October 27th 2017 Natiqa Babar

1. COMM 202:
Career Fundamentals
T18 & T19 with Natiqa Babar
Tutorial 4: Cover Letter Peer Review

2. AGENDA
1. Course Timeline
2. Resumes and Branding
3. Cover Letter & Resume
Peer Review
4. TA Feedback
5. Action Items

3. Turn to your
neighbour and
share a WIN!

4. Tutorial: Resume
&
Cover Letter
Due: Resume and
CL Draft in this
Tutorial
Tutorial: Event
Networking/
Informational
Interview
Due: Resume & CL
on 31st Oct @
1.59PM
Networking Event
Nov 2nd (6-8PM)
CPA Hall
Tutorial:
Networking
follow-up,
Interview stream
Due: Networking
Reflection by
Nov 7th @ 11.59
PM on Turnitin
WEEK 8 WEEK 9 WEEK 10

5. RESUMES & BRANDING

6. Accomplishment Statements
[RATS format]
Employers don’t want to read your story on your
resume, they want to read your accomplishments
So flip it!

7. From STAR to RATS

8. Results
(Skill Verbs)
ATTAINED
EXCEEDED
ELIMINATED
INCREASED
DECREASED
MAXIMIZED
MINIMIZED
REDUCED
SAVED
SURPASSED
IMPROVED
CREATED
GENERATED
ENHANCED
OPTIMIZED
ESTABLISHED

9. Cover Letter & Resume PEER REVIEW

10. 1. Write your name on ALL
documents – make sure your
documents are attached
1. Put all documents in a pile in the
middle of the table
2. Trade to the person on your left
when a new section starts
1. Get out your marking utensils!
INSTRUCTIONS

11. Formatting & Consistency

12. be consistent
font size, font style,
spacing, bullet points,
alignment, punctuation,
date & abbreviation
format, hyphens vs
dashes
first impression
pick a colour scheme
(if you don’t want black-
and-white, which is also
fine) and use white space
wisely; be concise with
your resume page count
third person
always speak in third
person and maintain a
professional tone; no
slang or personal
pronouns (he, she, we, I)
proofread
no grammar mistakes,
typos, spelling errors -
proofread then proofread
again
Formatting

13. Are the Resume and CL consistent?
Header? Margins? Font?

14. Resumes
Trade Documents!

15. Resume formatting
• Titles formatted the same
• Spacing is consistent
• Margins are reasonable (≥1.5cm)
• Phrases either ALL end in period or not
• Dates
• Usually right-aligned
• All have month and year, or just year
• All months are abbreviated to same # of letters
• Uses hyphens (–) OR dashes (-)
• Font:
• Size is 10
• Generally no more than two types of font
• Numbers under 10 spelled out (i.e. two vs. 2)
• Bullets: same size/style, aligned
• One to two pages

16. Header and general
• Name is preferred name with (given
name) in brackets
• Phone and address are included
• LinkedIn URL is personalized
• No personal pronouns (I, we, he, she)
• Reasonable amount of white space – is it
easy to read?
• Experiences listed in reverse
chronological order by start date

17. Profile
• No more than 5 lines for key competencies (4 for profile)
• Can include languages
• Does it clearly and convincingly summarize
strengths/experiences/skills?
• Does it match the job posting (multiple references)?
• Does it provide a clear, convincing link to the rest of the resume (i.e. is
there PROOF elsewhere in the document?)

18. Education
• Bachelor of Commerce not BCOMM or B.Comm
• Start with the degree
• List expected date of completion (either as “Completion: …” or “Expected
Completion: ...”)
• No laundry lists of courses: only specific, relevant courses
• GPA – score/%/letter grade, indicating the school scale
• Key/relevant projects and awards: write in accomplishment statement form

19. Work experience
Are experiences achievement based?
Do numbers clearly quantify achievements where appropriate?
Do statements have Accomplishment, Proof, Transferrable skills, and
Scope of Action?
Are the result verbs varied and strong?
Does language indicate familiarity with industry/company? Does it
match the job description?

20. Work experience
• Reverse chronological order by start date
• You can include explanation sentences of companies/experiences
if necessary
• Eliminate filler words
• Written in third person
• Keep it to one sentence (2 lines is best)
• The elements of the RATS statement should be apparent (but not
necessarily in RATS order)

21. Interests
• Do the interests show personality? Are they specific? Are they
relevant to the job (not always necessary)?
• Do they differentiate the candidate? Are they memorable?
• Be fun! And appropriate
*NOTE for the candidate: Be able to speak about these interests
extensively!

22. Header
-Name
-Phone
-Email
-LinkedIn URL
Profile
-5 lines of key
competencies
-Summarize
strengths/
experiences/ skills
-Match job posting
Education
-Reverse
Chronological
Order
-Start with degree
-Include Grades/
Awards
Experience
-Reverse
Chronological
Order
-RATS formation
-Achievement
Based Statements
Resume Checklist
Interests
-Specific
-Differentiate
yourself
-Reflect your
personality

23. Cover Letters
Trade documents!

24. CL formatting
• Left aligned (NOT justified)
• No indents on paragraphs
• Bullet points vs. paragraphs
• 2-3 relevant skills
• Consistent font size (minimum size 10)
• Appropriate font
• Margin sizes
• Spacing between paragraphs
• White space
• One page

25. Addressing the cover letter
Date
Contact Name
Title
Company
Address 1
City, Province Postal Code
Re: Position Title (reference number if given)
Dear [First name Last name],
or Dear Hiring Manager/Committee,

26. Addressing examples
Unknown person Specific person
Use sex and marital status only if
known

27. Cover Letter Content
Opening
-How is the hook?
-Interest/passion for the
position?
-skills/experience
matching the job
posting?
-is primary or secondary
research integrated
-Name drop?
Body
-Skills to match the
position?
- STARL format?
-Are there examples –
specific & concise?
-Transferrable skills?
-Do results show
strengths or success?
Closing
-Are skills reiterated?
-Is sincere interest
expressed?
-Thank you & call to
action
-Tie back to intro
Proofread
no grammar mistakes,
typos, spelling errors -
proofread then proofread
again

28. Ending formatting
Sincerely, / Regards, / Best,
(Written signature if you want)
Your name
BCom Candidate 20XX
Sauder School of Business
Enclosed or Attached*: Resume
* Enclosed: physical copy
* Attached: electronic copy

29. What counts as an error?
Spelling &
Grammar
InconsistencyIncorrect order
of Information
Improper
Formatting
Incorrect
Information
Missing
Information

30. Please give me
some feedback!
What should I
STOP/ CONTINUE/
START?

31. Action Items
• Sign up for office hours
• Networking event: Thursday, Nov 2nd from 6-8pm
• Resume & CL due 31st Oct @ 1.59PM on Turnitin
• CL tool-kit on MyBCOM
* TUTORIAL next week

32. QUESTIONS?

33. Have a great
week everyone!