Practical Tips

Your Resume

Your Cover Letter

The Job Interview

Conclusion

 

Your Resume: First Impressions Count

 

Your resume is both our first contact with you and your passport to securing an interview. It’s important to follow certain rules, while still expressing your own personality.

 

A few golden rules:

Your resume must be clear, legible and organized. Its goals are to:

• Provide basic information, such as name, address and contact information, mobility and availability.
• Summarize your educational background and professional experience, including internships, volunteer work and anything else of relevance.
• State your career goals.
• Summarize your skills and abilities, including languages and computer literacy.

 

Avoid these pitfalls:

• Providing too much or too little information.
• Using vocabulary that is too technical.

 

And follow these guidelines:

• Fit your resume onto one, A4-size page.
• Make it visually appealing: highlight section titles, organize it logically in terms of font and the way you present different kinds of information.
• Give the document a title.
• List information in reverse chronological order (starting with the most recent).
• Be concise in summarizing your assignments and achievements.

 

Your resume should be divided into five standard sections:

• Education & Training.
• Professional Experience, including internships.
• Technical and Specialized Skills, if any.
• Languages and Computer Literacy.
• Other, such as leisure and hobbies, association memberships and travel.

 

 

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Your Cover Letter: Showcase What You Have to Offer

 

Cover letters should not simply repeat the information in your resume or serve as a courtesy introduction. Designed to pique the interest of the recruiter, they can be a decisive factor in who is called in for an interview. Your cover letter must make it clear how your skills match the specific requirements of the position to be filled. Its goals are to:

• Demonstrate that your background is a good fit for the skills being sought.
• Create interest in reading your resume and scheduling an interview to find out more.
• Demonstrate your writing skills and ability to summarize information.

 

Avoid these pitfalls:

• Providing too much or too little information.
• Coming across as desperate to find a job or qualified for any and all positions. 
• Going into too much detail about your experiences and/or life.
• And, of course, spelling and grammar mistakes are an absolute no-no!

 

And follow these guidelines:

• 1 page maximum typed.
• Use a clean, uncluttered layout.
• Include your full name and contact information and that of your correspondent, the purpose of the letter, and the date.
• Position yourself as someone with valuable skills to offer.

 

Follow a standard cover letter format, namely: your name, address and contact information on the top left, the date two to six lines below, and the recipient’s name and address three to eight lines below.

 

The body of your cover letter should consist of three separate paragraphs:

• You: Rephrase the issues/challenges facing the company.
• Me: I can help you with them because (incentive to read your resume for more information).
• Us: So, let’s get together.End with a standard formal closing.

 

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The Job Interview: Know How to Stand Out

 

You’re there. You’ve been contacted for an interview and now it’s up to you to establish a relationship and convince the company you’re the one. Here’s how, by remembering a few simple but essential rules.

 

The purpose of a job interview is to:

• Provide more details about your career to date, giving reasons for the choices you’ve made.
• Describe your various achievements in more detail.
• Explain why the job and company interest you.
• State your career goals (for at least the next five years).
• Showcase your personality, values and beliefs.
• Gather information about the job, its environment and the company.

 

Avoid these pitfalls:

• Showing up in a bad mood, appearing stressed or dressing inappropriately.
• Failing to make eye contact with the interviewer or not listening to what he or she has to say.
• Losing your temper or falling apart when the recruiter pushes you.
• Lying about your mobility or language skills.
• “Getting caught up” in your prepared narrative and ignoring the recruiter’s questions.
• Showing an interest only in the job, but not in the company or its industry.
• Not doing your homework prior to the interview.

 

And follow these guidelines for a significant edge:

• Do your homework and learn about the company and position.
• Be able to summarize your career to date and your professional goals in a natural way.
• Speak slowly and not too loudly, enunciate and pause briefly after making major points.
• Be able to “wing it” and answer unexpected questions.
• Be ready with precise answers to questions about your work history.
• Be able to describe your career to date in English (for applicants in non-English-speaking countries).
• Be attentive, smiling and relaxed.
• Make eye contact with your interviewer.
• Listen, ask questions and take a few notes.
• Be honest about your skills, language fluency, mobility, etc.
• Be ready to describe your strengths and weaknesses. 
• Be prepared to describe a difficult situation and how you dealt with it.
• Don’t get flustered if the recruiter tries to throw you off guard—it’s part of the process.
• Be ready to state the salary you’re looking for, without hesitation or embarrassment.

 

 

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Conclusion

 

Landing the RIGHT job takes…

 

 

… and being able to:

 

 

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You’re ready to apply for our job opportunities.