COVER LETTERS ~ Be a Winner

Transcription

1 2016 COVER LETTERS ~ Be a Winner Tom James Double Olympic Gold Medal Winner Beijing and London, ex CUED students, second from right with a nice bunch of flowers. Igor Wowk 1/15/2016

2 COVER NOTES MESSAGES CONTACT AND COMMUNICATION WITH EMPLOYERS I am asked a lot about what to put in a typical message or cover letter to send to an employer. Ideally you need to create a template so that you do not spend a lot of time writing the same letter over and over again but without it looking like Spam/Junk Mail. Also you note needs to have structure and coherence. There are five components to your framework 1. Introduction 2. Motivation and your preferences 3. Why you are attracted to them 4. Why they should be attracted to you 5. What is the next step You always need to 1. put the basics at the top, who you are, what you are looking for and when you are available etc. then say why you are applying for the job and what your motivation is. 2. Say why you want to undertake some Industrial Experience for example, transporting your knowledge and skills to a commercial environment, career development, exploring the real world ( employers love this phrase. ) etc. You might also express some preferences for the kind of thing you might like to do, design, development, test, build, research, consultancy, analysis etc. You can express a preference but do not rule anything out when doing that, leave the door open. If you are not sure what you want to do, don t say I will do anything, list the things you would like to do as employers scan documents and pick out key words, sometimes a machine does it. 3. The next part is the clever bit where you link your ideas and what you are looking for to what the organization might have available to offer to you, and this should always be different. You need to try and create some mutual interest, and link something you have to offer to something the company might need. Failing that at least express an interest in something the company is doing that you would like to find out more about and be associated with. 2

3 4. Then you tell them why it would be a good idea if they hired you. So what exactly do you have to offer them, other than burning desire. Do not talk about sentiments, define yourself in terms of the Technical knowledge that you have, plus the skills that you have acquired. Knowledge: areas of technology that you know about and what level Skills: Something your learn how to do, solve problems, analyse data, write reports, give presentations, use tools such as CAD, Machines, work in teams, communications, manage projects, innovate/create etc. Employers tend to look for pretty similar things so you can look at lists of Employability Traits like THIS ONE. Bang in as many of the buzz words in the top ten traits as you can, backed up with evidence from your past. Also mention the attitudes-behaviours-characteristics that have made you successful. It is not easy describing yourself and often others can do it better for you. Here is a list of POSITIVE DESCRIPTIVE WORDS and have a look & pick the ones that fit best. 5. Finish off by suggesting the next step. What should they do if they are interested, give your e- mail address, telephone number and suggest a meeting, give times if you have them to hand. JOB SPECIFICATION- DESCRIPTION PROVIDED Writing a cover note is more straightforward when you have a job description or a person specification where all the key requirements are identified for you and all you have to do is stack up the evidence that you have what they are looking for. Writing a Speculative letter is a little more difficult, as you are shooting in the dark. Nonetheless the same principles listed above still apply. Below is a real job description. Note that the detail is somewhat lacking, it doesn t tell you what you will be doing on a day to day basis and the reason for this is that 6 months before a placement takes place probably they do not know themselves which projects they will be undertaking due to the dynamic nature of a typical business. However they do give a very precise description of the types of knowledge and experience they are looking for both technically and in terms of the personal attributes and or attitudes 3

4 they want. If you are fortunate enough to be given a well defined specification then your message needs to align your own knowledge, skills and attributes as closely to their wish list as you possibly can, backed wherever possible with positive examples. In this instance the organization have been able to articulate precisely what type of person they want and given you a list, so you can assess whether you have or have not got the skill set and knowledge they are looking for. JOB DESCRIPTION Design Interns work collaboratively, creatively, and flexibly within interdisciplinary teams and with our clients. IDEO's human-centered design process involves careful observations of people; gathering insights from those observations and other creative perspectives; exploring and defining design opportunities; helping to define strategy; creating tangible design expressions; and communicating the essence of these ideas. Being a designer at IDEO means you do a lot of listening, observing, brainstorming and iterating with a group of people with backgrounds very different than yours. This diversity of thought and approach results in breakthrough ideas that lead to innovative outcomes. Key Activities: be passionate about their craft/area of specialization demonstrate a clear point-of-view relating to their design play nicely with others (IDEO is a very team-oriented culture) be self-directed toward excellent work outcomes thrive in ambiguity 4

5 The ideal Product Design Intern will have experience and familiarity with: Development and visualization of concepts Mechanical Design Rapid prototype building Design documentation Client presentation and interaction. SPECULATIVE LETTERS Where you do not have a description and you are planning to make a speculative bid to find a job, you need to devise a message which you can use again without too much alteration otherwise the whole process will become too time consuming. I have provided guidance to build a template above and provided examples for you to look at to give you some idea. However do not to slavishly copy the wording or the contents. When you are aiming at employers in a specific industry such as construction or civil then you will need to emphasise different types of experience that you have had, e.g. team working, project management for site management design skills and planning for a consultancy. If you were looking at software opportunities working on your own, exploring ideas and using your initiative might be more appropriate. The link between yourself and them is vital and so you will have to take a look at their web site, and maybe look through the types of products services they offer, and look through their full time vacancies on offer and take a guess at the kind of people they typically want, and the potential skill sets that they are looking for, as any placements will probably be watered down versions or parts of full time permanent jobs. You need to divide your self-analysis into your technical skills and knowledge, and your personal attributes, basically what you know, what you can do, what interests you and why you are good at it and why this might be useful to a potential prospective employer. 5

6 AN EXAMPLE FROM ONE OF OUR REALLY LITERATE STUDENTS I am currently an undergraduate engineering student at St. Catharine s College in my first year of the Cambridge University Engineering Tripos. Although the Cambridge Engineering course covers a wide range of disciplines, due to my particular interest in structural and civil engineering I am hoping to specialise in these fields at the end of my second year. Consequently, I would like to apply for a vacation job in or around London during the forthcoming summer. Since the start of this academic year I have taken part in various activities relating specifically to structural engineering, the most important of which was the first year Structural Design Project. This involved working in groups of two over a period of two months to design, build, test and evaluate a structure to meet a given specification. This year we had to design a structure that could be attached to a wall plate, could support a working load of 1kN at a specified point and would fail at around 2kN. The project was an invaluable way in which to apply the analytical methods learned in the structural mechanics course as well as a useful insight into the processes involved in structural design. Ultimately, when tested to destruction, our structure exactly met the loading specification, failing at just over 2kN whilst still being the fifth cheapest structure in a group of almost twenty. Additionally, throughout this and last term I have been involved in several laboratory experiments relating directly to structural engineering. Last term I was involved in a laboratory session in which we measured the elastic deflection of three plane, triangulated trusses constructed from different materials. At the beginning of this term, I conducted an experiment on and evaluated various methods of measuring the curvature of an elastic beam. More recently I have completed two laboratory sessions relating to the field of materials. The first session considered numerous non-destructive methods of material testing, whilst the second examined plasticity and fracture in steel and copper samples using destructive testing methods. Since all of these sessions were subsequently evaluated in laboratory reports I have developed a clear and scientific style for writing technical reports. Due to the short academic terms at Cambridge I now have an increased ability to successfully balance academic priorities with extra-curricular activities such as rowing. Furthermore, the growing amount of personal study required means that I am able to work with increasing academic independence. However, working in groups of at least two in all laboratory sessions has taught me how useful and productive working in a team is. I would be most grateful if you could advise me of any position you could offer during the summer vacation for a period of at least eight weeks (preferably starting around the beginning of July), and have therefore attached a copy of my CV. I can always be contacted by and will be in residence at St Catharine s College, Cambridge until the 18 th March. If required, I will be available to meet you between the 20 th March and 17 th April when I can be contacted at home. I look forward to hearing from you. Yours sincerely, A Really Literate student 6

7 Address: Date: Dear Mr/Mrs, My name is Barney Rubble, & I am in the first year of my undergraduate studies reading Engineering at Knowledge College, Cambridge. I am writing to ask you if there is any possibility of vacation work within your organisation during the summer months of I am available to start work on the 1st July. I am interested in most aspects of work including research, design, development and manufacturing activities and would be interested in a proposition involving practical or technical work in those areas. However any work that would develop my practical understanding of my subject, develop my skills, and allow me to make a more informed decision about my future course options and consequent career choices would be useful to me. I have a strong interest in Electronics and during my lecture course I have covered some of the basic principles, undertaken some experiments, completed a short project on microprocessors, acquired some basic design skills and I have some familiarity with software engineering, in particular "C ++". The course work includes development of our analytical skills by means of laboratory experiments, problem solving activities and the development of presentation skills. Through my studies and other activities I have developed the ability to manage my own time effectively & work to deadlines with the minimum of supervision. Additionally, in my spare time I undertake some relevant hobbies (Mention them). I hope that my candidature interests you and if you require further details I can be contacted by post during term and by telephone during the vacation period or via during term time. I am available to visit your premises on a certain date. I hope my application is of interest to you & I look forward to hearing from you. Yours sincerely, 7

8 22 Acacia Avenue, London, NW1 4SE Acme Engineering Co. Tobacco Road, Bluesville, Kent BL21 2NH Date: 22nd September 2012 Dear Mr/Ms. ( Contact person. ) My name is Barney Rubble. I am in the first year of my undergraduate studies reading Engineering at Peterhouse, Cambridge University. I am writing to inquire whether there is any prospect of vacation work within your organisation during the summer months of I am available to start work on the 1 st July. I am interested in a position involving practical or technical work in the design, development and manufacturing areas of Acme Engineering. I would like the opportunity to enhance my own experience and practical understanding of engineering techniques, which will allow me to make a more informed decision about my course options and the direction of my ensuing career. At present, the course syllabus covers a broad range of engineering material; we are taught the basics of Materials, Structural Mechanics, Thermodynamics and Linear and Digital Systems. There are several experiments associated with each module, and this provides us with a deeper insight into the practical applications of the theory. Further analytical skills such as problem solving (such as software design) and presentation skills are developed through coursework. Within the limited time frame of the academic terms, I have developed the ability to successfully manage my time, balancing the academic workload with the extra-curricular activities such as sports. This has been enhanced by my ability to work to deadlines and under pressure with the minimum of supervision. With the emphasis on teamwork in many of the projects undertaken in our studies, I have also improved my capacity for working in groups to solve problems. I hope that my application interests you, and if you require any further details I can be contacted by post during term-time, or alternatively by telephone during the vacation period on (.) I look forward to hearing from you. Yours sincerely, Mr B. Rubble 8