Applying for Jobs

The next few weeks will be devoted to helping you put together a dynamite application/cover letter/résumé package. Typically this is your first introduction to an employer, so you want the package to be pitch perfect and to stand out from the crowd. When employers are receiving 70 to 100 applications for a single job, making yours stand out is critical.

This week, I’ll talk about application forms. Next week – cover letters. The following week - résumés. Lastly – online submissions. If you can’t wait, visit http://career.ucsb.edu/students/job_search/resumes.html or stop by Career Services for a free copy of our Career Manual. Either can help you get started. Take both to the drop-in counselor at Career Services M-F, 10-4, for a critique before sending anything out.

There is not a great deal to finesse on application forms, but here are some tips that can help.

Don’t:

• Put “see résumé” either in reference to the entire form, or in specific sections of the form. While the application may be somewhat redundant with your résumé, you should still fill it out completely. I have been on dozens of hiring committees and I know for a fact that some people barely glance at the résumés and use the applications exclusively to make their first cut. You want to make your application as strong as your résumé.

• Avoid spellos, typos, poor grammar. Some online application forms do not have an automatic spell/grammar check embedded. If you’re filling out online forms, put your text into Word first. Check it on the screen. Then print it out and check it on paper, as the computer won’t catch all the ears. (For instance, that one. It should have read “errors,” but passed my computer’s spell and grammar check.)

• Errors of fact. Be sure your application matches your résumé and both match reality. If your résumé says you worked from 6/2008 – 8/2008, and the application says 6/2008 – 9/2008, either your honesty or your attention to detail will look weak. Either way, your application will go in the trash. Also be sure your information conforms to reality. If you call yourself an “assistant manager” in your application materials and your former boss calls you a “sales associate” when the reviewer does a reference check, you’re sunk. Stick with reality.

Dos:

• Follow directions. Be careful to enter the correct data in the correct field.

• Ask for advice on completing the application from a company recruiter or an alumnus who may work at the company.

• It can be a real brain-twister to use alternate language to rewrite what is already described on your résumé, but it’s worth it. What wowed me about one of our most recent hires here at Career Services is that she did just that. Her attention to detail completely wowed me. We not only interviewed her, even though her experience wasn’t as strong as some of the other candidates, but she got the job.

• Use key words, buzz words, and industry verbiage. Use the verbiage in the job ad as your model. Employers search on key words when they’re looking for people to fill specific positions. It can be a real brain-twister to use alternate language to rewrite what is already described on your résumé, but it’s worth it. What wowed me about one of our most recent hires here at Career Services is that she did just that. Her attention to detail completely wowed me. We not only interviewed her, even though her experience wasn’t as strong as some of the other candidates, but she got the job.

• Create a skills-inventory section even if the application doesn’t require it. You might put this in a comments section.

• Another use for the comment section: use it to demonstrate that you’ve done research on the company and the industry.

• Complete all fields—even those that aren’t required.

• If the company offers an optional assessment test online, take it. (One employer recently admitted that students who don’t take the optional assessment test are automatically screened out.)

If you have any questions, come by Career Services’ drop-in hours and talk with a career counselor. They’re here to help you with just this type of detail. Next week we’ll tackle cover letters.