How to Target Your Ideal Job

The third Rockefeller Professional Program’s (RP3) session of 2018 Spring focused on what goes into crafting a resume and cover letter. The Rockefeller Center invited Jill Kasher and Sue Wang, Assistant Directors at the Center for Professional Development (CPD), to share their knowledge on how to make yourself stand out when writing your resume and cover letter. At the beginning of the session participants shared what they hoped to take out of this session, and many students spoke about wanting to learn how to improve their personal resumes and cover letters to target their ideal job.

Jill and Sue began by discussing the point of resumes, which are to provide a snapshot of you, not an autobiography. They asked participants to reflect on what their impact was for each experience listed on their resume by asking the question, “If you didn’t show up that day, what would have not happened?” Jill and Sue later worked with students individually on specific questions about their resumes, while stressing the importance of relevance. They explained how participants can tailor their resumes based on what they have done that is most relevant to the opportunity they are seeking.

The session then centered on cover letters, where Jill and Sue started with the metaphor that cover letters are a bridge between your resume and the job description. Participants were able to think about and discuss how to connect their experiences to not only what skills the employer is searching for, but also their long term goals and knowledge of the company's mission. Towards the end of the session, participants completed a cover letter outline worksheet where they brainstormed ways to come up with a hook and body for a current cover letter they are writing. Jill and Sue also answered questions and concluded by encouraging participants to make an advising appointment at the CPD and to utilize resources the available online for resume and cover letter development.

-Written by Bethany Malzman ’19, Student Program Assistant for Communications and RP3

For more information about the CPD, visit http://sites.dartmouth.edu/cpd/ or email cpd@dartmouth.edu.