Employment

Communication
Cover letter and Resume
writing

Ober, S. & Newman, A. (2013). Communicating in business.

Asia: South Western Cengage Learning.
“Communication skills
play an important role
in the selection
process.”
 Writing cover letters
• A cover letter is your first contact with an
employer.

• It tells an employer that you are interested

in and qualified for a job that they may
offer.

• It is like a sales letter wherein you are sort

of selling your qualifications to be
considered in a position.
 What an effective cover letter
achieves
• Express your interest in the company and
the position
• Highlight how your background specifically
matches job qualifications
• Reveal some of your personality
• Demonstrate your business writing skills
• Provide the employer with logistical
information
 Cover letter via email
• 41% of employers prefer to receive cover
letters via email.

• PDF file is a better file type to be used to

avoid changes in formatting (for resume).

• For cover letter, it is best to shorten it and

have it as the body of your email.
 Parts of a cover letter

• Address
• Salutation
• Opening
• Body
• Closing
 Address
• Address an individual and not an
organization.

• Address the letter to the person who will

interview you.

• Check the correct name, spelling, and

position title.
 Salutation
• Use courtesy title along with the person’s
name.

• If unsure of the gender, write the full name

• If you don’t know the name, you may write

Dear Human Resources Manager or Dear
Hiring Manager.
 Opening
• For solicited cover letter
– Use direct organizational plan: state or imply
the reason for your letter, identify the position
for which you are applying, and indicate how
you learned about the opening

• For unsolicited cover letter

– Get the reader’s attention
– Try to talk about the company and how can
you contribute to their effort
 Opening
• Opening must be short, original,
interesting, and reader oriented.

• Avoid the opening “Please consider this

letter my application for….”

• Maintain formality
 Body
• Let the employer know how they will
benefit from you by highlighting your
strongest qualifications in 1-2 paragraphs.

• Do not restate whatever is in your resume.

• Refer the reader to the enclosed resume.

 Closing

• In this part, politely ask for a personal

interview.

• Provide contact information (phone

number and email address)
 Preparing your resume
• It summarizes your educational
background and work experiences that will
qualify you for a job.

• The purpose of having a resume is to give

you a chance of having a job interview, not
really to get yourself a job.
 Resume length
• For an entry-level position, a one-page
resume is often preferred.

• It only takes a minute for a recruiter to

review your resume and validate your
qualifications for a job.

• Make sure not to have a resume that is too

short.
 Resume format
• Include lots of white space
• Readable fonts
• Tasteful designs (columns or horizontal
lines)
• Use font enhancements (bold or italics)
• Bullets
• Varied spacing
• Use a 20-pound short bond paper (8.5 x
11)
 Resume format
• Must be 100% error free

• 1-2 typos may cost you your opportunity to

get a job interview (based on a survey
conducted among large-company
executives)
 Resume content

• Do not consider what you want your

employer to know about you, but consider
your employer – what does he/she wants
to know?
 Job objective
• A job objective seems to be very obvious
for an employer: YOU WANT THE JOB.

• A job objective can then contain your

career goals

• Ensure that your objective is clear and not

too specific.
 Work Experience
• For fresh graduates, a chronological type
of resume is more preferred to be used.

CHRONOLOGICAL RESUME contains a list

of your work history, starting from the most
recent position you have.

FUNCTIONAL RESUME focuses around your

skills or job functions. It is most appropriately
used when changing industries or moving to a
different line of work.
 Work Experience
• Provide a complete work experience
information regardless of the
organizational type that you will use for
your resume.

• Your work experience must show that you

are qualified for the job you are applying
for.
 Work Experience
• Use concrete achievement-oriented words
to describe your experience.

• Stress specific accomplishments directly

related to the desired job.

• Include relevant unpaid position.