Common Mistakes in a Cover Letter & Resume ( T & P Series on Wednesdays: 20)

(Courtesy:pexels.com)

A cover letter & resume are the two essential documents when you apply for a job. In our previous post (Link), we discussed how to write a cover letter & resume as per the job description. These two documents should change as per the job description.

But, people make mistakes while drafting these documents. These are

 (1) Formatting: Generally, people copy the documents from others, and there is always the formatting issue. The documents look bad and out of shape. It repels the reader. Moreover, people write two to three pages long cover letters & resumes. Employers do not have time and will to read such long manuscripts. So, one should learn how to format easily in MS word. This is a skill that will be helpful in future all the time. You can go to my earlier post to learn simple text editing in two minutes (Link). That is it. I learned it from my M.Tech guide when there was no YouTube video to learn. You can also use Canva in this regard.   

(2) Word errors & grammatical mistakes: The documents are often full of typos & grammatical mistakes. A few months ago, I happened to screen a lot of cover letters & resumes for a competition. I observed a lot of copied redundant material, full of typos & grammatical mistakes. These mistakes make the employers skip the documents for the next one. In that case, you should write your own original content & screen it via various online tools such as Grammarly and Reverso. If you are out of word stock or sentence styles, you can spin your content in word spinners available on the web. The documents should be good & inviting to read.

(3) Authentic information: The writer should give authentic details in the documents. Generally, employers try to check whatever you are writing is true or just bluff because these documents are like menu cards of your skills, and you can put anything and everything you like. If they do not check, they might be duped. So, they tend to verify. If you are unable to stand by your points, you will be dumped in the first hand.

In the end, one has to learn how to write a cover letter & resume. You can have a glimpse of it in the ‘Campus Placement Guidebook: For Engineering students’. Employers tend to stick to excellent cover letters & resumes because it shows sincerity on the part of the candidate. Redundant & copy materials are sided in the first hand.

Read B.Tech Guidebook & Campus Placement Guidebook: For Engineering Students by the author.

 

Follow us on Twitter: The Review

Follow us on: The Review Facebook Page 

Our popular articles in the blog:

1. Behavioral questions (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/03/understanding-behavioral-questions-in.html)

2. Tellin your story(https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/02/telling-your-story-in-linkedin-for-job.html)

3. Personal branding (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/02/personal-branding-for-job-interviews.html)

4. Soft skill hard skill (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/01/soft-skill-for-job-interviews-for.html)

5. Transferable skill (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/01/transferable-skills-concept-definition.html)

6. Enhancing employability (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2020/12/enhancing-your-employability-during.html)

7. Cover letter (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2020/12/cover-letters-and-resumes-t-p-on.html)

8. Professional networking (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2020/12/professional-networking-benefits-for.html)

9. Communication tips (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2020/11/communication-tips-for-interviews.html)

10. Articulate (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2020/11/being-articulate-for-interviews.html)

11. Mirroring (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2020/10/mirroring-technique-to-master-for.html)

12. Personal job interview (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2020/10/personal-interview-t-p-on-wednesdaysl-06.html)

13. Group discussion (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2020/09/group-discussion-in-placement-drive-dos.html)

14. How to sell yourself (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2020/09/how-to-sell-yourself-sunday-series-with.html)

15. Your Attire Carry You (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2020/09/your-attire-carry-you-t-p-series-on.html)

16. Leadership (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2020/07/leadership-quality.html)

17. What are your strengths? (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/07/what-areyour-strengths-t-p-series-on.html)

18. What are your weaknesses? (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/08/what-are-your-weaknesses.html)

19. Tell me about yourself. (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/08/tell-me-about-yourself-introduce.html)

20. Online Interviews, Telephonic Interviews, etc. (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/09/online-interviews-telephonic-interviews.html)

21. Avoiding Herd Mentality During College Life (Sunday Binge Reading:02) (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/11/avoiding-herd-mentality-sunday-binge.html)

22. Considering Oneself as a Business of One (Sunday Binge Reading:03) (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/12/considering-oneself-as-business-of-one.html)

23. Do you put your future in others' hands? (Sunday Binge Reading:04)

( https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/12/do-you-put-your-future-in-others-hands.html)

24. Are You Employable by Private or Govt Sector Companies? (Sunday Binge Reading:05) (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/12/are-you-employable-by-private-or-govt.html)

 

Are You Employable by Private or Govt Sector Companies? (Sunday Binge Reading:05)

 

(Photo Credits: pexels.com)

Are You Employable by Private or Govt Sector Companies?

As I remember, the private sector came into prominence in the early 2000s in India. It was the time of the dot com bubble. The tech sectors were booming and at their peak. Young boys & girls started getting an insane amount of money in companies. Suddenly, they were buying flats in posh areas of Mumbai, Pune, Banglore etc. Many went overseas like Australia, the USA, and Canada to start a new promising life. This trickle down to other sectors also.

Moreover, India was opening up then. This expedited the process. The government sector also felt the pinch as people opted for private-sector jobs. Then Government brought two pay commissions in the last two decades to make the wages at par with the private sector. Then, the tech sector went a little bit downhill in terms of employment. Moreover, there was an overflow of job seekers to the tech sector’s making it saturated. It lost its shine and became low paying redundant sector.

 The government sectors with its 7th pay commissions have become lucrative to students. Apart from that, people are looking for job security. But, job security in these times is a myth. We have seen many instances in Assam, such as Jagirod & Silchar paper mills. All were good in the past, and now it is useless junk. Recently, the Government of India has set up a body called the Department of Investment & Public Asset Management under the Ministry of Finance to sell non-performing assets or loss-making PSU companies such as Pawan Hans, Air India, Bharat Pumps & compressors, etc. India will witness more of such drives in the coming years. The concept is that the “Government has no business in running a business”. The whole set-up follows the USA system where Government manages only a few sectors such as defence, public administration, healthcare etc.

Now coming back to the recruitment scenario, it seems that the tech sector has regained its strength as we hear stories of people getting an immense amount of packages in IITs. That will be lakhs for people not in IIT, which should be remembered. But, the tech sector has changed this time. It has matured. So, it is demanding specialist people for operations. Its nature is like that it will give money only to specialists. Keeping that in mind, the job seekers have to ask what we offer to employers. People have to learn the new age technologies of their field and be specialists. The whole scenario can be compared with the familiar scene of unskilled workers gathering each morning at town ‘chowk’ while the skilled ones get phone calls from employers directly.

 

Even though job market is opening up, there is a growing unwillingness of students to join private sector companies. But, students have to ask whether they are not opting or the companies won’t select them. It is good to prepare for Govt jobs. But, these are in short supply and will be scarcer in coming years as Government is withdrawing its presence from many areas and letting the private sector operate. We should remember that the private sector is good talent spotters because money is involved in their decisions. If one is not worthy of the private sector, he may most probably not be that suitable for the government sector too because, one may not be equipped with skills like soft skills & hard skills. Soft skills are like communication skills, leadership, team work, critical thinking, problem solving etc. The hard skills are like management skills, tech skills, analytical skills via various tools, financial skills and project management skills.

Students should not discount promising private enterprises and definitely go for recruitment in that field and feel the interview process. Sitting in the interview is an experience. As per my experience, only a tiny percentage of people can crack an interview on the first attempt. I have sat in many interviews, and I am not ashamed of it. You face rejection and then prepare well for the next one. In the process, you learn and toughen up. At last, you will be able to crack as you have passed the knowledge barrier or threshold to enter the big placed club. Therefore, one should try in every way.

If you like the article, read B.Tech Guide Book to support the ‘The Review.’     

  

Grab a Copy of  Campus Placement Guide Book: For Engineering Students
(Freely available from 8 Jan 2022 to 9 Jan 2022) 

Read Best Read Articles of  'the Review'

1. Behavioral questions (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/03/understanding-behavioral-questions-in.html)

2. Tellin your story(https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/02/telling-your-story-in-linkedin-for-job.html)

3. Personal branding (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/02/personal-branding-for-job-interviews.html)

4. Soft skill hard skill (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/01/soft-skill-for-job-interviews-for.html)

5. Transferable skill (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/01/transferable-skills-concept-definition.html)

6. Enhancing employability (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2020/12/enhancing-your-employability-during.html)

7. Cover letter (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2020/12/cover-letters-and-resumes-t-p-on.html)

8. Professional networking (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2020/12/professional-networking-benefits-for.html)

9. Communication tips (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2020/11/communication-tips-for-interviews.html)

10. Articulate (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2020/11/being-articulate-for-interviews.html)

11. Mirroring (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2020/10/mirroring-technique-to-master-for.html)

12. Personal job interview (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2020/10/personal-interview-t-p-on-wednesdaysl-06.html)

13. Group discussion (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2020/09/group-discussion-in-placement-drive-dos.html)

14. How to sell yourself (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2020/09/how-to-sell-yourself-sunday-series-with.html)

15. Your Attire Carry You (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2020/09/your-attire-carry-you-t-p-series-on.html)

16. Leadership (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2020/07/leadership-quality.html)

17. What are your strengths? (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/07/what-areyour-strengths-t-p-series-on.html)

18. What are your weaknesses? (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/08/what-are-your-weaknesses.html)

19. Tell me about yourself. (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/08/tell-me-about-yourself-introduce.html)

20. Online Interviews, Telephonic Interviews, etc. (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/09/online-interviews-telephonic-interviews.html)

21. Avoiding Herd Mentality During College Life (Sunday Binge Reading:02) (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/11/avoiding-herd-mentality-sunday-binge.html)

22. Considering Oneself as a Business of One (Sunday Binge Reading:03) (https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/12/considering-oneself-as-business-of-one.html)

23. Do you put your future in others' hands? (Sunday Binge Reading:04)( https://authenticmedia2020.blogspot.com/2021/12/do-you-put-your-future-in-others-hands.html)