Peer Review Report on a Peer’s Job Application Package

Great work on putting your application package for the Laboratory Research Assistant position currently available at Vancouver Prostate Center. Your application package has clearly boasted your diverse experience on laboratory and clinical research, which will be beneficial to this organization. To ensure that you will be the successful candidate, I have a few recommendations, which I think will improve your package:

Cover Letter

Your cover letter is very well written by addressing your acquired skills and attributes professionally. You have showcased your previous experience eloquently to elevate your profile. Several format changes will certainly raise the formality and professionalism of this document:

1. Skip two lines between your address and the date, and between the date and the recipient’s address
2. Finding the sender’s name can demonstrate the applicant’s attention to details, and is more personable to address to the potential employer in their names.
3. Using the word of the number if the number is less than ten is more appropriate and formal.
4. Using one font in the document is more consistent and appears professionally.

Resume

I applaud to the remarkable projects you have accomplished in the recent years; and I am in awe at your achievements on publishing studies in well-known journals and professional papers. Several format changes will certainly raise the formality and professionalism of this document:

1. Make sure to check the layout of each document before it is converted into the PDF version. The applicant’s name is currently at the end of the cover letter.
2. Under Other Volunteer & Work Experience section, there should be a line between each work experience.
3. Several phrases should be reworded to remove “I” or “my” from the sentences. For example, bullet point #4 under Directed Studies in the Technical Projects section should be reworded as: “The abstract of the study was accepted for 2016 American Academy of Neurology (AAN) Conference where its poster was presented.“

Reference Request Letters

Having reviewed the letters, several recommendations are made to increase engagement to whom you address:

1. Use the YOU-attitude to increase the engagement with the recipients. Highlight the expertise or strengths of the recipients and emphasize the professional working relationships you valued.
2. Skip two lines between the sender’s address and the date, and between the date and the recipient’s address.
3. Name the entire title of the position in the subject line to properly inform the recipients.
4. Address the recipient’s name by their proper salutation and their last name. For example, Mr. Marnane instead of Michael.
5. Avoid using abbreviations to raise the formality of the document, for example “I have” instead of “I’ve”, “November” instead of “Nov.”, etc.
6. Encourage to rephrase those sentences that sound casual, such as “Let me know if you would be alright with being my reference.” should be reworded to “Please let me know if you will be willing to be my reference.”

With your outstanding academic background and experienced laboratory techniques, I am confident that you will be the successful candidate for this position. I wish you all the best with your endeavors in your future career.