Job Search for English Majors

DR. WILL KURLINKUS

Letters of Recommendation
Make sure you know and talk to the person you are requesting a letter

from: previous employers, teachers, other people you worked/volunteered

below.
In your request for a letter of recommendation, give the writer a list of
things you did together that they might write about. Be specific. Think
about tailoring these examples to your job ads hard and soft skills.
Bonus points if you can get a letter of recommendation from someone with
ties to the company you are applying for.
The example in the book is rather vagueyou should provide info about the
jobor at least type of jobyou are applying to, that way the writer can
tailor the letter to your job.
Flatter the recommendation writer.
Give them at least a month to write itremind them a week before it is due.
Give them a resume.

Online Job Sites

Indeed: www.indeed.com
Career Builder: www.careerbuilder.com
Monster: www.moster.com
After College: www.aftercollege.com
College Recruiter: www.collegerecruiter.com
College Grad: www.collegegrad.com
Monster College: www.college.moster.com

Analyzing a Job Ad
1.
2.
3.
4.
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6.
7.
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9.

Find a job ad
Determine the possibility of you getting this job
Determine what the problem this company is trying to solve by
hiring
Catalogue hard skills required
Catalogue soft skills required
Look for other buzzwords/keywords/search terms
Research the company: recent projects; ethos; pathos
Begin a list of how your prior experiences might be spun
towards the required skills and buzzwords
Locate the name and title of the person who you are applying to

Top 8 Rsum Tips

Build a picture of yourself doing the hard and soft skills from your
job ad.

1.

Dont use full sentences (no full sentences=no periods)

Start with bulleted active verbs that match key soft skills
Think transfer statements, what you can provide them
If you can add a number, add a number: show a result of your experience

.Bad: Gained experience in public speaking.

.Better: Presented at the Society of Petroleum Engineers Annual

Technical Conference.
.Best: Presented at 3 conferences, including an invited lecture on
reservoir evaluation at the Society of Petroleum Engineers Annual
Technical Conference.
.Active Verbs: http://career.opcd.wfu.edu

/files/2011/05/Action-Verbs-for- Resumes.pdf

Top 8 Rsum Tips

Scannability:
headings (sans
serif); numbers;
numerous vectors;
bullet points

2.

Create a visual
hierarchy using
fonts, italics, bullets,
and tabs.
2 fonts, 2 colors, 2
sizesmax
Think in terms of
two or three key
vectors: Job titles,
locations, dates,
employer, etc.

Top 8 Rsum Tips

3. Uniformity, consistency, and parallelism across

sections:

Parallelism in sentences: Managing the dental office budget

and approved supply requisitions (watch your verb tenses)
Uniformity of design: If youre going to italicize your position
title, italicize all of them. If youre going to align your dates of
employment eight spaces after your employer name, then
make sure to align all of your dates eight spaces after your
employer name.

.Fix this statement: The coach told the players that they
should get a lot of sleep, that they should not eat too much, and to
do some warm-up exercises before the game.

Top 8 Rsum Tips

4. Spin, spin, spin.
Lets play the spin game; Ill give you several common soft
skills. You write a sentence for each from your own personal
experience.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.

Leadership
Teamwork
Detail oriented
Ability to analyze
Flexibility
Innovation/Creativity
Independent worker

Top 8 Rsum Tips

5. Bye bye high school: What else should we leave out?
Irrelevant job experience: In the future, gaps in employment in
your resume might matter, but, for now, only include relevant
content.
False achievements: Belonging to a fraternity or sorority; playing
intermural sports; competing in a spelling bee; any hobby
Artificially elevated vocabulary
Terrible email addresses: sparklepony123@hotmail.com
References
Personal pronouns: Its assumed that you did these things
Random buzzwords: "go-getter," "think outside the box,"
"synergy," and "people pleaser
Anything negative: No need to explain low GPA, etc.

Top 8 Rsum Tips

6. Objective statement?
First reaction, no. Its a waste of space and old fashioned.
If you want to include one, make sure it is highly specific to the
job ad and shows how your ethos matches that of the
companys.
Include one if you are shifting fields radically and need to
explain how and why you are qualified.
Include an executive statement later in life if you have
numerous experiences across multiple fields that you want to
tie together coherently for the job your applying to.

Top 8 Rsum Tips

7. Templates?
. Search Pinterest
. http://www.buzzfeed.co

m/mallorymcinnis/hurr
y-hurry-hurry-get-yourresume-templateshere#.oeJXA061e
. Or using tables as
outlined in the readings
. How artsy is too artsy?

Top 8 Rsum Tips

8. Save as PDF and name

it firstname
lastname.pdf
.Make it
printable/photocopiable.
.Usually dont go below .
8 in margins or 11 font

Key Parts of a Rsum

1.
2.

3.
4.
5.
6.

Education: College only; grade point average?

Experience: Jobs, courses, internships, volunteering directly
related to the job ad. This is where you will be writing bullet
pointed sentences describing how you meet what they want.
Contact Info: Name, phone, email, address, and (if moving
soon) address in the future.
Skills and Abilities: Hard skills they want and/or might want.
Awards and Extras: Any relevant awards you won, clubs
youve been a part of, community service youve done.
Optional: Branding statement (like objective but specifically
geared toward what you can contribute to the company)