literacy for the world of work- booklet

8/11/2019 Literacy for the World of Work- Booklet

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Preparing for the world of work

It is known that 100% of University courses and 98% of job applications require you to

present yourself and make a strong first impression in writing. It is crucial that you

understand how to make the right first impression so that you maximise your chances of

success in the work place and at university.

The materials in this booklet are designed to introduce you to some of the most common

requirements for jobs and the section on Supporting Statements will come in very useful for

your UCAS personal statement if you are planning on applying to university.

Remember that there are lots of people to help you with this applications so if you need

help, speak to your form tutor or email Ms Palmer on palmer_c or Mrs Longman the

careers advisor on longman_p.

Good luck!

Preparing a CV- Session 1.

When you are applying for jobs, you will either have to fill in an application form, or send

your CV. Your CV or application form tells the employer your achievements so far. It is

aimed at getting you a job interview, and then the purpose of the interview is to get you

the job.

There is no single best curriculum vitae (CV). You will need to adapt your CV according to

the type of job you are applying for, so that it highlights particular skills, experience and

aspirations relevant to the job. Most people list their education and experience in reverse

chronological order (so the most recent things are listed first).

So, what sort of CV will influence an employer or recruiter to see you? The following points

come from research into what employers and recruiters actually look for in a CV.

PRINCIPLES

The CV should be:

Neat

Aim for the best standard you can reach in layout and content. You will be judged by

your CV. Always proof read carefully to make sure there are no mistakes, and ask

someone to check it for you as well.

Short

Your CV should not be longer than two sides of A4 paper, and may fit onto one. It is

important to be concise, and only to include relevant information. If it runs to two

pages, the first page should include key personal details, together with information



about your education and your current or latest job (if you have one). The split between

the first and second page should be at a sensible point - not in the middle of a section.

Simple

Always choose a standard type face, such as arial, and avoid anything fancy such as a

folder or sleeve or any graphics.

Complete

The CV should list your address and telephone number clearly (it may be separated from

your covering letter).

Factual

You do not need to explain how the things you have done make you the right person for

the job. The CV should stick to facts; a covering letter can be used to highlight how the

facts on your CV have developed your skills.

Positive

Use positive language and expressions. Aim to show what you have done: your

achievements, strengths, contributions, transferable skills and experience, and so on.

There are two main stages in compiling a CV:

Assembling the facts

Drafting and editing

The prospective employer or recruiter will be reading rapidly through a pile of applications.

Your aim is to produce a document which will be put in the YES (for interview) pile and not

in the NO or QUERY piles. The ideal document will be the one which gives at a glance all the

required information, perhaps with a touch of originality, but excludes what is negative,

superfluous or raises doubts in the reader’s mind.

ASSEMBLING THE FACTS

List your past experiences and achievements, identifying clearly your strengths. Put

everything down. You will probably assemble far more than you can ultimately use in yourCV, but the additional material may still come in useful, perhaps during an interview.

DRAFTING

Next, draft, redraft and edit your CV until you have the best possible phrases to describe

your experiences and achievements.



CONSTRUCTING A BASIC CV

There is no right or wrong way to complete a CV, but an example of a standard functional

format for a student who is coming towards the end of their education is given at the end

of this booklet.

PERSONAL PROFILE STATEMENT

At the beginning of your CV, immediately below your name and address section, you should

write a short personal profile statement. This is to highlight the type of the person you are

and make the person reading it think, Yes! This person I want to see.

You may well need to change this section a bit each time you

apply for a different job, to make sure it shows you would be the

right person for that particular job.

KEY SKILLS

Many people then list some key skills, such as punctuality, numeracy, computer skills.

EDUCATION

The education section needs to include three groups of information – where you attended

school/college, when, and the qualifications you obtained.

No employer is likely to be interested in details of your primary school so don’t include

this information.

Don’t give the whole address of the school; simply Bexley Grammar School is enough.

Remember to be consistent in the way you present information. If you are writing a list of exam passes, you might put the most relevant ones at the

top, or those with the highest grades, or you might list them alphabetically.

EXPERIENCE

When writing about your experiences, try to match your information against the items in

the job description and person specification for the job (or if you are giving in your CV

‘speculatively’ think about the responsibilities of the job you hope may be available). You

can include voluntary experience in this section.



The prospective employer will read through the education section of your CV, and briefly

note if you’ve got the right qualifications, but this is the section they will scrutinise most

closely. Therefore time taken here is well spent.

OTHER INFORMATION

You may want to include various pieces of information that you haven’t mentioned so far,so you may want to split this section up with additional headings, such as leisure interests.

The type of additional information that may well interest a prospective employer (or

college) would be:

Membership of a club

Membership of a debating society

Extra responsibilities at school

Involvement with a charity or fundraising organisation

Playing sports

Voluntary work

Duke of Edinburgh award

Some of these activities may well have provided you with experience that you can

emphasise in the body of your CV.

If you decide to use one of the headings suggested above, don’t just list the items, give a

bullet point or two of detail. When deciding which activities to include, think about whatmight interest the employer. Going through the above list it is easy to identify:

Membership of a club can indicate that you are a sociable person, or if the club is based

around an interest or skill that you are good at whatever it is. Shows that you can be

part of a team.

Membership of a debating society indicates an ability to present yourself verbally, to

think through issues logically and calmly.

Extra responsibilities at college (for example, being an ambassador) shows that you are

reliable, trustworthy, respected etc.

Playing sports shows that you are fit. Playing a team sport shows that you can

work as a member of a team, play by the rules etc.

Voluntary work shows that you like to help others less fortunate than

yourself. Shows relaiblity, initiative etc.

Duke of Edinburgh Award shows many positive attributes depending on what you’ve

covered, but including staying power, reliability and willingness to work hard.

Providing this information to prospective employers is especially important if you are a

school leaver with no work experience to offer as proof of your abilities.



REFERENCES

If you are applying for a specific job, it is helpful to include contact details for two referees,

so the organisation can obtain references before an interview.

If you are sending a CV out uninvited it is best just to say ‘References available on request’.

The organisation can then ask for details of referees if they contact you for interview.

Choosing people to list as referees.

Think carefully about who might be able to write a fair reference for you. They must not be

a close family member. It is polite to ask people before listing them as a referee. It is also

a good idea to check that they won’t be away on holiday at the crucial time.

The information that referees receive with the request varies. Some organisations simply

ask referees to Write about the suitability of the person without giving much guidance.

Some ask referees to complete a form. Others send the job description and personspecification and ask for comments in relation to these documents. Others phone.

It is usual to supply names, addresses, telephone numbers and, where possible, e-mail

addresses of two referees. If you have had a previous job, one of your referees should be

your previous manager. If you have not had a previous job you could ask:

A teacher

A professional person who knows you well.

The chairperson or leader of a club you belong to. A family friend who has a professional job.

If you are already employed and don’t want your present employer to know that you are

applying for other jobs, mention this in your covering letter (some application forms ask the

question anyway). Simply say something like Please do not contact my employer for a

reference unless a job offer is to be made.

A simple example CV is given on the next page – you might want to write more in the

personal profile section, and might have other things to put into the ‘other information’

section, but this gives a basic suggested outline:



James Brown

35 Station Road

Sidcup

DA15 6AB

020 8301 4567

Mob: 07832 978678

[email protected]

A self-motivated, hardworking school leaver with good customer service and teamwork

skills gained from work experience in retail and taking part in World Challenge, looking for

an opportunity to train for a career in the financial sector.

Key skills

Punctual and reliable

Computer skills (Microsoft office)

Numerate Good communication skills

Good team member

Education and qualifications

Sept 2006- Bexley Grammar School

Currently studying:

A levels

Predicted

Grades

Maths B

Economics B

English Literature C

Government and Politics B

GCSEs Grades

Maths A*Biology B

Chemistry A

Physics B

English Language A

English Literature A

History A

RS B

Music C

French BSpanish A



Work experience

June 2012-

(part time

volunteer)

Customer service assistant at Cancer UK shop, Sidcup

Duties include:

Serving customers

Operating the till

Sorting and marking up stock

July 2010 Customer service assistant at Peacock’s, Bexleyheath

Duties included:

Serving customers

Labelling and tidying stock

Other information

July 2011 World Challenge trip to Tanzania, which involved

working as a team to support a community project in a school in

Western Tanzania

Raising the money for all team members to take part (£3,000 per

person).

2010- During the 6th

form I was chosen to be a maths prefect, which involves

helping younger students with their maths homework

References available on request from

Miss Form Tutor

Bexley Grammar School

Danson Lane

Welling

DA16 2BL

[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]





Key Skills: ________________________________

________________________________ ________________________________

________________________________ ________________________________

Education and qualifications:September 200 – present

Currently studying – A-Level/IB Predicted grade

GCSE- Grade

Your CV- Session 2

Summary Statement:



Work Experience:

Date: From/ to Job Title:Skills gained



Other information:

Date: From/ to Experience Title:Skills gained



Referee 1:

Referee 2:



ON SPEC- Session 3

On spec (or ‘speculative’ ) letter for part-time work)

YOUR ADDRESS

POSTCODE

TELEPHONE NUMBER E-MAIL ADDRESS

DATE

NAME OF CONTACT

TITLE

NAME OF ORGANISATION

ADDRESS

Dear Ms Perkins (Sir/Madam)

Current/Future Vacancies

I am a 6th

form student at Bexley Grammar School and am currently seeking part-

time work in retail.

During my work experience at Peacock’s I learned how important customer service

skills are, and as it was a very busy time of year in the shop I dealt with lots of

enquiries from people of all ages. Since June I have been working as a volunteer at

the Cancer UK shop and I have been trained to use the till. Working there regularly

means that I have become part of the team, and I can see how important it is in a

team that everyone works together. I would now like to gain further experience

through a part-time job.

I am enclosing my CV and would appreciate being considered should any vacancies

arise.

Yours sincerely/faithfully (Ms Perkins/Sir/Madam),



ON SPEC

On spec (or ‘speculative’ ) letter for part-time work)

YOUR ADDRESS

POSTCODE

TELEPHONE NUMBER E-MAIL ADDRESS

DATE

NAME OF CONTACT

TITLE


ADDRESS

Dear Ms (Sir/Madam)

Current/Future Vacancies

I am a 6th

form student at Bexley Grammar School and am currently seeking part-time work

in ___________.

During my work experience at ____________ I learned how

important__________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

I would now like to gain further experience through a part-time job.

I am enclosing my CV and would appreciate being considered should any vacancies arise.

Yours sincerely/faithfully



COVERING LETTERS- Session 4

A CV should be sent with a covering letter. Your letter should be on good quality white

paper. Always keep a copy of every CV and covering letter you send out.

A SAMPLE COVERING LETTER

YOUR ADDRESS

POSTCODE

TELEPHONE NUMBER

E-MAIL ADDRESS

DATE

NAME OF CONTACT

TITLE


ADDRESS

Dear (Mr Bloggs)/(Sir/Madam as appropriate)

Opening paragraph – identify yourself and indicate the position for which you are

applying, state where heard about the vacancy.

Second paragraph – explain why you are interested in this particular line of work and

the organisation (your CV may need to be adapted to highlight this as well). Briefly

mention your academic background, relevant qualifications to the job in question,

related work experience. Summarise your strengths and how they might be an

advantage to the employer. (You need to persuade the employers using this single

sheet of paper and your CV that you are worth seeing).

Third paragraph – refer to the fact that you have enclosed a CV and do emphasise the

points which make your qualification and skills particularly relevant to the vacancy in

question.

Final paragraph – reiterate your interest (do not be afraid to show that you are keen to

have the job, ENTHUSIASM is a definite plus!). Indicate your availability for an

interview and if necessary ask for further information. Close your letter with a

confident statement which will then encourage a positive response.

Yours sincerely (Mr Bloggs) or

Yours faithfully (Sir/Madam)

Your signature (handwritten)

Your name (typed)



COVERING LETTERS

A CV should be sent with a covering letter. Your letter should be on good quality white

paper. Always keep a copy of every CV and covering letter you send out.

A SAMPLE COVERING LETTER

YOUR ADDRESS

POSTCODE

TELEPHONE NUMBER

E-MAIL ADDRESS

DATE

NAME OF CONTACT

TITLE


ADDRESS

Dear (Mr Bloggs)/(Sir/Madam as appropriate)

Opening paragraph –

Second paragraph –

Third paragraph-

Final paragraph –

Yours sincerely (Mr Bloggs) or

Yours faithfully (Sir/Madam)

Your signature (handwritten)

Your name (typed)



APPLICATION FORMS

Many jobs require you to fill in an application form, either paper-based or on-line. Once

you have a good up to date CV written you can use that to provide a lot of the information

for the application form, but you also usually have to write a supporting statement to show

why you want the job and why you are the right person to do the job. It is very important

to match the skills you write about in the statement to the skills described in the jobdescription or person specification supplied by the employer.

WRITING A SUPPORTING STATEMENT- Session 5 and 6

Most job applications have a space for you to write about why you want the job and show

how you would be a good candidate for it. This is very like writing a personal statement for

university, and is often described on an application form as a ‘supporting statement’.

In order to write a good ‘supporting statement’ you need to think about your skills, and

examples you can give to show you have those skills.

Use these boxes to write down things you could put into your supporting statement. The

first two boxes are less important for a job than for university (Academic ability, effective

learning style) and boxes like ‘teamworking’ and ‘communication skills’ are more important.

Academic ability and intellect

You do not need to list grades achieved – they are already on your form, but you might talk about any partsof your subjects you have particularly enjoyed or done well in. Mention any extra work you have done

outside school: books you have read, places you have visited, activities you have undertaken.

Effective learning style: that means…

What can you say about your abilities as a learner? Are you a quick and thorough reader? Praised for your

excellent notes? Methodical in your approach? These notes will probably develop the points in Academicability above.



Organisation and problem-solving: that could be…

How do you cope with your workload? Fit in extra activities? Give examples of how you manage your time

and have overcome any problems.

Initiative and resilience – that means… How do you deal with subjects, or parts of subjects, that you find particularly difficult? Can you give

evidence of how you have had to persevere when things weren’t easy? How have you shown initiative in

extra reading or finding paid or volunteering experience?

Communication skills:

Can you express yourself clearly through both speaking and writing? Do you work responsibly with adults?Have you any evidence of persuasive skills such as debating or selling?

Team work: very important…

How much experience do you have of working in teams and what has it taught you? This could be

something you have done outside of school/college, or you could use something you have done as part ofyour course as an example. Have you shown leadership qualities in any team activity?

Empathy: particularly relevant for some careers, less so for others

What experience do you have of working with others in a caring capacity, whether in school or out of it?

Insight and integrity

Can you give any evidence of integrity – can you show how you are a trustworthy person? For example, can

you give evidence of being trusted with responsibility?



When reading a job advertisement you need to pick out the words that describe the person they are looking for, and

make sure you include something in your statement to show you are that person. In this advertisement they are

highlighted:

Receptionist

Required for the busy reception desk at xxxx School and the xxxx Sixth Form Centre, you will primarilywork afternoons from 12 to 5, however flexibility will be needed.

You should have the ability to relate to young people and be able to work under pressure in a busy

environment. You will also need administrative skills and have a good knowledge of Microsoft office.

You should be able to demonstrate experience of dealing with enquiries from a variety of sources and of

working in a customer care orientated service.

25 hours per week, 41 weeks per year.

Employers usually then provide a job description and ‘person specification’ that gives more detail:

The person specification for this job is given on the next page, followed by a statement written by an applicant. The

applicant has tried to say at least one thing in the statement to cover every point from the person specification.

literacy for the world of work- booklet

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