career, I have gained a specialist’s understanding of financial instruments and accounting software and have also been effective in explaining complex information in a comprehensible manner.

As a Certified Public Accountant, I am an accomplished communicator, with excellent organizational, decision making, and time management skills and have a proven track record of consistently meeting and regularly surpassing demanding performance goals.

Proactive, innovative and highly influential, I am seeking a challenging but rewarding position, which is why I was naturally drawn to this exciting opportunity.

Yours sincerely,

Name

Address

T: Phone number

E: email address

Resume Example 1 (livecareer)

Resume Example 2 (University of Virginia)