Dear Hannah,
Thank you for your job application package. It’s visually very clean and uncluttered, and also very easy to read. However, it was lacking in details and quantifiers.
Cover Letter
A cover letter is really about what a candidate can do to help the company. The letter gave a great idea of why you want to work for NCLR, but didn’t give a firm reason of what you would contribute or differently than another candidate. How will you improve their Center?
Resume Content
There is a good starting point with the content of the resume, but it is lacking details. Hiring managers like to see quantifiers and details. Right now, your responsibilities are fairly vague. For example, when you assist with hearings and trials, what do you exactly do? How many hearings and trials would you help with? For example, I might say: “Assisted with researching for over 500 hearings and trials.” Giving stats or numbers allows the hiring manager to get a grasp of how well you performed.
The stats also help resumes get through the screening process. A lot of companies use automated filterers, and if the key words in the job posting do not appear in our resumes or cover letters we get automatically filtered out. The job posting requires a candidate that has the “Ability to be responsible and accountable in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment”. Perhaps mention having to complete tasks at a hard deadline in one of your responsibilities?
Resume Formatting
It is important to have white space in resumes, but there’s a little too much at the bottom. Spacing out your experience more, or including awards, volunteer experience etc. could fill some of the space. These details are especially important to meet job requirements. The job posting requires proficiency in Word and Excel. Perhaps fill the space with a skills section that details your proficiency in these programs.
The labelling and headers are clear, but the job location columns don’t line up with each other. Nor do the dates columns.
Reference Request Letters
The reference request letters are friendly and professional. The requests were clear and concise, and were well catered to each individual.
Final Thoughts
The application package is easy to read, and a great starting point. Some suggestions include:
- focusing on catering the resume and cover letter to the NCLR,
- including more details and quantifiers about your past experiences.
Good luck with the job application, and feel free to contact me if you have any questions,
Madeleine
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