LANE 462

7/25/2010
Dr. Shadia Yousef Banjar
STEPS FOR JOB APPLICATIONS
I. CV/ RESUME WRITING
By: http://SBANJAR.kau.edu.sa/
Dr. Shadia Yousef Banjar http://wwwdrshadiabanjar.blogspot.com

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 STEPS FOR JOB APPLICATIONS
• CV/ RESUME WRITING

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• THE BASICS OF FORMATTING OF A CV/RESUME
• WRITING A CV/RESUME FOR GRADUATES

Dr. Shadia Yousef Banjar

• JOB INTERVIEWS
• JOB LETTERS

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 What is a CV?
• The Curriculum Vitae or CV can be

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translated as "the course of one's life/career”
and provides a comprehensive overview of your

Dr. Shadia Yousef Banjar

academic background and professional
accomplishments.
• A CV is often needed to apply to graduate
programs, employment in academia or
international organizations, and in certain
professional fields.

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 Resume vs. CV
• Many of the rules of writing a resume can
also be applied to writing a CV.

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• A CV is a longer and more detailed synopsis of
your background and skills.

Dr. Shadia Yousef Banjar

a)Experience and Education dictate the length of
your CV.
b) A two to three page CV is common for most
seniors and graduate students.
• The CV includes a greater range of information.
The focus is more on academic achievements
such as educational background and
training, research interests, published works,
teaching experience, field experience, academic
honors/awards, and other related professional 4
experience.
• Like a resume, a CV should include your
name, contact information, education, skills
and experience.

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• In addition, a CV includes research and
teaching experience, publications, grants and
fellowships, professional associations and

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licenses, awards and other information
relevant to the position or program to which
you are applying.
• Start by making a list of all your background
information, and then organize it into
categories.
• Make sure you include dates.
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I. CV/ RESUME WRITING

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A CV is an essential
tool in job search

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 General Rules
•Your CV should usually be limited to 2 sides of A4 in length unless

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otherwise specified.
•A CV is your personal marketing tool so it should look professional.
•Word process your CV on good quality paper.

Dr. Shadia Yousef Banjar

•Use a spelling/grammar checker but also ask someone else to proof
read your CV.
•Use short statements with bullet points rather than long
paragraphs.
•Use bold text for headings so that they stand out.
•Ensure your CV is as relevant as possible to the job you are
applying for.
•Your CV should always be accompanied by a covering letter

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 THE IMPORTANT
COMPONENTS OF A CV

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The four elements in CV are:
1- your life history

Dr. Shadia Yousef Banjar

2- your job history
3- your achievements
4- your skills

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Documents and materials needed to
write a CV:

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•Job descriptions for all positions held
•Performance reviews

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• Educational descriptions and records
of seminars/conferences attended
since high school
•References

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 CV Heading
CV heading include general information:

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•Name
•Surname

Dr. Shadia Yousef Banjar

•Local address
•E-mal address
•Phone number

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 Name Format

• Bold or capitalize your name

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•Use letters two to six points larger than the
rest of the text

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•Place your name on the first line of your page
•Place your name at the center of the page

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 THE GENERAL FORMAT
The general format is as follows:

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1. Objectives,

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2. Work experience,
3. Education, and
4. Skills.

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 1 CV Objective
CV objective is ‘a brief and focused

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statement of what you can do and
what you are looking for’.

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CV OBJECTIVE EXAMPLES:
Seeking new challenges in
(occupation) which effectively

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utilizes (professional experiences).
Looking to join a progressive
organization that has the need for (a

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type of occupation) and offers
opportunities for advancement.
To gain first hand (type of
experience), using my analytical
skills and commitment to perform
quality work.
To secure an internship with a
(type of organization) specializing in
(area of expertise)
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 CV OBJECTIVE TIPS:
•Describe the job you are seeking. You can include
your experience and skill level

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•Be focused – vague objectives are less likely to attract
an employer

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•Emphasize what you can bring to your prospective
employer
•The Objective should be one sentence – two sentences
if needed, but not longer.
•It should be clear and concise
•Focus on the employers needs rather than yours
(what you can do for the employer rather than vice
versa)

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 PROFESSIONAL
2 OR
WORK EXPERIENCE
DESCRIPTION ON YOUR CV

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‘Work experience should include internships and
any other jobs that – including the kind of job

Dr. Shadia Yousef Banjar

(full time/part time, etc) – you had during or after
college’
Each job detail should include this basic
information:

Title of position

Length you held the post

Responsibilities

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 WORK EXPERIENCE EXAMPLES:
• Managed a team of (number) that established (name
or project goal or result)

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• Successfully launched and marketed (name of project)
• Participated in the creation of a (name of product or

Dr. Shadia Yousef Banjar

production) that resulted in (a position outcome)
• Extensive involvement managing client relationship
at all levels
• Wrote feature stories and conducted interviews for
(type of press); edited copy of other writers.
• (Number of years) of (system) integration experience
and implementing solutions to help clients succeed
• (Number of years) of management experience on
industrial projects
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 WORK EXPERIENCE TIPS:
• For each position describe your responsibilities, duties, the
challenges faced and accomplishments achieved. Use specific
examples e.g. Increased car sales turnover by 200% or saved

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department $ 100,000 by redesigning performance
measurement system
• Define the achievement by describing what was used to

Dr. Shadia Yousef Banjar

reach the objective, and what objective was reached, e.g.
Used new sales channels to increase market share beyond
the state borders. The result was a 25% increase in turnover
for the company.
• If you had multiple positions with the same company,
remember to list dates of positions to show the prospective
employer of your rapid progress and quick learning abilities
• If you have not had much work experience, try including
temporary holiday or voluntary jobs.
• Remember to keep it short, positive and use action verbs.
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 Action Verbs To Use In Describing Your
Accomplishment
 Administrated  Determined  Negotiated

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 Advised  Developed  Obtained
 Analyzed  Directed  Organized

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 Assisted  Evaluated  Performed
 Audited  Expanded  Planned
 Communicated  Implemented  Prepared
 Completed  Improved  Provided
 Coordinated  Increased  Researched
 Counseled  Interviewed  Reviewed
 Created  Maintained  Selected
 Designed  Managed  Supervised
Verified
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 3 EDUCATION

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•The education section should be brief.
• It should include college, degree and

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graduation year excluding the high
school.
•If you studied abroad or completed an
intensive summer course, list those too.

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 EDUCATION TIPS:
• Include your Grade Point Average (GPA) or General
Ranking if it is impressive (Excellent, Very Good).

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• Mention any Honors, Awards, Scholarships,
Internships, and Dissertations received.

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• Include any information that might be appropriate
to your job search. Fresh graduates should include
relevant courses, extracurricular activities,
scholarships, honors, and GPA (if it is good!)
• Allow your educational credentials to emphasize
your strengths and qualifications.

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 4 SKILLS
• Skills section must be brief.

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• It should include main skills: computer
skills, language skills, typing speed,

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written as keywords without going into
lengthy description.
• Research skills and other skills that you
believe make you a valuable candidate.

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SKILL EXAMPLES:
•German- Intermediate.
•Microsoft Office software & the Internet-Expert

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•MS Word, Excel, Access Point, MS Project
Workbench and Lotus Notes-Expert

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•C, Cobol, Fortran and SQL – Expert
•Quantitative Analysis- Expert
•Creative Skills-Expert

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SKILL TIPS:
•Focus on skills that match your target job
and target company

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•Use this section to include industry keywords
that match an employer’s keyword search.

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For example: Knowledge of encryption theory
•Describe your interpersonal skills, (an
experienced presenter/ public speaker/ sales
person, organizer or teacher)
•Use action verbs

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 Memberships (optional)

List any professional affiliations, associations or

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memberships of interest to employers
Examples:

Dr. Shadia Yousef Banjar

Active member (name of association)
Speaker/Treasurer (name of association)
Appointed to serve as (position)
Past Chairman/President
Elected to serve as (position)

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Tips:
Being part of any association shows a
potential employer your interest and

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involvement in a related professional field.
Adding this information is completely

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optional
This is particularly relevant and
important for fresh graduates or candidates
seeking to make a career switch
Use action verbs.

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 References (If required)
•If required, ‘references upon request’

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can be added at the bottom of your
resume.

Dr. Shadia Yousef Banjar

•You can bring a list of references and
letters of recommendation with you to
an interview.

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GENERAL WEAKNESSES IN YOUR CV/RESUME:

• No leadership skills or managerial experience

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• Missing skills , knowledge and / or experience
• Patchy career history
• Employment gaps

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• Many employers
• Having worked for only one employer

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 HIDING YOUR WEAKNESSES IN CV
•switch something from a weakness to strength
•Highlight other skills that make up for the weakness

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For example:
1) if you never went to university , you need to
emphasize your job experience

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2) if you are new to the field of work, try to show your
qualifications and related hobbies
3) if you have worked for small companies ,you could ,
for example , try to highlight the benefits of having
to solve a lot of problems on your own with tight
budgets

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 GENERAL TIPS
 Use standard 10 to 14 point fonts like Times, Palatino, Courier,
and Helvetica
 Left justify all text

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 Send your resume on 8.5'' x 11'', white paper only
 Fax on “high resolution” setting
 Use jargon specific to your industry

Dr. Shadia Yousef Banjar

 Use nouns and noun phrases rather than verbs when possible to
describe job duties (e.g., use “Art Director” rather than “directed
and oversaw the graphic layout of company brochure”)
 Avoid fancy text styles like italics, underlining, or shadows
 Do not use a newspaper-style two column format
 Avoid tabs (use the space bar instead)
 Avoid parentheses, brackets, and compressed lines of print

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