Lev 9 Unit 1 Research and preparation

Identifying the stages in the job application process

Most of us spend between 60-80% of our waking hours working, so it’s important to find a job that brings true satisfaction. If you haven’t found it yet, then don’t give up.
Keep looking until you find a job you love doing.

1a. Teresa Fernandez, a recent graduate, is applying for a job in marketing. Match the extracts from documents and conversation (a-b) to the stages in the job
application process (1-8).

1(c) Sending a cover letter 2(g) Sending a CV / resume / 3(d) Sending a follow-up letter/ 4(f)Responding to interview questions
5(b) Making interview small talk / 6(a) Reading a job advertisement / 7(h) Researching the market 8(e)Researching yourself

1b. Put the stages (1-8) in Exercise 1a into the most logical sequence.
8 7 6 1 2 5 4 3

1c. Read the extracts again. Which extracts mention:

1 details of Teresa’s work experience? __c__ _g____

2 details of Teresa’s studies and qualifications? __g_____ __c_____ ___h____
3 the job salary? ___a____
4 Teresa’s weaknesses? ___e____ ___f____
5 evidence of Teresa’s skill with numbers? ___d____ ___e____ ___g____
6 where the vacancy is advertised? ___h____ __c_____
7 evidence of Teresa’s research skills? __e_____
8 teamwork? ___d____ ___e____ ___a____
9 a compliment from Teresa about the company? ___b____ ___d____ ___h____ ___c____
10 evidence of Teresa’s research into the company? ___d____

1d. Do you think Theresa has a good chance of getting the job? Why (not)?

Researching yourself

Before you look for the perfect job, write a CV or apply for a job, you need to do some research. Researching yourself is the key to finding the job that is right for you.

2a. 1.1 Silvia Carnali is approaching the end of her degree course at university. She has decided to start looking for a job, but is no sure where to begin. Silvia
asks her friend Sophie, who works in the university careers office, for some advice. Listen to their conversation and, in pairs, discuss the following questions.

1 What is the first thing Sophie suggests Silvia does? 2 How does Sophie identify her transferable skills?
3 Does Sophie think personality tests are very important? 4 What is the final piece of advice Sophie gives Silvia?

2b. Have you tried any of Sophie’s suggestions? Did they work for you?

Your strengths and weaknesses

The first thing you need to do when starting the job-hunting process is a self-assessment of you own strengths and weaknesses. This process will help you identify the skills,
qualifications, experience, knowledge and personal characteristics that employers are looking for.

3a. After talking to Sophie, Silvia produced a “mind map” to highlight her strengths and weaknesses. Complete the sentences (a-j) in Silvia’s mind map on the
following page using the prepositions in, to or at.

3b. Complete the headings (1-6) on the mind map using the words below.

Achievements Experience Knowledge Languages Personal Characteristics Skills

3c. 1.2 Listen to two friends, Federico and Jack, talking about Federico’s strengths and weaknesses. Discuss the following questions.

1 What has Federico recently decided to do? 2 Why has he made this decision? 3 What does Federico claim to be good at?
4 What would Federico really like to be able to do? 5 What is Federico doing in order to achieve this aim?
3d. 1.2 Listen again and underline the personal characteristics in the box that best describe Federico. Discuss your answers using evidence from the
conversation to support your opinion.

creative disorganized flexible impatient reliable successful

3e. March the personal characteristics (1-6) to the questions (a-f).

3f. Make the personal characteristics in Exercise 3e negative by adding a prefix (dis-, in-, or un-).

1 ____uncreative_________ 2 ________________________ 3 ________________________

4________________________ 5________________________ 6________________________

3g. Ask and answer the questions in Exercise 3e. Discuss your individual strengths and weaknesses, giving specific evidence.

A: “Do you always do what you say you will do?”

B: “Yes, I’m very reliable. I’m always on time to work, classes and meeting, and when I can’t make it, I let people know ahead of time.”

3h. Draw a mind map similar to Silvia’s, showing your strengths and weaknesses. Add as many bubbles as you like. Try to use the following phrases.

Strengths Weaknesses Positive characteristics Negative characteristics

I’m excellent at … I’m not very good at… I am … I can sometimes be …
I’m able to … I could be better at … I try to … Occasionally I am…
I’m interested in … I’m reasonably good at… I can be a little bit …
I recently managed to … I would like to be able to …

Your qualifications

At all stages during the job application process you will need to be able to describe your academic qualifications clearly.

4a. Complete the sentences using the correct form of the verbs below. You will need some verbs more than once.

award complete graduate hold obtain read

1 I graduated with a BA in Sociology from the University of California in Los Angeles in 2007.
2 I ____read___ Economics at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). I then _____completed_______ a Master’s in Security Studies at the
University of Birmingham, which included a semester at New York University at the Center of European Studies.
3 I ___graduated___ with a BA in Hotel & Catering Management from Hong Kong Polytechnic University. I also ___ hold__ an MBA in Marketing, which I
___obtained____ last year.
4. After _________graduating___________ from the School of Oriental Languages and Communication with a BA (Hons) in Mandarin Chinese and English in Maastricht
(The Netherlands), I was _____awarded_____ a scholarship to ____read____ International Relations at the College of Europe, Warsaw.

4b. Complete the sentences using the prepositions at, from, in or with.

1. I started my career at Johnston Group after graduating _from__ Hayanng University _with_ a BA and MA _in_ Chemical Engineering.
2. I graduated _in_ 2008 _with__an MSc in Criminology and Criminal Justice _from_ Tokyo University.
3. I also obtained a BSc _in_ Computer Science _from_ Moscow State University _in_ 2005.
4. I read Modern Languages _at__The National University of Singapore.

4c. Discuss the following questions.

1 What qualifications do you have? I’m technician in industrial maintenance and I have a curse in Autocad.
2 Where did you go to university? At the Universidad de Leon PlANTEL IRAPUATO
3 When did you graduate? In September 2021
4 What types of career are common for people with your qualifications? Engineering and accounting
5 Which of your qualifications is most likely to impress a future employer? My mathematical ability to perform structural calculations and material quantification

I read Civil Engineering at the Universidad de Leon Plantel Irapuato

Highlighting your skills and experience.

Employers will ask for transferable skills or competencies -the skills, knowledge and behavior they consider necessary for a particular job. Reviewing your previous
experience will help you to identify your transferable skills and recognize jobs that you are qualified for.

5a. Discuss the following questions.

1. What general skills and knowledge do most employers look for in job applicants? Have math skills, creativity and leadership
2. Apart from specific qualifications and technical expertise, what skills and knowledge have you got that make you employable?
Have knowledge about soil behaviors in order to start building, critical and logical thinking

5b. Match the transferable skills (1-8) to the examples of professional behavior (a-h).

b
5c. Write your own examples of behavior for the following transferable skills.

1 flexibility ________________ I am not rigid in my approach to work.____________________________

2 leadership skills __________________________________________________________________________________
3 organizational skills__________________________________________________________________________________
4 teamworking skills ____Helps foster creativity and learning because it learns from others._______________

5d, Identify three key transferable skills of your own, which you have used at work or university. Give examples of your behavior.

5e. 1.3 After creating her mind map, Silvia talks to Sophie about her university and work experience. Listen to the conversation and answer the following
questions.

1. When did Silvia apply for her MA course? When she was working in Africa.
2. What was Silvia doing in Africa? She worked for an NGO, educating local people about the importance of reforestation
3. What job did Silvia have at university? She was the communication officer of the student union.

5f. 1.3 Complete the extracts from the conversation using the correct form of the verbs below. Listen again and check your answers.

apply convince deal give plan talk understand work

1 “I __applied__ for my MA course while I was working in Africa, and even managed to start doing some research for the course before I came back to England.”
“So you’re clearly quite good at planning
2. I worked for an NGO as part of a large team with people from all over the world. We all lived together and shared a bathroom. The work was quite varied and I was given
different tasks to complete each week.
3. …our main aim was to educate local people about the need for reforestation. We tried putting up posters, but this didn’t have much of an effect. We needed to find a better
way to communicate this message. Later on I talked to respected members of the community, and convinced them to talk to other people in the village. This approach was
far more effective.
4. When I was at university I was the communications officer of the student union and I was responsible for dealing with suppliers. I had to order food and drink for
university concerts and so on. It was always possible to get a better deal if you were good on the phone. It wasn’t just a question of being persuasive though, it was really a
case of being clear and expressing yourself well, making sure that everybody understood what I was saying.
5g. Discuss which transferable skills in Exercises 5b and 5c are demonstrated in each extract (1-4).
1- Organizational skills, independence
2- Teamworking, flexibility
3- Communication / negotiation / leadership skills / creativity
4- Self-confidence / communication skills / organizational skills

5h. Complete the phrases for demonstrating transferable skills using the correct verbs in brackets.

1. A) identify B) analyse C) conduct

2. A) invent B) suggest C) solve
3. A) write B) explain C) give
4. A) resolve B) listen C) work
5. A) chair B) motivate C) delegate
6. A) meet B) decide C) implement
7. A) discuss B) contribute C) support
8. A) change B) negotiate C) convince

5i. Think of some more specific actions or tasks which demonstrate transferable skills.
Analytical skills: Process analysis of a construction procedure

5j. Identify three of your transferable skills. Make notes about things you have done in the past that demonstrate these skills. Use the phrases in Exercises 5j.

Teamworking skills: When I gave my professional practice in high school, I realized that I had this ability to work properly in the implementation of
hydraulic network to the company.

5l. Think of three different jobs and list two transferable skills that are essential to each job.

Job 1 Job 2 Job 3

Skill 1 Communications skills Skill 1 Analytical skills Skill 1 Organizational skills
Skill 2 Creativity Skill 2 Teamworking skills Skill 2 Interpersonal skills

Researching the market

Finding a job

Once you know yourself, it’s time to start researching the market -finding out more about the type of job you want and the companies and organizations that have similar
posts. Doing this will help you make a short list of the places where you’d like to work.

6a. Discuss the following questions.

1. Where would you start looking for a job?

2. Which of these methods you consider using?
 job agencies / headhunter
 newspapers and magazines
 networking
 the internet
 cold calling / mailing
6b. 1.4 Listen to five people discussing job-hunting. Which job-hunting method in Exercise 6a does each speaker recommend?

 Speaker 1 The internet Speaker 2 networking Speaker 3 job agencies / headhunter

 Speaker 4 newspapers and magazines Speaker 5 cold calling / mailing

6c. 1.4 Listen again and discuss the following questions.

1. Do you agree with the advice the speakers give? Y

Yes, because I think they’re all very good options to find jobs offers but in turn these have their pros n cons
2. Have you used these methods in the past? Would you try any of these methods?
No, but I’ve helped family members find work in networking and newspapers. I would like to myself in the future use cold calling.
3. What are the advantages and disadvantages of each method?

4. Can you think of any other job-hunting methods?

I think an employment fair
Cold calling

Cold calling means phoning a company to enquire about job opportunities which have not been advertised. The phone conversation is used to generate interest in you as a
potential employee. The aim of the call is to get an invitation to send your CV.

7a. Discuss the following questions.

1. Have you ever tried cold-calling a company? Was it successful?

2. What advice would you give somebody cold-calling a company in your country?

7b. 1.5 Eryk and Patrick are looking for work in the hotel industry in London. They both have experience working in hotels in their own countries. They
decide to cold-call a number of hotels in London to try and find a suitable job. Listen to their calls and decide who has the more successful cold calling technique.

I think Eryk is the most successful in cold calling because he does more detailed his skills and does it without wasting time on what he
does.

7c. 1.5 Complete the extracts from Eryk’s call (1-5) using the sentences (a-e).

a. I have worked for a number of big hotels in Poland.

b. I would like to speak to Janet Robinson.
c. What background experience are you looking for?
d. Are you looking for someone with experience such as this?
e. Are you looking for employees with international experience?

1. Good morning. I’, Eryk Pawlak. _________ Is she there?

2. I have considerable professional experience in the hotel industry. _________
3. My mother tongue is Polish, but I can also speak Spanish, having worked for a big hotel in Spain. _________
4. To begin with I mainly worked managing a team of cleaners and porters. However, my Spanish improved quickly and I was moved to reception, where I dealt with
customers both face to face and on the phone. _________
5. “Do you have a degree?” “Yes, I have a degree in tourism. _________”

7d. Match the extracts (1-5) in Exercise 7c to the following cold calling techniques (a-e).

a. Give just enough information about yourself to generate interest in yourself as a potential employee. 2
b. Respond to questions with your own questions to find out more about the company. 5
c. Use positive questions that invite a “yes” response. 3, 4
d. Mention one or two concise achievements, using facts and figures where possible. 3, 4
e. Ask to speak to the decision maker by name. 1
Job advertisements

A good job advertisement is designed to attract the most suitably qualified applicants. It’s not just applicants that are competing with each other for jobs; employers are also
competing with each other to attract the best candidates for their vacancies.

8a. Discuss the following questions.

1. What information would you expect to find in a well- written job advertisement?
2. What makes a good job advertisement?

8b. Employers usually try to squeeze as much information into their job advertisements as possible. However, because advertising is expensive and space limited,
they tend to use abbreviations to describe roles in as few words as possible. Write the full meanings of the following abbreviations using the words below.

agency annum clean current curriculum driving earnings experience license of on per per point sale target vitae week

1 CCDL ___current clean driving license_____ 2 CV ___Curriculum vitae_____ 3 EXP ____Experience_____

4 AGY __Agency_______ 5 OTE ___On target earnings___ 6 PA __Per annum year________
7 PW ___Per week_________ 8 POS ____Point on sale_____________

8c. Which abbreviation would you expect to see in a job advertisement:

1 if you need relevant professional experience for the position? ____EXP_________
2 if the salary mentioned was for the whole year? ____PA_________
3 if a job agency is advertising the job? ____AGY_________
4 if the position requires experience of selling products to customers? ___POS__________
5 if the take-home pay will be part basic salary and part performance-related pay?
___OTE_____

8d. Job advertisement tend to use a lot of jargon, like proactive team player. Look at the
extract from a job advertisement. Discuss what the terms in bold actually mean in specific,
practical terms. Why are they important skills in the workplace?

8e. Match the jargon in Exercise 8d to the following questions.

1 Do you have a personality that will fit in with the rest of the team? Are you willing to help
with tasks outside your job role when required?
Team player
2. Are you someone who wants to work, is prepared to do what it takes to fulfill your job
function and make money for the company? Will you be aware of how your actions affect
the company as a whole?
results-focused
3 Are you innovative a creative? Are you the type of person who thinks intelligently and can generate ideas to improve things?
Dynamic
4 are you prepared to work to meet the demands of the business, which might involve relocating to another office or working extra hours -even weekends?
Flexible
5 Do you meet deadlines, work well with others and get things done? Can you produce reliable work under pressure and be trusted with multiple responsibilities?
Good organizational skills

8f. Read the two job advertisements and answer the following questions. Underline the parts of the advertisements that support your answers.

1 For which job is a university degree essential? For the Media Assistant Position
2 Which job places more emphasis on being flexible and adaptable? For Trainee Finance Recruitment Consultant
3 Which job offers a higher salary? For the first option (For Trainee Finance Recruitment Consultant)
4 What should you do if you wish to apply for the Media Assistant position? Send your CV and cover letter to [email protected]
5 How will you know if Media X is interested in your application? They will contacted u.
8g Read the job advertisements again and find expressions to match the following definitions.

1 A Latin term meaning approximately used to talk about salaries. This term informs you that the salary is not fixed but may be around 10% higher or lower depending on
your relevant experience and qualifications. ___circa_______
2 A term used to inform you of the date by which the employer must have received your application. Also sometimes called deadline. ____closing date_____
3 An abbreviation meaning thousand. __K___
4 A term used to inform you that you must quote the reference number when you apply for the position. This number should be clearly marked on your envelope (if you
apply by post) or the subject line of your email, as well as at the top of your cover letter. __quote ref__________
5 A Latin term meaning that your salary is calculated according to what proportion of a full-time job your hours make up. So, if the salary is quoted at $18,000 based on a
full-time week of 40 hours and you are working 30 hours per week, you will be paid an annual salary of $13,500. ____pro rata__________

8h. Discuss the following questions.

1 What are the main transferable skill required for each job?
2 In which job would you expect to work under more pressure?
3 Which job would you prefer to do and why? I would prefer the first job, because I find the role for which it is required so being flexible would help me
a lot, in addition to the salary being better than the second

8i. Many job advertisements request familiarity with certain tools, skills or languages that are relevant to the job. Put the expressions in bold in order of
knowledge and experience required.
 1. Proficiency in
2. Excellent command of
3. Working knowledge

8j. Write sentences about your own knowledge and experience using the following expressions.

I am proficient in …
I have an excellent command of…
I have a good working knowledge of …

8k. Sort the phrases below into two groups.

ideally you will have… …is essential …is necessary …is preferred …is vital the successful candidate will be… …would be a plus
…would be advantageous …would be desirable …would be welcome you must be … you will have…

1 Skills which candidates must have

___…is essential_________________ ________________________________ ________________________________
________________________________ ________________________________ ________________________________

2 Skills which the employer hopes for (they may still consider the candidate if they don’t have all of them)

________________________________ ________________________________ ________________________________

________________________________ ________________________________ ________________________________

8l. Which of the phrase in Exercise 8K are used in the two job advertisements in exercise 8f?

8 m. Read the following job advertisement. Find words that mean someone who is:

1 good at finding solutions to problems. ________________________________

2 able to speak a language without any noticeable mistakes or effort. ________________________________
3 flexible and able to work on different projects at the same time. ________________________________
4 good with computers. ________________________________
5 good at math and dealing with numbers. ________________________________