Completing an application form

Hello and welcome to Top Tips: Job Applications. Today I'm going to go through 10 top tips for perfecting job applications. Number 1, Plan your Time. Here you can see an overview of the upcoming academic year. This is offered as a guide. It's not to say that all applications will be opening or closing within these timeframes, as this is typically when the large graduate recruiters set their deadlines. As you can see, that is quite soon in the academic year. Graduate scheme applications open between September and October, and some will close, while internships open during the next part of the year, between mid October to around mid February. What's most important is to plan your time effectively so that you can start preparing for those schemes that you're interested in applying to. For smaller recruiters with one role or fewer vacancies to fill. You'll see vacancies advertised towards the end of the academic year, as there is a more immediate start day. Larger recruiters go through an intensive application process, and this is why the majority of them follow this pattern. If you're looking for a part-time job, keep an eye throughout the year. Number 2, quality beats quantity. This is a significant balance to find.  Five well researched and constructed applications will make more impact than 100 generic ones. If you're routinely applying with a very generic CV, or application form or covering letter, then the chances of you being successful are relatively slim. Recruiters typically go through a long listing process where candidates are initially sifted, then they move on to shortlisting, where recruiters choose applicants of interest to invite to interview. Don't give employers easy reasons to reject your applications, like poor attention to detail or not following instructions. Invest time in each one to demonstrate that you are genuinely interested. Number 3, collate your experience. before you do anything else, first, gather evidence of what you have to offer. Have all the information you'll need to hand before you start. This might be examples that you've used in the past or it could just be a list of the types of activities you've been involved with at this point. Review what the application is asking you for and the skills and achievements that will be expected of you. You can use pretty much any of your experience as evidence if it's relevant and keep transferable skills in mind too. It might be your university studies, work experience, part time jobs, societies, clubs, or sports groups that you are in, voluntary work, or any of your interests or social activities. Reflect on all of these before you make a start on your applications. All your experiences are fresh in your mind. Number 4, research the organisation. In your application, you might be asked, why do you want to work for us? It's a question that may also be asked at interview, but it's important when to think about. Employers know that you want to find a job, but they're more interested in why you want to work for their organisation and in the role that they have advertised. Plan some time to research the role, organisation, and the sector. This might also include thinking about who the competitors are, as that can give you an advantage over other candidates. Employers receive a high number of applications, so generic ones will be immediately sifted. But you can demonstrate passion for the job you're applying to by answering that question, why this role and why this organisation. You can show your knowledge of the company and its position in the industry. If you, for example, have done some research where you found out a particularly interesting piece of information, you can add that to your application. Avoid copying anything straight from the website. The employer already knows what they do, so think about how that relates to you. Why do you want to work there? And can you see any examples of why you'd enjoy working there on the website, in the social media, or in the news? Perhaps you've spoken to somebody from the company at an event and that's what's given you this positive impression. Include all these relevant pieces of information. You must answer the question, why them? It is not enough to need or want a job as all candidates who apply could easily say the same thing. Think carefully about why you have chosen this employer. Number 5, use the STAR format. You may have heard of STAR or possibly KARL, which helped you respond to competency based questions. For example, tell me a time when you've used the skill. we're using STAR to demonstrate. Think about the type of application you are filling in. You might be asked very specific questions based on the competencies that are in the job description or the person specification. Or you might be given an open text box where you can complete information about why you're a good fit for the role. Employers will use different formats, but to respond to direct questioning, you can use STAR to make sure that you're covering everything expected. Competency questions can be scored to compare candidates equally, so using evidence of when you've done something in the past, employers can assess how competently they think you would be able to do this or something similar in the future. You may be asked to give an example of how you've made a positive contribution to a team. Mention the outcome and anything you would not do differently with hindsight. This is illustrative as you may or may not be asked the second part of the question explicitly, but you are still expected to cover it in your response. Choose examples with specific relevant details. You're giving evidence and you're offering proof to allow the employer to determine whether you could use these skills again in the future. The S stands for Describing a Situation. It's about 10% of your answer. It's a brief sentence which describes the context. Maybe that's work, study or an extracurricular activity. T stands for Task and is another 10%. That can be you individually or it might be your team. Offer a brief outline of what was expected of you, but make sure that you highlight what the challenge of the task was and what did you need to achieve. Be specific, if you worked in a team, highlight what your task was within that team. The A stands for Actions, and this section covers about 60% of your response. This is an element which should be allocated the most space. Give a detailed account with as much as the space permits to cover the steps you took to complete your task. The situation and task are simply to make your description of the actions meaningful. Your actions are what set you apart. Summarise with the results, about 20% of your answer. Offer a brief explanation of your outcome in one to two sentences, quantify outcomes with statistics or feedback where possible, and otherwise, be clear about how success was measured. Mention what you learned and what you would do differently next time if relevant. Number 6, follow the person specification. You might be asked for a supporting statement rather than being asked questions, and following the person specification can give you a great guideline for how to complete it. Use the person specification as a checklist. When you are given an open text box to keep you on track. Some supporting statements are added as a separate document and others are part of the application form. Follow the person specification closely. Try to meet each individual specification in the persons specification. By summarising how you meet or relate to the requirement, you may be prompted to use the space below to state your reasons for applying and why you believe you meet the person specification. There's a lot to cover, so use the checklist. Begin with an introductory paragraph about your motivations followed by a short paragraph for each of the requirements if the space allows. You might be given a word limit, so if you have examples which cover several of the requirements, prioritise adding them, but avoid large paragraphs of text as they can be difficult to read through and require recruiters to search to find the information that they need. Short, succinct paragraphs of text, or optimal. You can use bullet points to highlight pertinent points, but do so sparingly. They should not make up the bulk of your response. Remember, this application is to get you to the interview stage, so you don't need to give every detail. Leave some to expand on at interview. Finish with a concluding paragraph that reiterates your interest in the role. It has a similar function to a covering letter, so should offer clear reasoning for applying and relevant evidence to address the person specification. Include how you're addressing any areas that you don't have examples of yet. As this is a professional way to address an area of weakness by saying, I'm currently working towards a project management qualification or I'm currently developing my problem solving skills by studying this linked in learning course. Avoid phrasing this as I don't have this or focus on what you're doing in order to gain it. It's unlikely that you'll have no examples at all of graduate level skills and attributes. But if you feel that you don't have any examples, identify some ways to gain the skill and make a start. It shows a great deal of initiative. Number 7, plan ahead when using online platforms. It's good practise to check before assuming that an online platform is saving your work as you go along. It's safer to prepare your answers in a separate document so you can copy and paste them in. Keep a copy for future reference if you're submitting straight into an online platform, as you may not be able to download a copy. If you're invited to interview or the next stage of the selection process, you then have an idea of what you said, which will be useful if you apply to several vacancies as your applications will be tailored to every employer. The employer may use scanning software, which is a useful screening tool. More employers are using to long list and assess whether applications meet their initial requirement. Be as clear as you can be, using factual language, listing your qualifications, explaining your work experience and your skills in a straightforward way. If possible, avoid blank spaces altogether by thinking carefully about what you could offer as an example. Only use not applicable if genuinely it is not applicable to your situation. If you have evidence which partially meets the requirement, use it. Follow all instructions to avoid being automatically rejected. Double check formatting. If you are copying and pasting into an online platform, if there's a word count, your answer may be cut off at the end, so plan ahead.  Plan time to allow for any technical hitches and avoid doing the application on the day of the deadline if you can. Aim for at least a day ahead of schedule so you can deal with any delays. Proof check for spelling and grammatical errors and those frustrating and common auto corrects. We know they happen regularly, and these errors help employers to quickly rule out applicants, so leave time to check it thoroughly. It can be useful to ask a trusted friend to check it over. Number 8, little things make a big difference. Get the basics right. Again, read instructions carefully. The employer is using this as an opportunity to test your skills. And this can include interpreting instructions and your ability to deliver exactly what's required. If for example, you're asked to attach your supporting statement and you write that into the body of your e-mail, it shows that you're unable to follow very basic instructions. So don't let that trip you up right from the beginning. Take a note of any specific wording. If you're asked for several examples and you only offer one, again, you're not following instructions. If you have a word limit, keep within it, but aim for it. A STAR formatted competency question is usually around 300 to 500 words. It might be slightly less than that, but this gives you an idea of what the employer is looking for and the amount of detail expected. Complete a sense check from an objective perspective. The employer doesn't know you, they've never met you. And this is their first opportunity to understand what you have to offer. If you've used acronyms which aren't commonly used or if you've used jargon that isn't readily recognisable, proofread for that, and proofread throughout for spelling and grammatical errors. Number 9, persevere. It's worth saying here that at first you don't succeed, you're completely normal.  Setbacks are frustrating, but completely normal. Unfortunately, students tell us that if they aren't successful with the first few applications, they feel like a failure. Think of them as learning experiences. You can receive support to try and improve on them. And try not to feel too dejected by a no. It's not a failure. It's part of the process and you can develop your application and adapt your approach accordingly. We are here to support you if you need help. Number 10, use the Careers Service. There's a huge range of information available on the careers service website. It is a good starting point and available 24/7. Remember to check MyCareerHub regularly for job postings, including internships, information about events and workshops, employer information and resources around career planning and interests. You can drop in to speak to one of the careers information team. If you want to speak to a Careers Consultant, you can book an appointment through MyCareerHub once you've used our resources. To summarise and identify next steps, plan your time. Quality beats quantity, collate your experience, and research the organisation. Use the STAR format. Follow the person specification. Plan ahead when using online platforms. Little things make a big difference. Persevere and use the Careers Service. Look out for our other top tips videos to support you in other areas of the recruitment process.