All about Resumes / CV's and Cover Letters for Jobs and Internships

[Petit Lucille]

uuuhh that's nice to know! thank you...
i've never lied in my resume, although i've been told to do so and not be "inmature"
however, interviews are a chance to explain why the resume is a little empty. as a contrast looking very sure of yourself, you can say a lot of things that you cannot include in it, but are of most importance to do almost any job such as: i have a very good memory and i always pay attention to little details, i am very organize and i'd never loose anything important, i learn very fast, and i am willing to learn a lot, etc. if however, the interviewer is fixed on the lengh of it, just say, i wish or i'm trying to get it longer (as in: give me the job!!!!!) the mail goal here is to convince the other person that you will do the job very good and that you are not a horrible person to be around. to give a good impression, we have style and fashion!
i haven't apply for many jobs, but i always got them!

 

[superbeautiful]

What's the difference between a cover letter and a resume?

 

[LittleMolly]

Hi,

I would love some advice on cover letters and their content. I'm looking for some work experience or an internship in New York for a while, up to 6 months, and I need some help on what to write in a cover letter to introduce myself. My CV is up to date and I need something to send with my CV expressing my interest in jobs/internships etc. I'm currently in a Account Management role in my current firm and have a largely client facing role but this I would like to transfer and do something similar in the fashion industry but have no fashion experience.

Any tips or advice on how I can approach this would be greatly appreciated as I have to leave my current job soon before it depresses me even further!!! Thanks so much!! xxx

 

[BetteT]

My advice? Read the thread .... and I've already answered what I think in post #44.

 

[pinksatin]

OK, this is a simple, maybe silly question but . . . how do you address unknown people in the greeting of a cover letter? Sometimes all you have is an email address and it has no one's name in it. Or it has part of a name and you can't assume that it's the entire name without any parts omitted or can't tell if it's male or female.

Do you say "To whom it may concern", "Dear HR representative" "Dear sir/madam" "Dear [company name]"? I could keep coming up with ways to address to unknowns but I was just wondering if there is a "best" or a most polite and unoffensive way to approach this.

Thanks!

p.s. If I can find out their real name for sure through some other party I will always use "Dear Mr. Lastname" or "Dear Ms. Lastname" but often there is no one I can ask about this who knows the person.

 

[pinksatin]

re: my question, I googled around for more info and found some answers to share. And since no one answered the question yet for me and I don't want to hold up my application I'll just choose what I think is best.

For the opening if you don't know the name or sex or the recipient, you can use, "Dear Job Title". But if you aren't sure of that, you can use "To whom it may concern" which seems very impersonal to me. Or "Dear Sir or Madam". This much I already knew but I just didn't know if there was a "best" way or an industry standard. I'm just gonna use the "sir or madam" one since it sounds most polite.

What I found interesting though is the closing. Apparently it isn't correct to use "Sincerely" if you don't know the name of the person. Maybe because then how can you really be being sincere?

So instead you're supposed to use "Yours faithfully" unless you actually know their name (but that seems awkward to me, it sounds too personal and friendly, almost religious or romantic even because of "faith"). Is it just a UK thing or something? Do people use that in business letters about employment in the U.S.? I will probably use it anyway just because the people from the Oxford website say to and they must know better than I do.

From english-test.net, askoxford.com, and wikipedia.

If anyone has better input please enlighten me! But I'll probably just send it now with "Dear Sir or Madam" and "Yours faithfully,".

 

[fashionista-ta]

I use Dear Hiring Manager, and I believe that is standard.

I've never heard not to use Sincerely if you don't know them--certainly you can & should be sincere in what you write regardless of whether you know them But an alternative would be Regards or Best regards.

PS I know everyone always says to try to find out the name. But isn't that a bit like stalking? I would find it creepy myself if someone had tracked down my name when replying to a posting that didn't include it ... and I can't help but think the vast majority of other women would feel the same, unless you explained in the letter how you did it, and maybe even then ...

 

[BetteT]

I've always heard to try to get a name .... and it is usually readily available on their sites or in a company directory for larger companies.

So I don't really think that it's creepy ... I think that it shows that you are doing your homework ... a good trait in a prospective employee or intern. At least, that is how I'd interpret it, if I was hiring. (And I do have management background, so I have done a lot of hiring.)

Also ... calling the department who is doing the hiring can often get a name ... just ask the receptionist for the name of the hiring manager and they will usually be happy to give it to you, along with correct spelling.

 

[pinksatin]

Thank you both for your responses! I couldn't find any directory information online, just a lot of useless other search results. On the website though, they have a part where you can "contact us" so I sent a message asking for a name and explained why I wanted it. Who knows if I will hear anything back. Honestly though, i almost want to just do the sir/madam thing because I always get anxious delaying answering a listing. I always think "they already probably found someone, don't let another day pass!" BTW, if anyone has info or knows how to find the directory, it's for a fashion internship at GQ (listed 1/14 on Ed2010).

Oh, and I decided against the "yours faithfully" thing because although several sites said it was more correct, I never hear that and it feels awkward to me. Plus my dad said he's never seen that used either.

 

[fashionista-ta]

^ I agree about "Yours faithfully" ... you don't want to sound stilted, particularly when applying for a cool job

In the case of GQ, you could just call the number for editorial in the magazine ... usually there's one in fine print somewhere.

 

[priss]

HELP PLEASE

i wanna apply for a job as a merchandising assistant with a luxury brand here in australia.. but im scared bout how to write my cover letter.. i have a business degree majoring in marketing, 3-4 years experience in fashion retail and have been working as a data anaylst for the past few months so i have strong analytical skills.. i am very good at math (and enjoy it ) and have also got experience in fashion pr and fashion week..

any tips of how you all got into merchandising?

 

[fashionista-ta]

^ I would just say mention what you believe are your key selling points--part of which is going to be the breadth of your background & versatility. I always explain how I match the requirements/nice to haves of the position, and then throw in whatever else I have that I think would be helpful. Does that make sense?

 

[Mods_MS17]

What are some tips or things to write within a CV? I contacted a fashion magazine if I could do work experience over there and they responded that they have no spots currently open but if I sen in my CV, they'll consider.

 

[priss]

what mag is that mods_ms17??

 

[Cicciolina]

Usually Australian fashion magazines leap at the chance for more free labour, so persist

Priss expand what you wrote in that post, and relate it to merchandising, you can skew anything into what you want it to be if you focus on what is relevant Good luck!

 

[priss]

hmm welll no lukc for me i got a rejection letter a day later! not even an interview.. i find just getting an interview the hard part.. once i get an interview they always offer me the job!! (never been turned down, but ive turned them down hehe) but i can never get to that stage,.. i think it is my cv that is the problem!!

 

[xTresChicX]

....

sorry if this has already been asked!!!

Im applying for work experience/ internships soon and along with a C.V. and cover letter, I was planning on sending an attachment of a powerpoint presentation of examples of my design and illustration work.

Do you think this is a good idea? Any tips?

thanks in advance!!!!

 

[ElvisBelle]

Hi everyone- I am currently living in Europe and planning to move to NYC in the summer. I have work experience, but I'm looking for a career switch to buying/merchandising. I am going to enroll part-time at FIT and/or Parsons in merchandising courses to supplement my undergrad degree but definitely need to make some money and get a job.

So here is the question- I am looking for an entry/lower level job and of course would love to have one before I move- should I apply now? Or should I wait until I'm in NYC and have a chance to meet the career center people at the design schools? I'm scared to go to NYC without a job, but I'm wondering if my resume/cover letter, etc. will be a million times more effective once I have an NYC address and some feedback from people in the industry. Opinions on this? Thanks!

 

[kellynjane]

My internship adviser said that it was pivotal to have an "objective" section to a resume but I've also heard that it's outdated and unnecessary -- anyone have any thoughts on that?

 

[gius]

how about having your objective as your cover letter ^