As I mentioned in class, I want you to find a real job ad. Make a hard copy of the ad that you will turn in with your assignment. The job application letter and the résumé should be in response to the specific ad.

The Résumé

It’s easy to think that a résumé is little more than a laundry list of jobs you’ve held and other pertinent experiences you might have had. However, résumé formats keep changing. While potential employers still want to know what jobs you’ve held and what your educational background is, they also want to know what skills you bring to the job, and how those skills might fit into the position you’re applying for. As a result, résumés that emphasize skills tend to be more successful than those that emphasize past employment. While it may be impossible to keep a résumé to one page, it should be direct and to the point.

The Job Application Letter

The job application should work hand-in-hand with your résumé. Like the résumé, its purpose is not to get you a job, but to get you an interview. In the letter you should not just restate what a potential employer can already determine from your résumé. The letter is your chance to expand on some particulars that might be present in the résumé and show how they help you fit the specific position you’re applying for.

Remember

Since people get interviews, not jobs, from résumés and letters, the message behind your two documents should be, “You really need to talk to me about this job.”