Getting the Job - Your Cover Letter, Résumé and Interview Lesson Plan

Concept:

Creating an effective cover letter and résumé to secure a job interview - making sure you are the candidate of choice.

Student learning associated with this concept can support achievement of provincial learning outcomes:

NB 2, 3, 4, 6
NL 1, 4, 5, 11
NS 2, 4, 7, 10
PEI 2, 4, 5

Rationale:

Many students may not have a cover letter or résumé or understand why these are essential to securing employment. They may not also be aware that these documents are ones that provide prospective employers with a first impression of them, their skills and potential with their company.

The cover letter can be considered a sales pitch - it expresses an interest in the position, a summary of what you can bring to the job, aligning experiences and skills with what has been advertised, and a request for a job interview. The résumé showcases the applicant in greater detail, offering evidence to back up skills, experience and education or training. These documents lay the groundwork for getting the coveted interview. The interview is where the candidate needs to shine; they need to present additional relevant detail on how they are not only the ideal candidate based on skills and qualifications but how they will be a good fit for the company. In this lesson, students will learn how an effective targeted cover letter and résumé can set them apart from other applicants. They will also develop strategies that can help them stand out in an interview.

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Teachers can access resources to support delivery of this lesson in the Resources/Teaching Strategy Folder.

This lesson presents an opportunity for teachers to collaborate in supporting student learning about the role of self-assessments in career planning. In addition to Career Education courses, teachers can consider how students are able to meet cross curricular learning outcomes in other courses such as English/French Language Arts, Multimedia, Social Studies, Fine Arts etc. A cross curricular focus also supports a unified approach in addressing the “why” of what students are learning. Students can develop an awareness of how and why what they are learning connects to them, their community and their future.