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Cover letters and résumés (part 5): Best and worst examples
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The following is part of a series about the do’s and don’ts of cover letter and résumé writing. These two documents are so important that they can mean the difference between landing a first interview or receiving a generic “we’ve decided to pursue another candidate” e-mail from an organization (if they communicate with you at all).
Every hiring manager has a vivid memory of both the best and worst cover letters and résumés they’ve ever received – I know I do. While this series has covered many do’s and don’ts for both documents, sometimes advice is better captured in personal stories than numbered lists.
Worst
“I once received a résumé from a recent college graduate who wanted a position in public relations,” said Sylke Neal-Finnegan, APR, communications and public relations manager of the Washington County Visitors Association. “However, in the entire résumé and cover letter, instead of ‘public relations’ he had typed ‘pubic relations.’ Of course, he didn’t get the job, and the office laughed at his grave error. But, the worst thing was, one year later when another position opened in the PR department, he submitted the same résumé and cover letter, applying for a position in the pubic relations department.”
“One cover letter from a Penn State graduate started with, ‘After doing some Internet searching through, I found your company...’ Some Internet searching through?” said Micah Warren, principal of FeverPitch Media Group, Inc.
“I once had a student put three pages worth of résumé information onto one page by creating columns,” said Dr. Patrick Madsen, director of professional career services at The Johns Hopkins Carey Business School. “To help, he reduced his font size down to 7.5. I needed a microscope to read it!”
Best
“An outstanding cover letter I reviewed was written by a high school graduate seeking a part-time sales job while attending college,” said Linda Tancs, a career coach and branding strategist. “He highlighted every opportunity he’d had in life to make sales, including the proceeds generated from lemonade stands.”
“Early career job seekers may not have much professional work experience to tout, but certainly have skills that are transferable and can add value to potential employers,” said Pierce Resler, director of marketing at VisualCV, Inc. “Jason Wray’s VisualCV is an excellent example. We were so impressed with this recent George Mason graduate that he was hired to work for the company!”
| <-- Part 4: Top résumé writing tips |
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