## Part 3 - Letter + CV

They say that the first impression in the most important one, and when you apply for a job, your letter of application is your first impression. A letter of application, also known as a cover letter, is a document sent with your resume to provide additional information about your skills and experience to an employer. The letter of application is intended to provide detailed information on why you are are a qualified candidate for the job. In this segment of the project, you'll learn how to write a letter of application and a CV. When you feel adequately prepared, you'll write a letter of application and CV.

Watching and Listening

application letter

Resume

Reading

Application letter

When writing a formal letter, you stick to a certain lay-out and a certain type of language (formal). In very formal letters, you should:
• make use of set formal expressions
• not use contractions
• not use idiomatic expressions or colloquialisms
• use indirect rather than direct questions
• express ideas in clear, polite language
• use the most academic vocabulary he or she knows (usually words of Latin, Romance or Greek origin)
• have a good, organised paragraph structure even for short letters.

To learn how to write a good, formal letter, please read through this wikiwijs about (formal) letter writing.

Resume

Your future employer would like a clear overview of the experience you have so far. This includes not only your work experience, but also you education and qualifications, your interests and achievements, your skills, and even persional details such as your date of birth and your place of residence. Please read through this website on how to write a resume.

Note: when asked what would make them automatically reject a candidate, employers said:

- CVs with spelling mistakes or typos 61%
- CVs that copied large amounts of wording from the job posting 41%
- CVs with an inappropriate email address 35%
- CVs that don’t include a list of skills 30%
- CVs that are more than two pages long 22%
- CVs printed on decorative paper 20%
- CVs that detail more tasks than results for previous positions 16%
- CVs that include a photo 13%
- CVs that have large blocks of text with little white space

Final exercise - Letter + CV

In a previous segment you've chosen a job you'd like. Now it's time to apply for this job. Write a letter of application and a CV to apply for one of the job openings you've chosen. Pretend that it's 10+ years later, and you have the right education, skills and job experience for the job. This takes some imagination, but try to keep it somewhat realistic.

Watching/listening: I can understand straightforward factual information about common everyday or job related topics, identifying both general messages and specific details, provided speech is clearly articulated in a generally familiar accent.
Reading: I can follow clear, written instructions. I can scan through straightforward, factual texts and identify what they are about and whether they contain information that might be of practical use to me.
Writing: I can ask for specific information in a letter. I can write personal letters, asking for and giving information.
Job Interview: I can write a letter and CV that look appealing to an employer.