COMM 202tutorial 3: resumes & personal branding

agenda• personal branding• resumes & hooks• action items

timelineweek 6 week 10week 7 week 9week 8

• tutorial: resumes / cover letters

• due: skills matrix final submission (6 success stories, 2 failure stories)

• tutorial: resume & cover letter peer review

• due: 2 copies of resume draft & cover letter draft & job posting

• tutorial: LinkedIn / networking

• due: LinkedIn due before class

• tutorial: event networking / informational interviews

• Due: cover letter & resume due Tuesday, March 7th @ 2:00PM

• networking event on March 9th

reading break

describe these brands

describe these brands

describe these brands

describe these brands

describe yourself• 2 minutes to jot down 4-5 words that describe

you best– skills, personality, etc.

• THINK: if you had 30 seconds to describe who you ware what would you say?

you shape your own brand• permeate your brand throughout all your

documents

• your personal brand can change

where are we at?StrengthsQuest

Job Research

Skills Matrix

Cover LetterResume

Interview!!

Networking

the process

cover email resume & cover letter interview get hired!

resume vs. cover letter• what’s the difference?

resume vs. cover letter• what’s the difference?

resumes are aboutYOU

cover Letters are about

the EMPLOYER

canwantfit

can, want, fit

CAN you do the job?

Do you WANT

the job?

can want fit• CAN: can you do the job? do you have the relevant skills

and experience they’re looking for?

• WANT: do you want the job? are you passionate about this job, the company, the industry?

• FIT: would you get along with the people at this company? does their culture align with your values and personality

resume elements

profile educationwork &

volunteer experience

personal formatting branding

formatting

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

header

• name is preferred name with (given name) in brackets• phone and address are included• LinkedIn URL is personalized

profile/key competencies

what is it? no more than 4 line summary of what to expect in your resume

key questions:• 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?)

what to include?• strengths, past experiences, interests, languages, technical skills

profile

education

what is it? summary of your schooling journey

key questions:• is there any ambiguity with respect to the info provided?• does it match the job description?

education

what to include?• degree (write it out fully) and specialization• GPA –score/%/letter grade, indicating the school scale• no laundry lists of courses: only specific, relevant courses• key/relevant projects and awards: write in accomplishment statement form• don’t include high school stuff unless you’re still in first year!

work experience

what is it? collection of relevant experiences – the real meat

key questions:• are experiences achievement based?• do numbers clearly quantify achievements where appropriate?• do statements have Accomplishment, Proof, Transferrable skills, and Scope of

Action?• does language indicate familiarity with industry/company? Does it match the job

description?

work experience

what to include?• reverse chronological order by end date• you can include explanation sentences of companies/experiences if

necessary • written in third person• keep it to one sentence (2 lines is best)• accomplishment statements as bullet points

STAR to RATS

from STAR stories to RATS statements

employers don’t want to read your story on your resume, they want to read your accomplishments

flip it!

Result

Action

Task

Situation

results

ATTAINED EXCEEDEDELIMINATEDINCREASED

DECREASED

MAXIMIZEDMINIMIZEDREDUCED

SAVEDSURPASSEDIMPROVEDCREATED

GENERATEDENHANCEDOPTIMIZED

ESTABLISHED

resultsqualitative

• ***be Descriptive

• positive feedback

• promotion/increase in Responsibilities

• implementation

• awards

quantitative• how much?

• how many?

• numbers / percentages

action

do your results match up with your actions?

are those skills relevant to the job?

what skills did you see?

situation & task

what was the challenge?

paint the setting (who, what, where?)

describe the context

duty-based vs. accomplishmentduty-based

responsible for contacting corporate clients and organizing a tournament

accomplishment

VS.

duty-based vs. accomplishmentduty-based

Responsible for contacting corporate clients and organizing a tournament

accomplishment

VS.

this is a job description!

duty-based vs. accomplishmentduty-based

responsible for contacting corporate clients and organizing a tournament

accomplishment

VS.

accomplishment

achieved 85% client retention rate by establishing relationships with key corporate clients and providing a well organized, personally tailored tournament experience

accomplishment exampleachieved 85% client retention rate by establishing relationships with key corporate clients and providing a well organized, personally tailored tournament experience

RESULT

accomplishment exampleachieved 85% client retention rate by establishing relationships with key corporate clients and providing a well organized, personally tailored tournament experience

ACTION + TASK

accomplishment exampleachieved 85% client retention rate by establishing relationships with key corporate clients and providing a well organized, personally tailored tournament experience

SITUATION

one more exampleresults

actions task/situation

led Varsity Volleyball team to the PacWest BC Provincial Championship gold medal by exemplifying camaraderie and teamwork in both practices and high-pressure games

interests

are you catering to your audience?

GOAL:showcase personality &

differentiate yourself!

how do you want to be remembered?

interestswhat is it? a chance to showcase your personality & stand out

key questions:• 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?

what to include?• side interests & hobbies• cool personal experiences• be fun, specific, and stay appropriate

*NOTE for the candidate: Be able to speak about these interests extensively!

interests

branding

does this reflect your personal brand?

if the employer were to describe you based on your resume or

cover letter would they perceive you the way you want to be

perceived?

does this align with your employer’s

brand?

investment banks will look for different personal brands from advertising agencies. are you tailoring the best and most

applicable parts of yourself to the company?

administrative• Turnitin registration:

– T24: Class ID: 14513052, Enrollment Password: bubbles– T25: Class ID: 14513100, Enrollment Password: bubbles

• Family Day holiday:– make up classes: same time Wednesday

• T24 (12 – 1PM): HA334• T25 (1 – 2PM): HA350

– or any other tutorial that week• Email respective TA

action items• sign up for office hours!

• resume & cover letter draft due next tutorial!– bring 2 copies + your job posting!

• skills matrix due February 10th @ 11:59PM on Turnitin

• tutorial next week! Puppy of the week!