CVs and Covering Letters 

The 'CVs and covering letters' section of the Careers and Employability site offers you information and advice on how to write both CVs and Cover Letters. You will also find sample CVs and Cover Letters, which you can use to help you understand how your own CV and Cover Letters need to be formatted and what they need to include. Feeling confident with these things can help you feel confident in future applications. 

Top Tip: Your CV and Cover Letter must be adapted for each job you apply for. This is because you need to address the job description to help explain why your skills and experiences make you right for the role. Use the advice and guidance from this section of the 'Act' Page to feel confident about how to do this. 

There are lots of services to help you improve your CVs and Cover Letter. You can use the 1-2-1 Careers Advisor Appointments, the Jessop West Employability and Placements Hub, and Workshops you can find on Career Connect to ask questions about your CV and Cover Letter and to get recommendations on how to improve them.   

Applications 

The 'Applications & personal statements' section of the Careers and Employability site offers you advice and information about prepping and writing applications and taking online test as part of the application process. You can use this section to feel confident answering the range of questions you might be asked during an application process. 

This section can help you understand what future applications might include whilst also supporting you in any applications you want to apply for. It is always useful to research the industry or organisation you are interested in to learn more about what to expect during the application process. This can help you find the relevant resources to prepare you for your own employability journey.    

Interviews

The 'Interviews and assessment centres' section of the Careers and Employability site provides you with the information and resources about what you can expect during an interview or assessment centre. You can find the types of interview questions explained and how to prepare for an interview. This section also breaks down what to expect from an assessment centre. 

You can also find guidance on what to do after your interview and what to expect during the selection process. This information is very useful to know what to expect from the rest of the application process and can help you feel confident in any applications you are applying for or future applications. 

Key Information

There are a few extra things that can be helpful to know. 

• Demonstrate you meet the criteria.

This webpage guides you through how you can prepare for a job application. This can help you feel confident in why exactly you are right for the role and how to communicate this clearly to a potential employer during your application and interview.  Looking through this page can help you select examples to help you demonstrate your criteria, how to present these examples, and then gives you an example of how to do this.  

• Networking, social media and speculative approaches.

This webpage offers you advice and guidance on how to use social media to network and make speculative applications. You can also learn about how to use social media to present your personal brand. Using this information can help you explore all the different options you have in finding opportunities and marketing yourself to future employers. 

• Applicant tracking systems.

This webpage explains how and why organisations use ATS (Applicant Tracking Systems) as software to scan your application for keywords that match the job description. You can then find advice to help make sure your CV can makes it through the scan.