English 307 Assignment:

Unit 5: Job Materials Portfolio

This final semester project asks you to apply all that you have learned this semester to customize a job materials portfolio. In this project, you will research jobs and develop contextualized materials related to one particular position. Ideally, you will include work accomplished during your client-consulting project and apply principles from the Business Writers Handbook. This project, although geared toward internships and new positions within an organization, can be adapted to fit your specific needs. In other words, graduate school applications or materials for a promotion or review at your current job are encouraged. I want this portfolio to be useful for each of you. If you might need such consideration, please consult with me so that we can make the portfolio equitable and useful for you. The deliverables for this unit include: a job advertisement, a research memo, a print-based rsum or a web-based rsum, and a cover letter.

In this overview, you will find all information that you need to complete Unit 5, including required readings and recommended resources. If you have any questions about deadlines, please refer to the course calendar. If you have any questions about using the materials located on this page, feel free to contact me (londiem@email.arizona.edu).

What kind of job advertisement should I locate?

In contrast to Unit 1, where you collected 3 job ads and used them for comparison and analysis, this unit asks you to locate a single job ad for a position of interest to you. This position might be one that you will be applying to in actuality; consider entry-level jobs if you are close to graduation and can participate in such a job or internship search. If you are not in a position to seek a professional job or internship, then you should locate a job that you will be qualified for in the near future or upon graduation. In other words, the position needs to be a professional position, and it should be realistic in terms of your degree-seeking status and experience. Similar to your Unit 1 work, this advertisement needs to be substantialat least three paragraphs in length (note that while one of your job ads for Unit 1 could be shorter since you had three total, your job ad for this unit must be a significant length since it will be your only ad). Additionally, the ad should specify not only the position but also the company. Part of your contextualization of your job materials will rely on your ability to research the position and company offering the position. Keep in mind that the quality of your Unit 5 materials is inextricably bound to your selection of a well-developed job advertisement. Special Note: This project is also adaptable for those of you interested in developing graduate school applications or job promotion materials. Please reference the How should I prepare my

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materials for grad, medical, or law school applications to fit the project? section of this document.

How should I prepare my research memo?

Your research memo will be addressed to me, and it will explain your research into the position and the company offering the position. This memo should follow the format as discussed in the memo of introduction. Additionally, please review the considerations of drafting a memo. memo development The body of your memo should be developed based upon the following prompts. (Note: If you cannot answer these questions thoroughly based upon your research into the position and company, you need to locate another position of interest to you.) State the position you have chosen and the company offering the position. Explain the companys product or service and its clientle. Describe the companys mission. Discuss the companys history. Provide information about the companys competitors. Discuss the benefits, long-term growth, and opportunities for you in this position and with this company. Describe the reason you selected this position over others that you located. Develop a preliminary analysis of the kinds of skills and experiences you have to offer the company.

How should I prepare my print-based rsum?

Your print-based rsum should be developed as guided by the BWH readings, Asher readings, and our class discussion. Do not use a Word template to design your resume! Keep in mind that a traditional print-based rsum follows a relatively conventional set of guidelines, but those guidelines must be adapted to your own unique situation. That is, your rsum must consider your own strengths as a candidate as well as the principles discussed in our readings. required sections of your rsum Your resume should include the following sections, but not necessarily in the order provided here. The ordering of your accomplishments should be based upon your best analysis of the job context. Contact information, Profile section (see Asher, chapter 8), Education, Professional Experience, Activities, Honors, and/or Memberships (or other such category). Remember you must determine how these sections will be developed and positioned on your rsum, and I would be happy to consult with you about those decisions. formatting your rsum Your rsum should closely follow the guidelines established in the Reference Sheet for Formatting (on D2L) in terms of font choices and white space. The formatting, however,

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must also be adapted to your particular situation in the job search. White paper, black laser jet printing, and reasonable grid set-up of your rsum, however, are required. Font sizes, emphases, and faces should be selected for readability, tone, and transferability. Headings must be used to denote subsections of your rsum, and you should be certain to create a consistent design. Once again, do not use Word templates for your resumedevelop the design yourself.

How should I prepare my web-based rsum?

Your web-based rsum should be developed firstly with professionalism. Despite interesting personal pages offered in our electronic community, you don't want your web-based rsum to be perceived as less than professional. Your first decision, and likely one of the most difficult, is layout of the web-based rsum. Will you create one long node with supporting documents linked from that node? Will you create multiple pages that represent sections of your rsum with an overview of those pages for the reader? Keep in mind that answers to these questions must be dictated by the rhetorical situation of your own job search. Expectations for design and layout of web documents are often connected with disciplinary expectations. Those of you in media studies or design related fields might need to demonstrate a more visually complicated design. Others of you might want or need a more conservative web-based design. Regardless of your choice, you must be able to explain your design choices in the context of your research on the job position. Although I don't expect you to write each line of code yourself, do not use a Web template OR save a Word file as HTML. Neither of these options provides you the opportunity to learn web design or make rhetorical choices about the design and content of your web materials. (Also please note that while I will do my best to help you, I am not an expert in this area and can provide only very limited help. If you do not have the programming experience necessary to create a web-based rsum, you should have the time to learn on your ownotherwise, you may be better off with the traditional print-based rsum.) In terms of rsum sections, I expect you to include those noted above in the print-based rsum section. In addition, providing links or downloadable examples of your work as linked evidence of your abilities is a terrific idea. Be certain those links demonstrate a clear relationship, and that they are understood by the user of your web-based rsum.

How should I prepare my cover letter?

Your cover letter is your opportunity to capture your job reviewers attention. You should address the letter to the contact person listed on the job advertisement. If the job ad does not provide a name, select a proper opening such as Dear Business Manager: or Dear Human Resource Specialistavoid To Whom It May Concern! Ideally, you want to do a little research to locate the contact person. Remember to proofread the spelling of your contact persons name. Your cover letter serves two critical purposes: 1) the proper routing of your rsum and 2) the effective selling of you as a candidate. You should develop the following three sections of your letter (Of course, you might need to adapt this order depending upon your specific materials for this project):

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Introduction, Rationale, and Call to action.

For detailed explanations of each of these sections, please read pp. 138-141 in Asher, Chapter 16 (on D2L). Remember you should subtly include the research you have done about the organization in your cover letter. For example, if the organization highlights its commitment to customer satisfaction, quality, innovation, etc., you need to use that language to describe yourself and your work ethic. You should do so by emphasizing what abilities and skills you can contribute to their organization. Two common problems to avoid in your cover letter are 1) focusing on the position's benefit to you rather than stating your contribution to the organization and 2) wasting too much valuable space on information already listed on your rsum.

How should I prepare my materials for grad, medical, or law school applications to fit the project?
In terms of developing equivalent work to a job portfolio, those of you interested in grad, medical, or law school should provide me with the following: Starting web page or a description of the program to which you are applying (replaces the job ad); Research Memo that addresses these questions: o State the program that you have chosen and the university associated with the program. o Explain the programs strengths in terms of specializations and research interests. o Describe the programs mission and guide purposes. o Discuss the programs history. o Provide information about competing programs. o Discuss the benefits, long-term growth, and opportunities for you after graduating from this program. o Describe the reason you selected this program over others that you located. o Develop a preliminary analysis of the kinds of skills and experiences you have to offer the program. Completed copy of your application form (replaces rsum); and Completed personal statement (replaces cover letter).

To help with your personal statement, I have found some useful online resources. Basically, you are trying to explain why you are interested in advanced study, what you have to offer the field and that particular program, and what the program has to offer you. The personal in personal statement doesn't mean your life story. Instead, personal denotes your reasons for both wanting to study a certain discipline and joining a particular profession. As the information in these sites will stress, always answer the questions provided to you. If the program does not ask specific questions rely on the formula stated above. Page 4 of 5

Admission Essay Help http://gradschool.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site= http%3A%2F%2Fwww.4tests.com%2Fpartners%2Fcollegegate%2Fessay_tips_1.asp Writing Your Personal Statement for Law School by Linda Abraham http://arapaho.nsuok.edu/~weaverca/lawpers.htm#top Carnegie Mellon Health Professions Program Tips for Writing a Personal Statement http://www.cmu.edu/hpp/achieve/pstips.html Berkley Student Information about Personal Statements http://uga.berkeley.edu/apa/personalstatement/ Nesbitt-Johnston Writing Center at Hamilton College Personal Statements https://my.hamilton.edu/academics/resource/wc/Your_Personal_Statement.PDF It is extremely important to proofread your statement carefully and format it in a traditional way. Keep in mind that each discipline will read personal statements from different vantage points and that advice from faculty in your own discipline can best contribute to the shaping of your statement.

When do I submit my job materials for evaluation?

In order to be successful with this project, you must be self-motivated. I will not be setting intermediate due dates (other than draft sharing days). I encourage you to come by my office hours or make arrangements for me to review materials with you. The memo is especially significant in terms of making sure you are on the right track. Thus, don't hesitate to set up a meeting and share your progress with me. Otherwise, I want this project to be motivated by all you have learnedI am offering you support but want you to guide the process for yourself. The final portfolio is due on the last day of class. Bring a hard copy with you to class, and email me an electronic copy (i.e., all portfolio documents contained in one PDF file). If you decide to create a web-based rsum, you will provide me the URL where your rsum is hosted.

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