Powerful Cover Letters
As an instructor, how do you help students to develop powerful, engaging, and professional resumes and cover letters?
I have my students develop a "Job Action Plan", in this plan we get into the hard and soft skills needed to complete their job search. We look at some of the things that in the past have kept them from getting the job that they really wanted from the beginning. I also have employers come in and complete mock interviews, look over resumes and cover letters. The students have taken very well to the input provided. I have definitely had an increase in job placement for my program this 2013-2014 school year.
Samples are a good way to convey the message of what a good cover letter should look like. Also, if a student finds one they can relate to it make composing a cover letter less intimidating.
Cornelia,
Yes, I agree that it really helps to have them consider what kinds of skills they developed even in jobs and activities not directly related to their chosen field--recognizing how many transferable skills they have can really boost confidence.
Elizabeth Kemler
Giving students opportunities to think about their various experiences and skills (generated in the resume activities)helps them see their relevant experiences, thus have a basis for what they will describe in their letters.
Examples are also helpful. I like to distribute anonymous, poorly written/poorly formatted letters and let the students discover mistakes on the letter. They seem to find mistakes and dislikes on these letters fairly quickly. To a degree, it awakens them on what not to do.
Viola,
I like your idea of "branding" as that's a concept modern day students 'get' and can get excited about doing for themselves. Also treating the cover letter and resume as a single unit of sorts makes good sense--being sure that they are sending a consistent message about who the candidate is.
Elizabeth Kemler
In addition to the students seeing examples of good and bad resumes and cover letters, I focus them on the concept that their materials need to be job focused using key words.
I also think it's important for the students to know who they are and where their strengths lie. We work on "branding" and creating a cohesive resume and letter.
Susana,
I'm glad to hear that!
Elizabeth Kemler
The cover letter information was very helpful.
Christina,
What kinds of exercises do you do with your students to help them create strong resumes?
Elizabeth Kemler
By continuing to reaffirm the importance of the resume and also encouraging the use of technical resources when creating an effective resume for the job.
Missy,
This is a great approach; it helps to go through as many samples as possible and then let that inform your own version.
Elizabeth Kemler
I give a ton of examples of everything from cover letters, resumes, references and even letterheads. And I have them refer to google and obtain even more samples. I discourage them from using templates, I prefer that they start from scratch sometimes templates look so unprofessional and students can not always fit in them what they need to.
Theresa,
This sounds like a good order and process--I recommend the very same one.
Elizabeth Kemler
At our school, we first introduce the resume, then cover letter, reference sheet and thank you letter. Finally we do a mock interview with the student and then then a graduation pkg to get good contact numbers and addresses to stay in touch.
Arturo,
I've found that it helps to show students examples of poorly done resumes as well and dissect them so they can see exactly what doesn't work.
Elizabeth Kemler
I show them good examples of strongly constructed resumes.
Sharon,
I really like your approach; the research is invaluable as it shows that the student is interested not just in any job, but a job with this particular company. I am also a big fan of thank you letters; even if the student doesn't land the job at that time, it leaves a good impression which could be helpful if they ever choose to reapply.
Elizabeth Kemler
I have samples (the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly) that are distributed to students for future reference. I always encourage them to research employers since this will likely give them an edge in an interview. I also promote thank you letters since it demonstrates a professional applicant and might tip the scales one way or another if there are two top candidates for a position. And, of course, to have another set of eyes review resumes and cover letters for typos, etc. Some students don't order their employment history starting with the most recent position.
Thacha,
This is an interesting approach--to edit the resume and cover letter through a mock interview. How does it generally work?
Elizabeth Kemler
