Lecture 06: Cover Letter and

Curriculum Vitae

Rowshonara Akter Akhi

Assistant Professor
Department of Finance & Banking
Jahangirnagar University
 Cover letter: All about
 Cover letter
o A self marketing tool that expresses your skills and
interest to create a match what employers do look for.
o Letter goes with the CV; but exception are there!
CV and resume are not the same!
o Added with CV but not necessarily repeat the CV
o Key factor whether to get called in interview or not!
 Resume and CV
 Resume and CV

o Resume is normally shorter than CV

In most cases this is of one page only

 To meet the particular situation

o CV is one’s course of life

Much longer; may be 4-8 pages for a PhD

Detailed description of one’s qualifications

 Use of CV other than job search
 Use of CV other than job search
o Awards, fellowships
o Publishing
o Grant applications
o Public speaking
o Consulting
o Leadership
o Merit/tenure review
o References
 Cover Letter: Why to write?
 Why to write cover letter?
 Because….
o It shows your personality which might be the very
first step
o Shows your interest
o Shows your skills; writing skills too!
o Match firm’s interest with your skill and prove your
worthiness
o And the salary question!
Cover Letter: Pre-writing & writing
 Pre-writing & writing

o Research

o Be personal
o Keep it simple

o Don’t repeat your CV

 Pre-writing & writing: Research
 Research

o Know about the company and personalize the

letter
o It proves that you belong to the company or
same society!
Does it help at all?
 Pre-writing & writing: Be personal
 Be personal
o Take the writing as your style
But be careful because employer will justify you by
your style. They don’t see you!
o Think that you are writing to a person, so establish
connection inside your writing
Don’t make the reader bored!!
o Write a specific letter for each job and for each
company
 Pre-writing & writing: Keep it simple
 Keep it simple
o Don’t need to show your expertise in English if
that bothers the reader
o Rather keep it simple so that it becomes easy
and simple to go through
o Don’t make more than four paragraphs in one
page
 You can keep it less considering the look!
 Pre-writing & writing: Don’t repeat
your CV
 Don’t repeat your CV

o Don’t repeat the contents that’s already in CV

o But don’t also forget to tell to see your CV

o Also mention why one should go through your

CV!
 Cover Letter: Do’s
 A list of DO’s

 Address the letter to a specific person

 Individualize each letter

 Refer to interest in a specific position

 Answer the question “why you?”

 Pay attention to details

 Cover Letter: Do’s
 A list of DO’s
o Close by describing your next step
o Avoid CV and cover letter templates
 Make one for your own!
o Be honest; don’t exaggerate
o Use the pad if you have one
o Use the same font in CV and cover letter
o Don’t fold the documents
o If use email, then send as attachments
 Cover Letter: Don’ts
 A list of Don’ts

“To Whom it May Concern”

Poor grammar, punctuation, or spelling

General, unsupported statements

 Incomplete contact information
 Cover Letter: Don’ts

 A list of Don’ts

o Handwritten letters

o Letters over 1 page in length

 General vs. Specific
 General
o “I have always had an interest in your products.
Furthermore, working for a fine company like yours
would be just what I am looking for.”
 Specific
o “There are two reasons for my interest in ABC
Company. First, I am convinced from my research
that your main product, the self-opening envelope,
will capture a large share of the stationery market.
Second, I am impressed by a recent article in KY
magazine that referred to your firm as one ‘destined
to grow straight into the 21st century.’ Since I want to
grow with an innovative company, ABC Company
would be a great place to build my career.”
 Curriculum Vitae (CV)
 Curriculum Vitae (CV)
o Another self marketing tool
o A CV is a personal summary of your
professional history and qualifications. It includes
information about your career goals, education,
work experience, activities, honors, and any
special skills you might have
o Every single time professionalism in writing CV
matters
o Remember on an average employers read a CV
for 20 seconds only!
 Writing CV
 Writing CV
 There is no common format of CV; also you
should not use any common format
o See different formats, learn and create one
different for you
o It can create a positive impression for you
o But don’t become so innovative which might be
quite strange
 Example? A music video where there are only
animation rather than video!
 Writing CV
 Writing CV
o Remember to select/create a format by which
you can describe your skills and other info at best
o When print, be careful about the quality of paper,
ink, and print; if needed first have a trial
o Don’t forget to add your cover letter
o 50% of the employer first look @ cover letter
and if they like it then go to the CV
 CV Strategies
 CV Strategies
o Who are you and how do you want to be
perceived?
o Language is important!
o Sell it…don’t tell it
o Consider categories carefully!
o Remember visual appeal matters
o Be confident
 CV Strategies: Who are you?
 Who are you?
 Self-Assess: Identify your career interests, goals,
and objectives
o Type of school, students, mission,
extracurricular activities, professional
development
o These are the foundation for what you will
include in your résumé, how you will include it, and
where you will include it
CV Strategies: How to be perceived?
 How you want to be perceived?

Consider who you are and how you want to be

perceived
o Highlight and emphasize relevant strengths,
skills, and experiences
o Not everything is of equal importance or value
CV Strategies: Language is important
 Language is important!

Short phrases = easy reading

o Sentence fragments are ok!

o Writing should flow easily & quickly

 Keep it brief and to the point

o Don’t use “responsible for” or “duties include”

Steer clear of jargon ‒ define acronyms
CV Strategies: Sell it…don’t tell it
 Sell it…don’t tell it
Tell It = simply stating facts
Sell It = promoting and advertising

o Tell it Strategy: Participated in the development of a

new curriculum for the English department
o Sell it Strategy: Appointed to a 3-person team
charged with developing a new English curriculum for 2,
000+ students, and for designing and producing all
supporting materials
CV Strategies: Categories to consider
 Consider categories carefully!
 Choose flattering categories
o related vs. relevant experience
o professional vs. work experience
 Clump related qualifications
o Don’t have too many categories
 Honors/awards
 Use category headings that communicate your
qualifications ‒ be creative! Your experiences are
unique
o We shall see details of it later on!
 CV Strategies: Visual Appeal Matters
 Remember visual appeal matters
o Be consistent
o Make information easy to find by defining
sections and using clear and visible headings
o Paragraph vs. bulleted format
o Carefully consider font, size, and enhancements
o Experiment, try different formats, individualize
 CV Strategies: Be confident
 Be confident
o Don’t overlook any unusual educational experiences
o You are unique
o You are the expert; your opinion matters!
 The fatal fourteen!
 The fatal fourteen!
Avoid the followings at all costs!
o Typographical errors
o Misspellings
o Poor grammar
o Lack of focus and direction
o Wordy blocks of text
o Reused appearance
o Handwritten corrections/additions
o Poor print quality
 The fatal fourteen!
 The fatal fourteen!

 Avoid the followings at all costs!

o Long, rambling sentences

o Wrinkles, smudges, and stains

o Inconsistent format
o Careless or unusual folding
o Cramped or crowded appearance
 First topic at last!
 First topic at last!
 Before you start writing your CV, look at these
three guiding questions
o What is the particular employer looking for in
the dream candidate?
o What are the 3 to 5 most important aspects of
your experience that you need to describe based
on what the employer is looking for?
o What is your competitive advantage relative to
other candidates?
 Starting design!
 Starting design!
o By this time you could answer all the three
questions and you know what to include in your
CV

o Its now time to think about categories in CV

 Categories

 Categories
 Some categories are MUST do

o Name and address, contact address

o Educational history
o Work experience
 Categories
 Categories
 Category pool you can select from
o Objective (optional)
o Skills summary/profile/career summary
o Special skills (computer/technical)
o Honors & achievements
o Scholarships & awards
o Leadership & Volunteer
o Professional memberships
 Categories
 Categories
 Category pool you can select from
o Publications
o International experience
o Professional development
o Professional interests
o Extracurricular skills/interests
o Professional activities
o Coaching experience
Thank You!

Any Question?