Soft Skills and Effective

CV
Preparation
BA100 Career Planning
Spring 2023
 Soft Skills
• non-technical skills
• relate to how you work
e.g.: how you interact with colleagues,
how you solve problems,
how you manage your work...
 How to Get Soft Skills
• Not in traditional classroom,
• Learning by doing (by exposure),
• Clubs, internships, work experiences!
Critical Soft Skills for Working Life
• Communication
• Teamworking
• Creativity
• Adaptability (Change Management)
• Time Management
• Problem Solving
• Leadership
 Communication
• Presentation
• Listening
• Speaking
• Writing
• Nonverbal

How to improve:
• Learning by doing,
• Asking for feedback.
 Teamworking
Working well with clients, colleagues, managers and other people in your
workplace can help you complete tasks efficiently while creating an
enjoyable environment both for yourself and others.
• Colloboration,
• Listening,
• Communication,
• Awareness,
• Empathy.

How to improve:
• Learning by doing
 Creativitiy
Related
• Curiosity,
• Learning from others,
• Open-mindedness,
• Innovation,
• Experimentation.

How to improve:
• Brainstorming ideas and solutions;
• Asking questions to generate original ideas;
• Keeping an open mind to evaluate tough situations;
• Keeping a positive attitude.
 Adaptability
Being able to adapt to changing environments and work processes makes you a
competitive job candidate and strong overall professional. Having adaptability skills means
you are open and willing to learn new things, take on new challenges and make
adjustments to suit transitions in the workplace.
• Open-minded,
• Cooperative,
• Curious,
• Patience.

How to improve:
• Be aware of changes in your environment,
• Develop a growth mindset,
• Set goals for yourself,
• Ask for feedback,
• Accept change.
 Time Management
Demonstrate your time management and multitasking skills by
maintaining multiple endeavors. Succeeding in the classroom while
working part time, freelancing, or completing volunteer work, taking
part in club activities is a sure way to impress future hiring managers.

How to impove:
• By doing,
• Prioritize,
• Learn to say «NO».
 Problem Solving
Problem-solving skills help you determine the source of a problem and find
an effective solution
To do this effectively;
• Discuss a problem objectively;
• Examine how a problem affects the team and its productivity;
• Come up with possible solutions;
• Make plans to implement the solutions.

Be part of a solution, not the problem.

 Leadership
Related
• Delegation,
• Deal making,
• Decision making,
• Mentoring, Promotion
in the future
• Motivation,
• Planning,
• Budget and money
management.
To Do List
• Make internship,
• Get part-time job,
• Ask for feedback,
• Differentiate yourself (hobies, language, cities/countries
you experience, clubs,…) ,
• Have a mentor,
• Practice the skill you are developing,
• Maintain good eye contact when speaking to someone,
• Have good writing skill,
• Monitor your body language and observe others,
• Hear people out before you speak.
Effective CV
Preparation
What is CV (Curriculum Vitae= course of life)?
The English call it «CV» The Americans call it «Resume»

• Why should I hire you?

• What are the reasons why I chose you over other candidates?
 • Purpose of CV

• To impress recruiters

• To provide a snapshot of your career.

Sections and Proper Order
• Contact Information
• Full name
• Email address
• Telephone number
• LinkedIn profile
• Home address

• CV Objective
• Education *
• Work Experience
• Activities
• Skills (Language and Digital)
• Hobbies
• CV Objective
It’s a quick summary of where you’ve been so far in your career and also
where you want to go with the company you are applying to.
Common Mistakes:
1) Using the Same Objective
for Every Job Application,
2) What work adds to you,
3) Being too vague,
4) Going On… And On… And On…
Sections and Proper Order
• Contact Information
• Full name
• Email address
• Telephone number
• LinkedIn profile
• Home address

• CV Objective
• Education :
• reverse-chronological
• CGPA*
Sections and Proper Order
• Contact Information
• CV Objective
• Education *

• Work Experience (Internship)

• reverse-chronological,
• Internships
• Write what you did, not a paragraph but bullet points,
• From most relevant items about the applied position to less (still relevant☺ )
Sections and Proper Order
• Contact Information
• CV Objective
• Education *
• Work Experience

• Activities:
• Works in student clubs (what you do, relevant),
• Team size/responsiblilities,
• Concerts/tournaments/competitions/…
Sections and Proper Order
• Contact Information
• CV Objective
• Education *
• Work Experience
• Activities

• Skills (Language and Digital)

• Hobbies.
Letter of Intent (Letter of Interest)
a letter sent to an employer that expresses your
intent to become a part of the company or organization
even if there is no open position at that moment.
• can stand alone
For example; to work as an asistant in a project in progress at a
university, but the university did not advertise on this subject.

Cover Letter
• is typically sent for an open job posting
Video CV
Purpose:
• to show your skills,
• to personalize your application

Includes;
• Name, age, school
• University, department
• Place of residence,
• Work experiences,
• Language skills,
• Career goal and expectations.
 E-portfolio (website, blogs, video channels)
• Portfolio; student’s own stories of what they know, why they believe they
know it, and why others should be of the same opinion. Students prove
what they know with samples of their work.
• E-portfolio: Electronic Technologies

• Popular : Creative Industries (design, writing, marketing, …)

• What should you include?
• A high-quality image of yourself,
• Exhibition of your work experiences in an interactive way,
• CV,
• Projects,
• Achievements,
• Publications.
BA0100 Homework

• Due date April 5th (23:59)

• Odtuclass
• A traditional OR video CV
• In English
• Letter of Intent OR Cover Letter
• Prepare as Word, submit as Word of Pdf (tradional CV)
• 1 min for video CV
• Not imaginary but real