In the highly competitive world of graduate jobs, putting together your initial job application has taken on more importance now than ever before.
It is critical that you strike the exact note that employers are looking for, rather than potentially ‘over-selling’ yourself or coming across as casually interested. A professional balance which exists somewhere in between these two is where you ideally want to be.
Below we have looked at some good tips which are worth following when applying online:
• Make sure that there are no grammatical and spelling errors in your C.V. This could potentially cost you much-needed credibility and may result in your application getting no further than the first hurdle. A high standard of grammar and spelling are tools that are highly valued by virtually all of the established graduate recruiters in the modern day.
• Read the advertised job carefully and respond to all key requirements. Employers will be looking for someone who is attentive, intelligent and capable of following instructions, so consider this your first test.
• Don’t attach covering letters; include it to the main body of the email instead. Too many attachments are more likely to be ignored by employers who may have a vast number of applications to deal with and will appreciate you making it as easy as possible to consider you.
• Use clear and concise paragraphs when writing your application. They have lots of reading to do, so get to the point and don’t waste their time. They will almost certainly have a list of criteria that they are looking for and if they cannot identify whether you possess enough of them, you will be swiftly dismissed.
Do you feel that you are strong in all of the areas mentioned above? Are there any areas in which you could improve your skills in that quest for a first graduate position?