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CoSIDA.com/CoSIDA360 Magazine Archive
Note: This story appeared in the Winter 2020 February edition of CoSIDA 360 Magazine. To view the full magazine, click here.
Putting Your Best Foot Forward
7 tips to move your résumé and cover letter to the top of the applicant list.
by Adele Burk – NESCAC, Assistant Director for Championships & Compliance
The calendar has turned, and the realization that your internship or graduate assistant position will end shortly and you need to make the next step in your career has hit you squarely in the face. Luckily, the list of positions posted on the CoSIDA Career Center will soon start to grow, as it always does, but candidate pools are becoming larger and more competitive, regardless of the position.
Your experiences and skill sets may set you up perfectly for that dream job, but nothing will eliminate you from contention faster than a poor résumé and cover letter.
So, how can your résumé and cover letter move you to the top of the applicant pile? I reached out to Jon Holtz, Slippery Rock Director of Athletic Communication, and Kenisha Rhone, Belmont Director of Digital Media and Social Strategy, for tips that will help set your materials apart from other candidates. Kenisha and Jon are two of the profession’s many leaders that consistently generate quality professionals in their departments.
1. Writing remains an imperative skill. No matter how this industry changes, writing is, and always will be, a fundamental skill. Your résumé and cover letter are the first writing samples a future employer will see. You don’t want it to be the last.
Proofread and spellcheck. “Few things get your résumé tossed as quickly as applying to School A with School C’s name in the accompanying cover letter or résumé,” said Rhone. If you have edited your materials three times, take a step back. Once your mind has had time to reset, read everything aloud to make sure the writing matches what you really want to say, and edit them again. Then, ask one or two people you trust to provide feedback. It’s not the time to find a typo or a missing word after you click “Send” or “Submit.”
Not all positions ask for writing samples in the initial stage of the application process. This means your cover letter is your best chance to demonstrate your writing style in one page. “Use your cover letter as an opportunity to expand on your experience and show your personality,” according to Holtz.
2. Have a concise résumé. Entry-level assistant positions typically don’t need a résumé longer than one page. Keep content simple and direct. Holtz said, “I’m a big fan of a one-page résumé that is clean, easy to read, and includes all the pertinent information in direct, concise formatting. You don’t need paragraphs to demonstrate your experience and skills.” This leads directly into the next two tips.
3. Read the job description. This is stating the obvious, but really READ the job description as it provides a road map to the skill sets needed for the position. Your résumé and cover letter should touch on the job requirements and/or desired qualifications in some fashion. Nothing is more frustrating to a search committee than reading materials that make it wonder why the person even applied because the applicant failed to address elements of the job or list relevant skills.
Rhone said, “Speak the language of the industry! Use the descriptors of the position in your own descriptions of yourself and your ability to do the job. This also helps when there are programs “reading” résumés and reject those that don’t use enough industry keywords.”
4. Choose your words wisely. You have roughly two pages to convince a search committee that you should not only move on to the next stage of the interview process, but you are the best person for the job. With this limited amount of space, each word should serve a purpose and communicate your present knowledge and experience to any search committee. If your words do not achieve this, strongly consider why you are including them in the first place, as they are potentially irrelevant and/or unnecessary.
Per Holtz, “It’s vital for me when looking at a résumé to see the skills an applicant is proficient in. If you excel at something that makes you stand out, like Adobe Creative Suite for instance, or are particularly strong with a specific software program or skill set, make sure that shows up somewhere on your résumé.”
It’s also important to include detailed descriptions about your skills and experiences. “Use assertive and positive language to tell potential employers why you are the best for the position. Using passive language can lead others to think you aren’t a go-getter,” said Rhone.
For example, “Volunteered at the NCAA Division III Men’s Ice Hockey Championship” offers little information compared to “Moderated post-game press conferences at the NCAA Division III Men’s Ice Hockey Championship.” The latter provides a better descriptor about the experience itself as well as the level of responsibility you had in this situation.
5. Tailor your cover letter to each position. Good cover letters demonstrate your skills and experience, but great cover letters also demonstrate your knowledge and interest in the institution. “Expound on all your tailored and relevant experience for the position. Yes, this means you will literally have 5-10 different cover letters at any given time, but each institution is different. Schools need you just as you need your next position, so tell them why you would be an asset specifically to their team. If you see yourself there, tell them HOW and WHY,” shared Rhone.
6. Strategically choose your references. References are checked at varying points in each search process. Every reference list should include your direct supervisor, but who should fill out the rest of your list? Position knowledge and institutional research can prove to be very beneficial in this area.
If the job description states the successful candidate will work with women’s soccer and baseball, consider listing the head women’s soccer or baseball coach you have worked with at your current or previous institution. If you have not worked with either sport, name a coach who can attest to your interactions with them and their team.
Think about your professional network. Consider individuals you have met through day-to-day interaction, committees, volunteer opportunities, etc. Can they speak to your skills? Can they speak to your personality? Do they have any direct connections to the hiring institution? Utilize the people that know you best to speak on your behalf.
Once you have decided on your reference list, ask the individuals if you may list them on your behalf out of professional courtesy. Share the job description with your references. If you want someone to speak to your abilities, it is beneficial to better prepare them about the nature of questions they may be asked.
7. Assess your current skill set and experiences. Take a moment now to compare your skill set to postings similar to what you may be interested in on the CoSIDA Career Center. How do your experiences match up? If there are areas that could use improvement or are lacking entirely, utilize the time you have remaining in your current position to take the initiative to develop or gain exposure to these areas. This is a practice to employ throughout your career as some skills may require greater time to acquire, and it can help you stay current on industry trends at different levels.
Further reading:
Check out “Zen and the Art of Interviewing: Tips From the Front for Interviewers and Interviewees” in the December issue of NACDA’s Athletics Administration magazine. Here are two of the big takeaways:
"As a candidate, you can’t prep enough. And most people are too confident to prep hardly at all. No matter how confident you are that you are the perfect candidate — get that out of your head."
"In any interview, time is the most valuable resource. There’s never enough time — ever. If you take 30 minutes to answer the first question, you’ve lost the interview."
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