Job Search Portfolio Project

 
Contents & Navigation
objectives
description
components
ad guidelines
interview questions
additional notes
assessment
submission
resources
all job search 〉

Project Objectives & Goals

employ rhetorical approach to writing job search documents employ rhetorical strategies for writing effective resumes and cover letters employ professional design for readability and usability prepare for the job market and your career field
demonstrate knowledge of career field & position/s achieve a purpose and meet the needs of an audience employ strategies for successful job interviews write other effective documents related to employment

Project Description

Whether you’re planning on getting a job in your field for the first time after graduation, or you’ve been in your field for several years, you may soon find yourself seeking a new position. The job search process can involve a lot of research, writing, patience, and luck.

No matter what field you’re in or what kind of job you’re after, you need to be able to present yourself professionally in documents such as letters and résumés, and in face-to-face communication situations. This project asks you to compose a few documents related to finding a job. You will need to find a real job listing to use as the basis for your project. This listing should be for a job you could legitimately apply for after graduation. All of the documents you write will be geared toward getting this job. Hopefully, once this project is done, you will have documents you can reuse or use as templates to generate professional job search documents in the future.

Components

important materials on other pages

Your job search portfolio must include the following:

  • (Annotated) Job Advertisement* for a desirable, real job in your field that you could likely obtain directly after graduation (see advertisement guidelines). Copy/paste the text of the listing into a Word file and also include an accessible URL.
    • if the copy/paste is difficult to read, please reformat to plain(er) text for better readability
    • required annotations:
    • highlight in blue (or use bold): job functions, roles, tasks, and/or responsibilities you must be able to perform; things you must be able to do and/or things you will be asked to do (these are often—but not always—verbs)
    • highlight in green (or use italics): attributes, qualities, traits, and/or characteristics you should possess (these are often—but not always—adjectives)
    • highlight in yellow (or underline): tools, systems, or products you must be able to use, work with, or provide; products or things you must be able to create or make; knowledge or expertise you must possess (these are often—but not always—nouns)
  • Cover Letter (written specifically for the job listing above) to accompany your resume. It should
    • highlight/explain your accomplishments and show how your qualifications match the job ad, position, and career field.
    • be addressed to a real person at the company’s mailing address (you may have to look this information up online if it isn’t provided in the listing).
    • be written as a traditional, paper cover letter (some listings may ask you to send documents via email. Ignore this and write a traditional cover letter).
  • Traditional Print Résumé (chronological, skills, or mix) with objective statement intended for the job listing above; resume design must be created from scratch (no MS Word or other templates)
  • Optimized/Scannable Résumé written as a digital version of your resume; written, designed, and optimized for OCR, searchability, maximizing “hits,” and prepared for submission to inline or text-box browser applications (and applicant tracking systems, or ATS)
  • Interview Question Responses – Answer all six questions in the section below as if you were asked them during an interview for the job listing you have found. Of course, prepare your answers professionally (use tenants of good professional writing, plan your response, and proofread/edit).
  • Thank-You Correspondence to be sent after the interview for the above job listing. Send a brief letter to thank the interviewer. You may make up details as necessary.

Job Advertisement Guidelines and Requirements

Some students plans include applying for an internship before graduation. Some students post-bachelors degree plans may include graduate school, a position with their family’s business, moving up in a company where they are already employed , or something else other than taking in entry-level position in their field.

While I acknowledge all of these possibilities as reasonable plans for before and after graduation, these situations are not appropriate as the basis for the job search portfolio project. Students must use real, desirable, entry-level positions (or positions they would – or would almost – qualify for immediately following graduation). These positions must be advertised publicly with businesses or organizations that are accepting applications from the general public.

job advertisements for the Job Search Portfolio project must
  • be for a position in your major, career field, or industry (or your minor/s, or some combination of majors/minors, etc.); in other words, you must choose a job your FAU education has prepared you for
  • be for a position you will qualify for (or nearly qualify for) after you graduate with your BA/BS/BSW (and take any necessary licensing exams, obtain certifications, etc.)
  • be for a position you would be satisfied with—in an industry you’d be comfortable working in, in a geographic area where you want to live, etc.
  • include the job/position title, the name of the business or organization hiring, a job description/list of duties, and minimum qualifications/requirements for applicants
you may not use any of the following as the basis for the Job Search Portfolio project
  • you may not use an internship or graduate school application/opening
  • you may not use a position in your family business or a friend’s business
  • you may not use a position that has no job advertisement; a position that is not publicly advertised (internal); or a position not accepting applications from the general public
  • you may not use an opportunity for a promotion at a business you already work for
  • you may not use telemarketing, temporary/temp agency, or office positions (such as administrative assistant, secretary, etc)
  • you may not use positions advertised by job placement or recruitment agencies that do not include the name of the business or organization that is hiring
  • you may not use multi-level marketing positions, network marketing positions, or referral marketing positions.
  • you may not use job advertisements/positions that require an advanced degree (no degree higher than bachelors); in other words, you may not use positions that require an MA, MFA, MS, MBA, MEd, PhD, EdS, JD, MD, DMD, etc.

Interview Questions

As part of your job portfolio project, answer all six questions as if you were asked them as if they were asked during an interview for the job listing you have found. Of course, prepare your answers professionally (use tenants of good professional writing and be sure to proofread/edit your responses). If you are asked a behavioral question, answer using the STAR method. If appropriate/possible, show your knowledge of the position and company/organization in your response.

  • What makes you think you’re qualified for this position at this company?
  • Tell me about a time that you had a lot of work to do in a short time. How did you manage the situation?
  • Describe a work or school situation where you had to interact with an irate person (customer, supervisor, group member) and describe how you handled it.
  • Why are you interested in this position at this company/organization?
  • What is your greatest weakness?
  • How has college prepared you for this career?

Notes & Reminders

Resume Formatting & Design

You should format and design your resume according to the conventions (rules) of professional documents. Professional layout and design doesn’t need to be complicated or flashy to be effective. Effective design can mean simple—but strategic—use of font sizes, alignment, and boldface.

Also, excellent professional design doesn’t require desktop publishing applications (I know this because I do almost all of my document design in Word). Good document design in Word may require Googling to figure things out, but there’s no trick or training to it.

(That’s how I do it… if I can’t figure out how to do something I want to do in Word, I Google to find answers, watch tutorials, etc. If you’re not great in Word, know that you may need to spend some extra time figuring out how to do things you want to do. Be prepared to Google, read instructions, watch tutorials, and deal with the sometimes-frustrating process of learning new things).

No Templates, No Sample Language, No Generators

The project asks you to WRITE job search related documents. By “WRITE,” I mean that you must write your own language, write rhetorically, and tailor your resume, cover letter, follow-up letter, and interview question responses to match the job advertisement.

Because you must WRITE your own documents, you are not permitted to use templates, sample documents, sample language, or document/text generators of any kind (for any reason). You may not use templates, samples, or generators for your design or for your language. You may not use parts of templates, samples, or parts of text from generators. You may not “borrow” language from anywhere—even if it’s offered freely as a sample or example somewhere online.

If you use a template (for language or design), use a fill-in-the-blank sample, use a text/document generator, borrow phrasing or sentences, or try to game the system some other way, you will get a 0% on the Job Search Portfolio project.

Assessment Criteria for Job Search Portfolio

In addition to the general guidelines below, all documents should be written using the tenets of good professional writing, including (but not limited to) clarity, conciseness, and correctness, and should adhere to the guidelines for successful job documents and communication presented in class.

The Cover Letter will be considered above average (A/B) if it

  • Includes an effective introduction
  • Is targeted at (tailored to) the job advertisement
  • Expands on/proves items from resume
  • Indicates specific experiences, results, and/or successes
  • Includes effective closing; asks for interview
  • Employs a rhetorical approach and professional style

The Traditional Print Resume will be considered above average (A/B) if it

  • Is clearly and appropriately written as a chronological, skills, or mixed resume
  • Is targeted towards a particular job advertisement (and position)
  • Includes a well-written objective statement, clearly tailored towards the particular job advertisement and/or position description, highlighting what the applicant will bring to the position (may also include summary of qualifications OR a skill section, as appropriate)
  • Includes descriptive action verb statements that effectively describe duties, responsibilities, successes, and outcomes
  • Is written in parallel structure
  • Is formatted professionally. It should be aesthetically pleasing, easy to read, and not based on a template

The Optimized/Scannable Resume will be considered above average (A/B) if it

  • Is formatted and optimized for scanning and OCR (optical character recognition).
  • Shifts verbs to nouns (where possible); shifts past tense verbs to present tense.
  • Includes terms from the job advertisements; includes synonyms, keywords, and buzzwords.
  • Anticipates employer search terms.

The Interview Responses will be considered above average (A/B) if they

  • Employ STAR response method on behavioral questions
  • Show knowledge of company/position when applicable
  • Reinforce qualifications for position
  • Indicate specific experiences, results, successes
  • Address weakness effectively (when appropriate)
  • Are professional and contribute to good ethos

The Thank-You Letter will be considered above average (A/B) if it

  • Includes specific detail
  • Affirms interest and confirms qualifications
  • Employs rhetorical approach and professional style

Overall, projects will be considered above average (A/B) if they

  • Employ clear, correct, concise professional writing style
  • Employ reader-centered writing
  • Are organized appropriately
  • Employ a rhetorical approach
  • Demonstrate correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation with no typographical, capitalization, or other errors
  • Employ correct diction
  • Are complete
  • Meet all requirements as stated on this project outline

NOTE: A project will not be accepted if it is incomplete. If any document submitted for this portfolio is found to be plagiarized, in whole or in part, you will receive a 0% F for the project. At the instructor’s discretion, plagiarism can result in a 0% F for the semester grade and a permanent note on the student’s transcript. Repeated cases of plagiarism may result in expulsion from the university. Please refer to the University Honor Code in the University Catalog for more information.

Submission

Submit to the JSP Assignment Submission Upload area on Canvas.

Please copy and paste your documents into one .doc/x in the order below. In general, each document should start on a new page.

  1. Annotated Job Advertisement (copy the job ad URL at the top; copy and paste the full text of the job ad into your document; annotate according to the guidelines here)
  2. Cover Letter
  3. Traditional Résumé† (chronological, skills/functional, or combination/hybrid)
  4. Optimized/Scannable Résumé
  5. Six Interview Question Responses (please copy these 6 questions into your document and type your responses below each question)
  6. Follow-up/Thank-you Letter

Save as a .doc/x as filename “LastName-JSP” and upload to Canvas by the deadline listed on the course schedule.

†If your resume includes “advanced” formatting, or if you are concerned the formatting may be altered or lost in the submission process (upload, conversion, etc), please ALSO submit your resume as a separate .pdf file (filename “LastName-JSP-Resume”).

Resources

Articles

General Career Resources

FAU & Florida Career Resources

PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATION
According to Wikipedia…

“A professional association (also called a professional body, professional organization, or professional society) is usually a nonprofit organization seeking to further a particular profession, the interests of individuals engaged in that profession and the public interest.

The roles of these professional associations have been variously defined: ‘A group of people in a learned occupation who are entrusted with maintaining control or oversight of the legitimate practice of the occupation;’[1] also a body acting ‘to safeguard the public interest;’[2] organizations which ‘represent the interest of the professional practitioners,’ and so ‘act to maintain their own privileged and powerful position as a controlling body.’[2]“

1. Harvey, L. (2004). Professional body”. Quality Research International. Analytic Quality Glossary.
2. Harvey, L.; Mason, S.; Ward, R. (1995). Role of Professional Bodies in Higher Education Quality Monitoring. Birmingham: Quality in Higher Education Project

Professional Organizations