It’s been a while since we’ve updated the blog and this is largely because we’ve been focusing on a redesign for FreelanceStudents. A recent drive to recruit writers for our blog, however, has prompted us out of hibernation to provide some much needed advice to the many students out there who are simply not doing their job applications justice.
From the applications we received we found a number of common mistakes, which we’ve listed below. We imagine that many will probably think this all common sense, but for those of you that have not seen much success in getting work experience we suggest you give this article a good read and hopefully we can get you producing applications that will get you that job.
1. Not Reading the Job Description
We had many responses that could have been applications for any job on the planet! It seemed as though some students were just not reading the details of the job description. Employers take time and care in writing job descriptions to find the right candidate and any application that appears to disregard the details will be quickly binned.
2. No Covering Letter
The covering letter is vital and as a general rule you should always include one with your CV. The covering letter sets the scene – who you are and why you’re applying. It points out key information to the employer, outlines your qualities, and makes a statement about your suitability for the job. It should give the personal touch that your CV will intrinsically lack.
3. CVs not Tailored
In some instances we received excellent covering letters, but on reviewing the accompanying CV we found no link between the two documents; the applicant had clearly not bothered to take the time to tailor the CV to fit the covering letter or the role. This sets alarm bells ringing and implies that an applicant is firing off the same CV to every employer!
4. Information Overload
Employers do not need to know your age, height, religious leanings, or your first summer job as a cup cake seller with the scouts. Jokes aside, you don’t need to include unnecessary information or your life history, as only a strong shot of espresso will keep an employer from falling asleep. Keep it relevant and keep it professional.
5. Pasting a CV into the Email Body
This is probably a point of contention, but we believe that pasting the contents of your CV into an email body looks, well, ugly. The lack of formatting within email applications often means that the structure is fairly messy. Our advice would be to attach a CV.
6. Poor Spelling
Remember that your application is a reflection of your professionalism, attention to detail, and writing skills. Believe it or not many of the applications we had for our writing roles were littered with spelling errors. We all make spelling mistakes (there’s probably a few in this article), but when it comes to jobs, employers need only find the slightest indiscretion in order to quickly reduce their overcrowded inbox of applications.
Final thoughts: Employers will only afford you a short amount of time to make an impression and if you fail to follow the advice above then we can almost guarantee that your application will quickly be thrown on the scrapheap. Good luck!
