Job Hunting and Careers

[mindlessness]

Thought it might be fun to start a thread for anyone job searching or thinking about a career change.

I am curious what resources for CV and cover letter writing others have found helpful online? I’m trying to finesse mine at the moment and find selling myself in cover letters super hard. It doesn’t come naturally to me!

Anyone else unemployed or looking to change jobs? Considering a career change post-COVID? Going back to university to retrain? returning to work after kids?

Also please share any funny or awful job hunting and interview stories!

 

[BettyCrockerr]

Thought it might be fun to start a thread for anyone job searching or thinking about a career change.

I am curious what resources for CV and cover letter writing others have found helpful online? I’m trying to finesse mine at the moment and find selling myself in cover letters super hard. It doesn’t come naturally to me!

Anyone else unemployed or looking to change jobs? Considering a career change post-COVID? Going back to university to retrain? returning to work after kids?

Also please share any funny or awful job hunting and interview stories!

.Tailor your cover letter and your CV to each individual job you are applying for - don’t send out genetic copies of either.

-keep all information in both but only highlight/expand on relevant points, so don’t go into detail about jobs/qualifications that are unrelated to the job you are applying for

-don’t put your DOB or a photo on your CV

-back up what you are saying in your CV with examples - if you say you have knowledge or experience in something you need to provide a clear example or where or how to demonstrate it

- don’t waffle. Keep the CL to a couple of concise paragraphs and keep the CV to an a4 page

- when constructing a CL, use the job description of the job you are applying for to guide you. If they say they are looking for a certain skill or qualification then clearly state that you have that and give an example to prove it.

- avoid using generic/boring/over used statements like “I’m a good team player/I’m confident in working alone or part of a team” - it sounds naff and there will be thousands of other cover letters that say exactly the same thing! It gets boring to read.

 

[Traazers]

I'm in recruitment and the main thing I'd say is make sure you're talking about your CV (and cover letter for that matter) just a list of tasks you did rather than achievements and things that make you stand out from the other people with a similar CV. Also with the cover letter, make sure you're speaking specifically about a role - as in "my experience of doing XXXX will help you because I can do XXX for you".

 

[rlouisep9]

I hate writing cover letters but the main thing is tailoring it to the job specifically, it's quite obvious when reading them if the same one has gone to multiple companies!

I usually get the job description and person specs and make sure I pretty much have a sentence or mention somewhere everything listed on them, then tick them off to check it's all covered.

Then I usually add in a little bit of personality as to why I am applying for that role specifically e.g. looking to relocate to the area, particular interest in the product they sell etc.

I got a new job this time last year (literally handed in my notice on the day we went into lockdown last March and worked my notice at home ) and my now manager when offering me the job told me I was the only one that made my cover letter personal to the job and why I was so right for it. They interviewed 6 others for one role and the fact I made everything personal to the role and the company really helped me stand out