Engl 2311 Technical Writing | Assignments

Assignment #1: Job Application Letter and Resume

Assignment Learning Objectives

1. Learn how to write a professional letter of correspondence
2. Learn to write a resume
3. Learn how to follow careful instructions for completing a document with particular genre
requirements.

Course Learning Outcomes Focused on in this Assignment

1. Recognize, analyze, and accommodate diverse audiences.
2. Produce documents appropriate to audience, purpose, and genre.
3. Analyze the ethical responsibilities involved in technical communication.
4. Locate, evaluate, and incorporate pertinent information.
5. Develop verbal, visual, and multimedia materials as necessary, in individual and/or
collaborative projects, as appropriate.
6. Edit for appropriate style, including attention to word choice, sentence structure,
punctuation, and spelling.
7. Design and test documents for easy reading and navigation.

Before Doing the Assignment

Task #1: Read Chapter 14 and 15
--close reading and study of these chapters will help you accomplish these assignments.
--reading this assignment sheet and following its instructions closely will also help you accomplish this
assignment successfully

What to Read for in Chpt. 14

• Understanding the process of writing correspondence
• Selecting which type of correspondence
• Presenting yourself effectively in correspondence
o Using the appropriate level of formality, correctness, projecting the “You
Attitude”, avoiding clichés, honesty
• Writing Letters
o Letter Formats: Modified Block Format, Full Block Format
o Elements of a Letter: Heading, Inside Address, Salutation, Body, Complementary
Close, Signature **See letter examples 14.5-14.8**
• Writing Memos: format and structure
• Writing Emails

What to Read for in Chapt. 15

• Understanding the job-application process
• Writing resumes
o Elements of a Chronological Resume
• Writing a job-application letter

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Task #2: Find a Job

Find a website with job postings for your prospective job field. Imagine you have your prospective
degree (and even some experience) and you are looking for a job in that field. Pick ONE specific job ad
to use for this assignment.
Places to look: The 10 Best Job Search Websites of 2022

Task #3: Complete an Audience Analysis

Think about your audience for this job application. Who will you be working for? Who will review your
application and decide whether to hire you or not.

1. Skim Chapter 5 Analyzing Your Audience and Purpose pages 90-97 (you can read the
entire chapter)
2. Complete an Audience Profile Sheet on the intended audience for your Job Letter and
Resume --use this Audience Profile Sheet.
3. Include the website you visited (with the exact URL) to find the job beneath your
audience profile summary paragraph.

This Audience Profile Sheet will be submitted with the final assignment document. Assignments missing
the Audience Profile Sheet lose 10 points.

Writing Pieces for Assignment #1

Writing Piece #1: Job Letter
Write the letter of application toward your audience, emphasizing the qualities you have that will make
the employer want to hire you rather than someone else. Remember that no other person will be
making you sound like the best candidate, so you must make yourself appealing to the hiring manager.
You are writing an unsolicited job application letter.

Format: Letters should contain the “Elements of a Letter” illustrated on pages 378-379 and use the
standard letter format of choice--full block format, illustrated on page 380 in Figure 14.3 b. NOTE: I
prefer even the company logo to be left justified as in the example letters found in Figure 14.6-.8 (pp.
383-385). More information on job application letters is found on pages 427-428. See this page also on
Business Letter Format that includes Full Block Format.

Contents and Organization: Your letter content should closely follow the model on page 428 with
four paragraphs:

1. Introductory paragraph
2. Educational experience paragraph
3. Employment experience paragraph
4. Concluding paragraph

Submit the Job Letter with the final assignment documents.

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Be sure that you write your own letter and do not go to some other site to write the letter for you. (I
can tell.)

Tone: Be sure to use the appropriate level of formality, project a “you” attitude, and avoid clichés. Do
not follow the wording in examples. Be creative in emphasizing your good qualities. Be sure to revise for
word choice (avoiding jargon) and edit carefully. Be sure you have an introductory and concluding
paragraph as well as several body paragraphs. Be sure you do not use trite phrases such as “thank you
for taking the time to read my letter.”

Suggestions for Letters:

Additional examples job application letters can be found online at places like Indeed.com, Monster.com
or other online business sites for you to explore what makes a good letter. For instance, don’t start
with the tentative “Please consider my ….” Don’t end with the vague “Should my background meet
your needs.” Eliminate vague phrases and jargon.

Be aggressive in your opening and closing. When do you expect to hear from them, and what will you
do if you don’t? Will you contact them—when and how? How can they contact you? Give them all the
ways—phone (home or cell), email, fax, or any other way you can think of, and include those facts in the
letter, not only in the resume and certainly not just after your name. If you want a job, you have to get
the interview. Note that if you cannot find the person’s name to whom you are applying, you should use
an attention line.

After you write the letter and before you submit it, use the Writer's Checklists on pages 396 for
Format and 433 for contents to evaluate your letter and improve it before submitting it. Then review
your draft following the evaluation rubric for this assignment found on the last page of this assignment
sheet. Lastly, be sure to edit and proofread your final draft for readability and correctness.

Writing Piece #2: Resume

After you complete the job application letter, write your current resume as a “Chronological
Resume” (NOT a “Skills Resume”). Include within your resume the common elements of a
Chronological Resume (pp. 412-419).

NOTE: With permission, I will allow some students (typically in the Healthcare field) to write a Skills
Resume. Contact me to make this request. I will accept Skills Resumes only with approval.

Please follow these exceptions to these common elements for a Chronological Resume:

• Rather than a Summary Statement, I prefer an Objective Statement (a one-line, declarative

statement of the position you are seeking). See this guide on writing Objective Statements.
• Do not include the names and addresses of references—just state, “References are available
upon request.”

Most of you have not yet completed your degree, so write a current resume that is truthful. Do not
exaggerate. Think of how to best present yourself for the job for which you are applying. Customize the
content and objective of the resume to go with the job application letter. Use the format for a paper
resume since I will be grading a paper version of your resume.

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Do not use a pre-formatted template for your resume such as those in Microsoft products.
Do your own formatting. Using templates will count off on your grade.

I’m familiar with templates and fill-in forms for documents, so don’t think I won’t recognize a template-
based resume. Make your resume look professional using your own formatting following our textbook
models and others you find, and be sure the audience will be able to easily locate specific information.
Don’t forget you are currently attending San Antonio College. A resume is normally no more than one
page long, so consider what will cover your most important and most relevant information.

Format for the Resume:

In addition to our textbook, print and study the following guides on resume features. Also, view the
accompanying video guide as you look at the handouts:

• Resume Features Guide

Video Guide to Resume Features
• Representing Education and Work Experience in Resumes

Your resume will need to follow the features illustrated in these guides, including:

• Common Contents (or Common Elements, see pp. 412-19)

• Document Design Principles, especially alignment and contrast
• Linguistic/Rhetorical features
• General Rules

Our textbook offers one good example of a Chronological Resume on pg. 413, but I
have provided a few additional examples that illustrate the resume features I am looking
for:
• Example Resume #1
• Sample Resume 2
(Economics major applying for a job at a medical software company)
• Sample Resume 3
(Kineseology major applying for a graduate assistantship in the field)
• Sample Resume 4
(Engineering major applying for an internship in nuclear engineering)

Notice how the resume as a genre is flexible in the various ways it meets the different
content and design features of a resume.

Important Resume Format and Content Requirements:

• Write a Chronological Resume, not a Skills Resume

• Sequence the Common Elements in the following order: Objective Statement, Education, Work
Experience and then other elements like Skills, Awards, Organizations, Interests and Activities
• Use an Objective Statement and not a Summary Statement
• The entire resume should fit on one page.
• Be sure to keep 1’’ margins and go no lower than 11 pt. font.
• The Heading should be large, but avoid over large headings (18-22 pt. font is ok).

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• Also, avoid fancy lettering, distracting lines, and unusual bullets.

• Create consistent alignment and spacing throughout the resume.
• Use reverse chronological order as you present information (most recent first)
• Be clear and concise. Do not write in full sentences anywhere in the resume. Since you are not
writing in sentences, you will not have periods at the end of phrases.
• List items in bulleted vertical lists; avoid or don’t use horizontal (or sentence) lists.
• Be sure these listed items are parallel in structure and limit lists to no more than four items.
• Use active, action verbs to start your listed items describing experience.
• Do not include your references.

Think carefully about which items are necessary for a resume, and which are optional. A resume is the
only description the potential employer has of you. Make sure the arrangement of the resume offers an
easy way to find essential material the employer will be looking for.

After you write your resume, you may use the checklist on page 433 to evaluate your resume as well as
the evaluation rubric for the assignment before revising and completing it for submission.

Drafting Your Writing Pieces and Editing Your Final Drafts Carefully

You won't be turning in drafts of your writing pieces, but I urge you to use the writing process to
compose them. That means

• take some time to brainstorm and orient yourself to the task

• plan your writing pieces, especially in terms of audience, and purpose by doing your Audience
Profile Sheet
• familiarize the genres you will be writing (the specific features of each writing task)
• gather any information
• create a version that is rough (don't worry about it being perfect, especially with grammar)
• review this version in terms of audience, purpose, and genre and improve it
• carefully edit this final version for submission

Be sure that you have carefully edited your final drafts of the Job Letter and Resume pieces. Your goal
should be zero errors. I know this may seem hard and difficult, but the truth is that employers judge you
by these representations of you and your experience. My wife is an employer, and she has told me if an
application/resume has errors in it she pitches it. If the potential employee can't even take the time to
review and correct errors in their application, or if they don't know how, she doesn't feel they will be a
good employee.

Turning in the Job Application Letter and Resume

--Submit the job letter, the resume, and the audience profile summary as a single file. Each item should
be on a separate page (so you will likely have a three page document).

Assignment Deliverables:
1. Letter of Application
2. Resume
3. Audience Profile Sheet with Summary

Submit by midnight on the due date.

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Evaluation Rubric for Job Application Letter and Resume:

Letter
Appearance: (20 pts.)
All left justified
Heading with return address (no name)
Date, Inside address
Salutation to a person or position OR Att: or Subject Line—use appropriate
option
Uses Full Block Format
Complimentary close
Three lines for signature
Typed name, Enclosure line
Header on second page with last name and page number (if needed--and have a
good reason if you use more than one page)
Letter Content: (20 pts.)
“You attitude”—writing to needs of audience
Plain English/Moderate formality
Multiple short paragraphs—four
(Introductory, Educational, Employment, Concluding paragraphs)
Human connection, Personal skills
Correctness: (10 pts.)
Edited (Editing 664-82)
Free of distracting grammatical and mechanical errors
Resume
Appearance: (20 pts)
Conservative, Tasteful, Uncluttered
Consistency and alignment of elements
Not a template. Fits on ONE page (passes quadrant test)
Follows good document principles—headings, spacing, alignment, contrast
Presented and organized as Chronological Resume (not Skills Resume)
Dates presented in reverse chronological order
Resume Content: (20 pts)
Name and Address
Objective Statement--Not Summary Statement
Education & Work Experience
--includes basic elements well-formatted
--no full sentences, uses active verbs to describe functions and responsibilities
--uses bulleted vertical lists, not horizontal lists and limits to four items per list
Skills, Interests, activities, personal info. etc. that apply to job
(No references)
Correctness: (10 pts)
Edited (Editing 664-82)
Free of distracting grammatical and mechanical errors
Grade for Assignment:
(missing Audience Profile Summary = -10 points)

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