For Students
Resume & Cover Letter
An employer's impression of your personality is through your cover letter. Tell the company what motivates you to contact them; and how your skills and experience match the job for which you are applying.
Your resume should complement, not duplicate, your cover letter. A powerful resume must have flow and consistency; and be delivered with visual appeal and easy access.
Cover Letter
Why is Cover Letter so important?
- Informs employer what position you want
- Convinces employer that you are qualified for it
- Highlights aspects of your skills and experiences that are useful to employer
- Your opportunity to "talk" to the employer; explains things that a resume cannot
- Allows employer to get a glimpse of your personality
- Attracts the employer's attention and motivates him to invite you for interview
How to write a cover letter?
First Paragraph
- State the position you are applying for - department/division
- How you came to know about it
- Tell a little bit about yourself
Second Paragraph
- Why you are interested in this company, this industry or this particular position
Third and Fourth Paragraph
- To tell employers what you can contribute; the abilities and capacities that you will use to carry the position's functions.
- Your academic achievements
- Your experience
- Your skills - leadership skills, interpersonal skills, communication skills, analytical skills, etc
Closing paragraph
- Ask for interview
- Indicate what is the best way to reach you and when is the best time
- End the letter on a forward-looking & upbeat note
Resume
Some key points to note
- What value can I offer the potential employer? - Employers don't care about your accomplishments per se -
they care about what you can do for them
- Employers spend only ten seconds looking at your resume - your information must be clear, concise, and focused
- Customize resume for every position - same facts should be re-crafted so that it meets employer's needs
- Include only information that contributes to your overall attractiveness as a candidate - omitting is not lying
Things to include in Your Resume:
- Your particulars
- Education
- Work Experience
- Co-curricular Activities (CCA)
- Voluntary Work
- IT Skills
- Languages
- Hobbies/Interests
Resume Tips:
- One or two pages at the most
- Do not write a title (we already know that it is a RESUME)
- Do not put a photograph which is not presentable - . examples are beach photos in skimpy attire & wind-blown hair, women with a "come- hither" sexy look, men dressed in T-shirts/ polo-shirts/ casual shirts
- White paper or very clear colour and good quality paragraphs
- Do not include the letter's date in your resume
- Use concise bullet-points instead of long and wordy sentences
- Avoid using too many decorative resources like fitting, colours or very expanded
- Be honest in the content, positive and sell the best things about you
- Structure the resume based on what you consider to be your strong points for that position: abilities and achievements first, or experience in several similar positions.
- Write in inverse chronological order the experience and achievements that you consider most relevant to the position you want to get
- Do not mention your salary expectations
- Do not list the names of referees in your resume
- Write well and have the spelling checked before sending your resume. Do not use abbreviations.
Resume & Cover Letter Templates
