Details You Really Need to Know:

Your Job Application Portfolio

In these notes, youll read more about the following:
Why You Are Preparing this Job Application Portfolio .................................................................... 1
The Four Pieces of the Assignment ................................................................................................. 2
1. The Job Listing ............................................................................................................................. 2
2. The Application/Cover Letter: The Persuasive Piece of the Job Application Portfolio ...... 3
The Letter Document Format ...................................................................................................... 3
The Structure of the Body of the Letter ...................................................................................... 4
First Paragraph ......................................................................................................................... 4
The Body Paragraphs ............................................................................................................... 7
The Last Paragraph .................................................................................................................. 8
Always Use the Reader-Centered Approach .............................................................................. 8
Customize Your Letter ................................................................................................................. 9
3. The Rsum: Your Table of Data.............................................................................................. 10
What to Include in Your Rsum .............................................................................................. 10
Rsum Formats and Fonts ........................................................................................................ 10
Consider Preparing Multiple Versions ...................................................................................... 11
Consider Preparing Multiple Document Formats .................................................................... 11
4. The References: Give Them a Little Something Extra ............................................................ 12

Why You Are Preparing this Job Application Portfolio

It is probably pretty clear why you are doing this assignment; many of you will be looking for jobs
soon or might already be looking. Even for those of you who are already working in your chosen
job, I hope youll pick up a few new good ideas and share what you already know with your
classmates.
Some people will say that a good job application portfolio (or a good rsum) can land you a good
job. That might so, in some instances. However, the real purpose of your job application portfolio is
to get you the job interview, not the job.

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The Four Pieces of the Assignment

You likely have questions about the individual pieces of the assignment, so let me describe briefly
below the following:
Job listing/posting
Application/cover letter
Rsum
References
The Job Listing
Some people will urge you to use the scattergun approach in applying for a job just send
your generic application/cover letter and rsum out to dozens or hundreds of places and youll
get a bite from someone. This might get you a job; but using the reader-centered approach is more
likely to get you the job that you really want.
In this class, we use what is called a reader-centered approach. This means that youre constantly
thinking about and meeting the informational needs of your readers. For example, you might
want a job with SAS because you like the company, the salary, the hours, the benefits, and the
job. Thats great! What you need to focus on, though, is how you can benefit the reader (for this
assignment, the potential employer). What can you offer SAS that is more compelling than any
other candidate? How can you prove to SAS that you are the one best qualified to fill that
position?
First of all, do you meet the minimum qualifications that the reader has set forth? The only way
to know that, really, is to examine what the reader has told you. In some cases, the potential
employer provides lots of details about the job, what you would do in the position, what the
specific requirements are, and so on. This makes your job easy; because the reader has told you
specifically what he/she is looking for provided that you are qualified for the job and have the
desired requirements all you have to do is parrot their information back to them and back it
up with proof about what you have done.
If the potential employer does not provide you with much detail, more of the burden is on you
to determine what an employee in the position youre applying for would need to bring to the
employers table. In this case, doing your homework about the company and the position is
even more critical than in the situation I described above, because you have to figure out what
the employers most important needs are and how you can meet them.
You might be applying for an unsolicited job. That means that the job isnt posted or might not
yet even exist. Lets say, for example, that you see on the news or in a trade journal that a
company you just think is wonderful is opening a branch in the Triangle area. You might take
the bold step of sending your job application portfolio to that company, not knowing whether
all of their positions have been filled or whether none of them have been filled. Perhaps you just
feel that you could make a strong contribution to that company. This can be the biggest
challenge of all, because not only do you have to convince the potential employer that you can
meet their needs; you truly have to determine for yourself what those needs would be.

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Regardless of the kind of job youre applying for (solicited or unsolicited), and regardless of how
much information you know about the job (a lot, a little, or absolutely nothing), I will not be able to
determine how well youve met the needs of your readers unless I know what your readers needs are. This is why
I need you to provide me with the information that you know about the job and the
requirements for the job, and this is why the job listing is the most critical part of the job
application portfolio.
You can provide me with the job listing information by cutting and pasting text from
somewhere, doing screen shots of the potential employers pertinent web pages, typing
information from a newspaper or a bulletin board posting that you saw on campus. Please do
not simply send me the URL for the page on which you saw the job posting. Firstly, this adds to
the processing time for your paper, and secondly, the information might not be there by the
time I go to the website.
The Application/Cover Letter: The Persuasive Piece of the Job
Application Portfolio
Youll read more about your rsum in a few minutes, but first, lets talk about your
application/cover letter (some people will call it the application letter; some will call it the cover
letter). This is the first thing the potential employer normally will see when you give or send your
job application portfolio. It should sit on top of the rsum. It should be brief (never more than
a page), well written, and persuasive.
Youve likely heard it said that, at first blush, potential employers will spend between 15 and 45
seconds examining a job application portfolio. For that reason, you need to make sure to leave
no trace of a doubt that you are the most qualified applicant and to get that information across
right away. Below Ill describe ways to help you do that.
The Letter Document Format
The format of your letter is a matter of convention; its like wearing a business suit to the job
interview. You would still be you in a Speedo swimsuit but it wouldnt be appropriate to
wear one. It shows that you understand the corporate culture and that you would fit in as a
professional. Your book has letter format examples, and Ive also posted an example on the
Schedule page of the course website. Here are the parts of the letter:
Your contact information (in the form of your letterhead). All three of your
documents letter, rsum, and references must be uniform in terms of the
letterhead, format, and fonts that youve used in them.
The potential employers courtesy title (Mr., Ms., Dr.), first name, and last name (if
you know it. If theres any possible way to track down that persons specific name,
track it down. Search the companys website. Call the companys HR department. It
can make a big difference whether you know someones name).
The inside address the contact information that you have for the employer
The date

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The salutation and greeting followed by a colon; a comma denotes familiarity with the
reader and the cover letter is a very formal document (example -- Dear Mr.
Lastname:)
The body of your letter (youll see more details about this below)
Your closing (use something standard such as sincerely or yours truly)
Your signature line (your name typed with enough space above it for your signature)
Your attachments/enclosures. Sometimes youll see people list something like
Attachments: (1). Dont do that. Be specific. List what the attachments are. Why?
Sometimes your document pieces will get separated. Lets say that the potential
employer has your rsum and your attachment has gotten stashed somewhere else
in the pile of papers on his/her desk. Its easier to find your attachment if he/she
knows what it is.

The Structure of the Body of the Letter

What youre about to read can help make the difference between a good letter and a
great letter. Additionally, knowing this structure and how the letter should flow can save
you a lot of time. Once you understand the structure, it will be easier for you to write your
letter from scratch the first time (or revise the letter youve already got). It will also make it
much easier for you to tailor, or customize, your letter.
First Paragraph
Your first paragraph is where you slam your reader between the eyes with the obvious: you
are the most qualified candidate. Youll do this by including the following information:
The specific position you are applying for
Where you found out about the position (name and date of the publication or
source)
A brief summary of your qualifications
Optional: The name of a trusted referral source (if relevant or applicable)
Lets say, for example, that your roommate told you about an internship available in
her department at IBM. If your roommate is well-regarded and known in the
department, go ahead and drop her name.
Lets say, on the other hand, that you strike up a conversation with the guy behind
you in line at Lowes. You find out that you both go to State. You mention that
youre looking for an internship. The guy tells you, Really? I work at IBM, and
theyre looking for interns in the human resources department. Tell them Bob Smith
sent you! If you do not personally know how Bob Smith is regarded, do not
mention his name in the cover letter, the interview, or at any other time during the
job search process. If he is not well regarded, it could hurt your chances of getting
the job.
Before you write the brief summary of qualifications, make sure you examine the
information about the job carefully. Lets use, as an example, a recent job posting I found
through www.rtp.org for a position at IBM (Figure 1):

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Job ID

Job Title

K090265 Entry Level Financial Markets Consultant

Job Level

Location

Entry Level Exempt Regular

NY,New York, RTP

Travel

Job Type

80-100% Full-time
Regular

Job Details
Seeking several entry level consultants for financial markets consulting. Undergraduate degree BS/BA in finance, accounting, MIS,
computer science or business management. Relevant internship or related experience with financial markets preferred. Excellent
written/verbal communication skills, excellent problem solving skills. Will be expected to define issues and assist with preparation and
recommendation of solution alternatives. Excellent team skills, positive relationships with peers, management and customers. Must be
willing to understand diverse point of view and handle multiple tasks.

Comment [JMH1]: Page: 1

Hint: Given this much information about the job, you
could call up the human resources department and
find out who your supervisor would likely be then
you could plug that information into your letter.

Position requires 100% travel

Candidates should be currently living in or near Boston, New York, or Research Triangle Park.
Workplace

M-Mobile/Telecommuters

Division

Global Services: 05-BCS BUSINESS CONSULTING SVCS

Desired Skills
IBM Global Services, the largest Information Technology services provider in the world, integrates IBMs broad range of services,
hardware, software and research to help meet the IT needs of a wide range of companies. The IBM Global Services portfolio includes
IT & Business Consulting, Business Transformation Services, e-business Services, Strategic Outsourcing Services and Total Systems
Management Services. For additional information please visit www.ibm.com/services.
Education

Bachelors Degree/Equivalent Experience

Major

Not Applicable

Figure 1. Information about IBM Position.

Lets examine, generally, what they are looking for. If the comments dont automatically pop
up on your computer, select Comments from the View menu and you should see
something that looks like footnotes at the bottom of your screen. Figure 2 shows a brief
analysis of the job requirements, Figure 3 shows a collapsed version of the requirements,
and Figure 4 shows a condensed, collapsed version of the requirements.
Seeking several entry level consultants for financial markets consulting. Undergraduate degree
BS/BA in finance, accounting, MIS, computer science or business management. Relevant internship
or related experience with financial markets preferred. Excellent written/verbal communication skills,
excellent problem solving skills. Will be expected to define issues and assist with preparation and
recommendation of solution alternatives. Excellent team skills, positive relationships with peers,
management and customers. Must be willing to understand diverse point of view and handle multiple
tasks.
Position requires 100% travel
Candidates should be currently living in or near Boston, New York, or Research Triangle Park.

Comment [JMH2]: Page: 1

This would require communicating with other
people.
Comment [JMH3]: Page: 1
You need to determine whether you have the
education theyre looking for. If youre a few months
shy of graduation, thats probably okay. If youre
more than a few months shy of graduating, you
wont be qualified for this position now.
Comment [JMH4]: Page: 1
Internship or related experience would be helpful
with financial markets would be even better.
Comment [JMH5]: Page: 1
Can solve problems and write and speak okay
that goes with the territory of being a consultant.
Comment [JMH6]: Page: 1
OK, able to think through solutions to a problem
still related to problem solving.
Comment [JMH7]: Page: 1
Basically, able to get along with all kinds of people
in all kinds of positions.
Comment [JMH8]: Page: 1
Same thing able to get along with people
Comment [JMH9]: Page: 1
Able to multitask who isnt, these days?
Comment [JMH10]: Page: 1
This is very important must be addressed right
away.
Comment [JMH11]: Page: 1
This seems important; well add it to the mix.

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Comment
Number
1
4
5
2
3

General Skill Needed

Consulting: Decision making,
communications, guidance
Communications again, and problem
solving
Recommending solutions also falls under
decision making and problem solving
Business management degree

Job experience internship or related

experience (pref. financial markets)
Team skills, able to get along with people

7
8
9

Able to get along with people

Multitasking
Traveling

10

Live near RTP

Notes: Do I have this?

Yes
Collapse 1, 4, 5 together
Yes
Yes
Yes
Collapse 2, 3 together
Yes
Yes
Collapse 6, 7 together
Yes
Yes
Yes
Collapse 9, 10 together
Yes

Figure 2. Table that lists requirements for IBM position.

Now, after collapsing similar requirements together, try to distill the most important
requirements to summarize your qualifications in the first paragraph:
Comment
Number
1, 4, 5
2, 3
6
8
9, 10

General Skill Needed

Consulting: Decision making,
communications, guidance, problem
solving, recommending solutions
Business management degree
Related job experience
Team skills, able to get along with people
Multitasking
Traveling
Live near RTP

Notes: Do I have this?

Yes
Collapse 1, 4, 5 together
Yes
Collapse 2, 3 together
Yes
Collapse 6, 7 together
Yes
Yes
Collapse 9, 10 together

Figure 3. Table that lists collapsed requirements for IBM position.

Now, condense each category into just one or two words:

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Comment
Number
1, 4, 5
2, 3
6
8
9, 10

General Skill Needed

Consulting: Decision making,
communications, guidance, problem
solving, recommending solutions
Business management degree
Related job experience
Team skills, able to get along with people

Notes: Do I have this?

Analytical and communications
skills

Multitasking
Traveling
Live near RTP

multitasking skills
Love to travel

Education and job experience

people skills

Figure 4. Table that lists condensed, collapsed requirements for IBM position.

Its time to write the first paragraph!

I am applying for the Entry-Level Financial Markets Consultant position (job ID K090265)
listed on the IBM US website on September 20, 2004. I have the education; job experience;
specialized skills (communications, analytical, and people) and wanderlust that make me an
excellent candidate for this position. I also live just minutes away from Research Triangle
Park, North Carolina and Raleigh/Durham International Airport.
The Body Paragraphs
In the first paragraph, you grabbed their attention by telling them, very generally, what they
need to know. You made some claims. Now, in the subsequent paragraphs, you need to back
up those claims that youve made. Heres the first tip. Back up your claims in exactly the
same order that you made them in the first paragraph. In the first paragraph above, you said:
education, experience, specialized skills, and wanderlust. In subsequent paragraphs, thats the
order in which youll describe each item.
Upon graduation this December, I will hold Bachelor of Science degrees in Finance and
Accounting from North Carolina Central University. The courses that I have taken in
pursuit of these degrees have prepared me well for this position [then you would provide
details about the courses and how they prepared you for this position. Look at a copy your
transcript or a list of courses you have taken. How has each class brought you closer to your
goal as a professional? What classes were most useful in terms of what this particular
employer is looking for?]
I have supplemented my education with two internships, one with Deloitte & Touche, and
the other with Arthur Andersen. Both internships required to me research multiple
solutions, present them to clients, and then help the clients to carry out the chosen solution.
During these internships, I refined my written and verbal communications skills by writing
and pitching multiple proposals and providing periodic reports to clients and management.

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My personality, educational and professional experience have provided me with the

specialized skills you seek in the right candidate. According to the Meyers-Briggs Type
Indicator, I am an ESFP (an extrovert with excellent decision making and troubleshooting
skills), which, is right in line with this position (see attached description of the ESFP
personality type). I have heartily enjoyed the teams at Deloitte & Touche and Arthur
Andersen and look forward to continuing to work in a team-based environment.
A native of Raleigh, North Carolina, I live just minutes from RTP and the RDU airport,
which is quite lucky because of my great interest in traveling. I have traveled to 35 of our 50
states in addition to Central and South America.
The Last Paragraph
Now that youve proven, as much as you can, that your claims are true, its time to wrap up.
In your last paragraph you need to do the following:
Ask for action
Make it convenient (to contact you and interview you)
Be neither to aggressive nor too subservient
Ask for Action
What action do you ask for? Of course the job interview. But be careful; dont make it
sound as though you just want to talk about yourself. So many times, candidates offer to
meet with the potential employer to expand on [my] qualifications in more detail or
something similar. You, as an astute, reader-centered communicator, will say something
more along the lines of, I look forward to speaking with you to find out I can help meet
the needs of [Company ABC]. Heres a hypothetical ending paragraph:
I look forward to speaking with you in person to find out how I might help you meet the
needs of [Company ABC]. I am available for an interview at your convenience, and you
are welcome to email me at abc@abc.com or to call me at (919) 555-1212. Thank you
for your time!
Always Use the Reader-Centered Approach
Here is an example of an approach that is not reader-centered. As you read the paragraph
excerpt, notice how its all about the writer:
I am seeking employment in the construction industry, employment which would afford me
the opportunity to obtain my professional registration, to gain experience in all phases of
construction, design, estimating, planning, and construction management, and lead to a
management responsibility position.
Even if youre applying for an internship -- where everyone knows the primary purpose is to
gain experience, and all the wonderful benefits for you, the writer, are plastered all over the
job information for the internship make sure that every single word in your cover letter
and rsum are reader-centered.

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Why?
Imagine the mindset of the potential employer. No one looks for job applicants because its
fun. Maybe someone is leaving or has left the company, leaving the employer in a bit of a
lurch, no matter how amicable the parting might have been. Maybe the company and
workload have grown to the point that they need extra help, in which case theyve probably
been swamped for a long time, and taking the time to look through rsums, interview
applicants, check references, and make decisions only makes the situation that much worse.
Now imagine the potential employer, wearily searching through dozens or hundreds of
applications that have been sent in response to job vacancy posting. Some of the job
application portfolios are good, some are bad, some are funny, some are sad. But that
perfect one hasnt happened along yet. The majority of the applicants have not put as much
thought as you have into how you can benefit the potential employer; most of them
obviously know nothing about the company or the job. Most of them are thinking, Hm. I
need a job and I am qualified. Heres what Im looking for. I want a competitive salary and
benefits and two weeks of paid vacation and Thats fine. Thats what we all want, right?
But it makes it that much easier for the potential employer to pick you out of the crowd if
youre saying, in essence, Hey, I can help you; let me prove it. Im already thinking about
what you need. I already know about your company. Call me in for an interview right now!
Of you use the techniques Ive described here, and described in your required reading
selections, that is what your letter will say to that potential employer!
Customize Your Letter
Now that you know the rather simple principles about what goes into the cover letter and
how the letter is structured, you should be able to prepare a letter with more confidence and
ease than before. You should also be able to customize future cover letters quite easily. You
might even consider creating a template where you can plug in relevant information for job
opportunities that strike your fancy. Or you can be even more sophisticated and keep a
collection of useful phrases stored in your Auto Text feature in Word.
If youre interested in learning about ways to automate your cover letter creation process,
email (via webct.ncsu.edu) or call me (829-7000, or 271-7878, or 515-1687) so that we can
set up a time to discuss this in person. Learning the techniques will take you about 20
minutes, and it can shave hours and hours off of the time you spend preparing cover letters.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Its perfectly all right even preferable -- to let your personality
show through in your letter (in a professional manner, of course; you dont want to be wacky
or sarcastic in a cover letter). You dont want to borrow a cookie-cutter letter out of a
book; you are an individual and that is one of the things that will help you to stand out
among a group of qualified applicants.
Read on about the rsum, the second piece of your job application portfolio.

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The Rsum: Your Table of Data

If your letter is the persuasive piece of the job application portfolio, your rsum is your table of
data. While you might tweak the rsum information here and there to tailor it for a specific job,
and while youll want to make regular updates to the rsum, its pretty much factual, immutable
information. For example, youre not going to declare your GPA is 2.5 for one job and 3.8 for
another the GPA is what it is! You might change the job descriptions a little; youll definitely
change the objective.
What to Include in Your Rsum
As far as what to include in your rsum, youve already read about the content in your
textbook and youve seen the online examples. If you have something that doesnt fit into a
traditional section of a rsum (for example, objective, education, training, experience,
computer skills, language skills, licenses and certification, military experience, interests,
hobbies, extracurricular activities, professional organizations, awards, honors, and the like), it
is all right to make up your own section-heading name.
You already know my stance on the length of the rsum; if you need more than a page
(truly need more than a page, not just a couple of lines), then use more than one page. Just
make sure to include your name and page number on the pages after the first.
Rsum Formats and Fonts
As far as the format that you use for your rsum, be as creative as you wish. Make up your
own template or use a prefabricated template. Word has some very nice ones; so do other
word processors. Here are a couple of rules of thumb to keep in mind as far as arranging the
information:
Most templates will list your job information in this order: dates, organization, position.
While the dates are important, theyre not the most important thing. Make sure that they are
on the right-hand side of the template instead of the left-hand side.
Word templates can save you time or they can frustrate you. If you run into a formatting
problem using a Word template you cant get the spacing right or your page number wont
go at the top of the page or something weird happens stop what youre doing, email me
your paper, and call me immediately (829-7000 or 271-7878). Ive already put the hours and
hours into troubleshooting this sort of problem; theres no reason for you to suffer
needlessly.
Word templates and, in fact, most templates often use inappropriate fonts. Here are the
most important things to remember about fonts. Serifs are the little embellishments youll
find on many letters. You see serifs on the font Ive used in these notes, for example:

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F, f

See all the little embellishments on the tops, bottoms, and edges of the
letters? These are serifs. They help people read more quickly and
efficiently.

F, f

See how these letters have no embellishments? Theyre just straight or

smoothly curved? They have no serifs. They are sans serif fonts.

Fonts without serifs (sans-serif fonts) are appropriate for short blocks of text (such as
headings) but not for body text (paragraphs, descriptions, bulleted lists, and the like). Sansserif fonts are good for screen (monitor display); not for printouts of heavy text (such as a
rsum or letter). Fonts with serifs actually help guide the readers eyes so that they help the
readers to read faster and more efficiently.
Not all fonts with serifs are created equally. You want to use fonts that are well proportioned
that is, not really tall and skinny and not really short and squat. This might shock you, but
do you know that Times New Roman, the default on 99.9% of word processors and desktop
publishing programs, is actually not the best font choice for body text? It was created for
narrow columns of text like a newspaper (thus the name Times). Fonts that are much more
readable than Times New Roman are Century Schoolbook, Garamond, Georgia, Goudy
Old Style, Palatino, and Bookman. Please do not use Times New Roman as your font for the body text
of papers for this course.
Consider Preparing Multiple Versions
If you might be qualified for two different types of jobs for example, computer
programming and graphic design then you should consider creating two different versions
of your rsum. You might highlight your programming-related work in the first rsum and
your graphic design work in the second. This might be as simple as reorganizing the major
sections of your rsum. It might involve including more information about programming in
one rsum and more information about graphic design in the next.
Instead of creating one version of the rsum and tweaking it for the two job categories,
youll save time if you have two different versions (or perhaps more, if the need exists) ready
to use.
Consider Preparing Multiple Document Formats
These days, you might apply for a job in many different ways: in person, by postal mail, by
email, by online websites, or by means of your own website.
For this reason, its a good idea to have a few different versions of your rsum, in terms of
the format.
For the rsum that you hand-carry or send by postal mail, an aesthetically pleasing,
traditional printed version of your rsum is appropriate. Likely candidates are Word
or another word processor or even Quark Xpress, PageMaker, or another desktop
publishing program to produce it.

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For the rsum that you email, consider creating a PDF version. This will keep the
layout from changing as a result of computer system fonts or printer drivers. If you
send a Word rsum and the recipient doesnt have the same fonts that you have, it
can destroy your formatting. Likewise, if the recipient doesnt have the same printer
drivers, this can create surprising formatting changes.
For rsums that you submit electronically, consider preparing text-only and/or
HTML versions. The text-only version will be unformatted text that you simply cut
and paste into online applications or rsum builders. The HTML version will
contain metatags that allow you to control the look of your document.

The References: Give Them a Little Something Extra

Unless you are specifically asked to do so, you should not send your references along with your
cover letter and rsum. The reason is twofold. First, this is a standard convention. Secondly, if
you apply for many jobs and send your references out with each one, your references might get
tired of fielding calls about you! This is why on many rsums youll see References available
upon request. It is customary to provide the references at the job interview if they are
requested.
Heres a sample reference, what you should include, and why (if you cannot see the reviewers
comments immediately, select Comments from the View menu and they should appear).
Dr. Don Smith
Professor, Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering
College of Engineering
North Carolina Central University
Campus Box 1234
112 Wallaby Street
Durham, NC 27713-1234
(919) 555-2365
donsmith@ncsu.edu
Dr. Smith has been my advisor for the past four years and has been the professor of three of my
engineering classes at NC Central.

Comment [JMH12]: Page: 1

Always use a courtesy title: Dr., Mr., or Ms. Why?
Its a convention, its the professional thing to do,
and it will save the person calling the references
from having a potentially awkward moment.
Comment [JMH13]: Page: 1
Include the persons first and last name.
Comment [JMH14]: Page: 1
Include the persons specific job title.
Comment [JMH15]: Page: 1
If they work in a specific department, include the
department name.
Comment [JMH16]: Page: 1
Name of the organization
Comment [JMH17]: Page: 1
If they have a box number, use that.
Comment [JMH18]: Page: 1
If they have a street address, use that. If they have
both a box number and a street address, use both.
Comment [JMH19]: Page: 1
Include the city, state, and zip code. If you dont
know the 9-digit zip code, look it up at
http://www.usps.gov.
Comment [JMH20]: Page: 1
Include the phone number and area code. Note that a
space exists between the area code and phone
number. Dont list it like this: (919)555-1212. List it
like this: (919) 555-1212.
Comment [JMH21]: Page: 1
Include an email address if the person has one.
Comment [JMH22]: Page: 1
Include a blurb about the nature and duration of your
affiliation with the reference. Why? This starts the
conversation for the person calling for a reference.
Normally, the reference call is awkward, at best.
Im calling because so-and-so has listed you as a
reference for an XYZ position. Then the caller has
to fish to ferret the appropriate information out of
the reference. Here, the caller can prompt the
reference, Skyler Jones listed you as a reference for
an XYZ position. I see here that you were his advisor
for the past four years and the professor of three of
his engineering classes at NC State. Then, the
reference can easily remember who you are and how
he/she knows you. Oh, yes, Skyler Jones a fine
student. I think you get the idea.