English 421Y: Technical Writing Online

Although I may not be able to apply the methods in chapter 15 to a resume for more than a decade due to my career in the Air Force, there is still a lot of common ground that relates to me. One of the points in chapter fifteen that stuck out to me was the part about verb-first phrases that are used to save space. This is a technique used very often by the Air Force for awards and promotion packages. It’s for the same reason as what would happen in the resume process.

I found chapter 15, “Starting Your Career,” to be very interesting. At this point, I haven’t had much experience with job-searches. My job-searching has consisted of random applications in high school and distributing resumes at job fairs in college. After reading this chapter it seems that things won’t always be this easy. While I have had experience writing a resume, I hadn’t put much thought into tailoring my resume to suit each potential employer.

I, and most likely many others, benefited from reading Chapter 15 as it discusses correct manners for resumes and cover letters appropriate for potential employers. Most students spend days looking at their resume trimming and editing to perfectly suit a company’s best interest. However, a good amount of students over look common mistakes mentioned in this chapter including myself. It is difficult to focus on so many minute areas, and at the same time, keep strong continuity throughout such an important document.

This chapter taken from Technical Communications Today, entitled Starting Your Career, focuses on the varying aspects of finding and landing the ideal job. According to the text, the most important step in this process begins before the actual search, and involves setting one’s goals via the “Five W and How Questions”. These questions, initially introduced in the previous chapter, work to clearly pinpoint a job seeker’s ambitions and point him or her in the proper direction.

Chapter 15, Starting Your Career, for me, was a job search guide because it detailed different methods of searching. For instance, going to a career fair, submitting your resume directly to a company, or using a job search engine to post your resumes to companies. I have never posted my resume on a search engine like “monster.com” so going through the reading and learning about which words are prone with being picked from a list by a computer and not just read by a person.

The first part of the chapter that related directly to me was the section talking about writing the resume to make your skills look the best. For example, using the archival approach when looking for entry-level positions highlights the skills obtained from recent coursework. I used this approach when writing my resume recently because, like most recent college graduates, I do not have years of experience to catch the recruiter’s eye.

Chapter 15 gave excellent advice on how to search for a job. I was aware of many of the strategies they brought up in the chapter from my own experience in searching for summer internships the last few years. I have experienced a lot of the problems brought up in the chapter, like how you can tailor a resume for the job you want, or how to make your resume more scannable. I also agree with the importance of taking an active role in finding a job. Job hunting is a constant activity and to have the best chance for success, you cannot wait around for employers to find you.

Chapter 15’s focus on career building strategies was very pragmatic and somewhat interesting. I found some of the strategies and ideas discussed somewhat common sense and some others I had never really thought about. The chapter’s explanation of how to form your resume and cover letter to tailor to specific skill sets and specific audiences insightful and provided me with some new strategies I had never really considered.

Chapter 15, “Starting Your Career,” had some really good tips and explanations about how to create the documents needed to find a career.

I have always struggled somewhat with tailoring my résumé to emphasize particular skills. I feel like it’s much easier to do this when you have a lot of experience and education to choose from. It’s hard to omit irrelevant work experience if you have little to no work experience to begin with! However, the chapter made a good point about using the language of the industry to which you are applying in.

Chapter 15 “Starting Your Career” is about what it says, starting your career. There are many steps you need to take when starting a career. First you need to make a resume which briefly explains why you would be a good employee for the job. After you make a strong resume you need to create an application letter to give more information if requested. Creating a professional portfolio may also be a necessary step in starting your career.