A step by step guide on what a new graduate needs to know before applying for a job

1. THE APPLICATION
PROCESS
YOU SHOULD KNOW THIS BEFORE YOU SEND THAT CV
BY OLUWATOYIN
PUDDICOMBE
#TOYINTALKSTALENT
HTTPS://MEET.GOOGLE.C
OM/PMC-IDOU-YDV

2. • I am an HR professional with over a decade of active work
experience. I have worked in Aviation, Business Services,
Consulting, and Insurance, gathering and acquiring skills and
competences in Client Services, Relationship Management and
Human Capital Management with a strong bias for Talent
Acquisition and Development.
• I believe that our work is a platform for sharing our gifts with the
world. Unfortunately, a lot of young graduates underestimate
themselves for various reasons; the economy, wrong course
choices, wrong career choices, failure to plan their careers,
multiple rejections and so on.
• I believe that each person is uniquely gifted by God to make their
way in the world using those gifts and I would like to help in
discovering them and finding fulfilling careers.
• This is the reason for Toyin Talks Talent.
Oluwatoyin Puddicombe
ACIPM, SPHRi, SHRM

3. PRE-APPLICATION
Before you send that CV

4. WHAT KIND OF COMPANY IS IT?
• What can I offer? What makes me stand
out?
• Do your Research. Is it an industry that
interests me?
• Where is it located?
• Where does it fit in my career plan?
• Can I build a career there, or is it a
temporary job?
• If a career, where do my skills fit?
• If a steppingstone, what do I want
to gain from there and how best
can I get it?

5. Is there anything
inappropriate on my social
media?
• Profanity
• Following or liking
controversial people
Do I need to update my
LinkedIn profile?
Can I learn about the
company from friends or
connections?

6. What would I be doing on the job?
Can I do the job?
Do I have the skills they asked for?
Do I have the qualifications?
If I don’t have all these but I know I
can do the job, how do I convince
them?

7. APPLICATION
Writing your CV and Cover Letter

8. TIPS FOR WRITING A GOOD CV
DOS
• Choose a good format or template
• Choose a good font. Times New Roman,
Arial, Calibri, or fonts like these are best.
Size between 10 and 12 points.
• Be consistent and uniform in your spacing
and arrangements.
• Check spelling, grammar, tenses, names
of companies and people for accuracy.
DON’TS
• Use bright colours. However, industries
that are creative like advertising allow for
some license
• Include your photograph except
specifically requested.
• Include unnecessary information like age,
marital status, LGA, secondary school,
languages spoken (unless specified)

9. WHAT A GOOD
CV SHOULD
HAVE
A BASIC OUTLINE

10. 1. CONTACT INFORMATION
• Name
• Contact Address – this could be you own
address or where you can be reached
• Email: name.surname@email.com or
namesurname@email.com. Do not use
casual addresses like
fabfunmi@yahoo.com
• Phone number
• LinkedIn address – make this a hyperlink
so that the recruiter can go straight to it.

11. 2. CAREER SUMMARY OR PROFESSIONAL PROFILE
• Simply put, it’s ‘this is who I am, and this is
what I want’
• It is a hard-hitting introductory paragraph
packed with your most sought-after skills,
abilities, accomplishments, and attributes. In
short, your career summary is key to getting
noticed.
• Include your career objectives
• Resist overselling yourself. Be confident but
modest.
• Check https://zety.com/blog/resume-
summary for more samples
Agile and well-organized receptionist with 6+ years of
professional experience in the private and public
sectors. Skilled at dealing with sensitive situations and
keen to support ABC Inc. with organizational,
diplomacy, and communication skills. At DEF Inc.,
implemented a CRM system with reporting capabilities
that contributed to cutting costs by up to 25%.
Insightful sales associate with 5+ years of professional
experience in online and print media. Eager to boost
DEF Inc’s revenue by at least 40% over the next fiscal
year. In previous positions, exceeded quarterly sales
targets by 10% every quarter. Maintained a customer
retention rate of 90% YOY thanks to which won
Salesman of the Year Award in 2018.

12. CORE OR KEY SKILLS
• List your strengths. Find the professional lingo to describe them.
• Prioritize those that are relevant to the job you are applying for.
• Examples are: Problem solving, Emotional intelligence, Sales leadership. Data Analysis,
Languages. Mobile app development, People management, Video production Oral and
written communication skills, teamwork, agility, adaptability etc.
• Remember that digital skills are in demand now so include any you have

13. EMPLOYMENT/WORK HISTORY
• List in chronological order, include position details and dates
• Include Achievements: achievements should be in format
TASK, ACTION, RESULTS
• Start with an ‘action word’: it positions you as a ‘doer’ and
not a ‘looker’.
• Results are the impact on the company
• Results must be measurable / quantifiable results /
benefits.

14. EXAMPLES
What did I do? What was the Result?
Made a complicated inventory
program for my company.
Saved the company time and
money.
Wrote a complex inventory
application, saving time and
money.
Implemented a new accounting
system
Implemented a new accounting
system for multiple locations
reducing time for customer
inquiries
Implemented a new client service
program
Developed and implemented client
service program, which expanded
small-to-medium client base 35%

15. EXAMPLES OF
ACHIEVEMENT
STATEMENTS
• Developed a new employee orientation program
that 100% of the company locations adopted.
• Responded to over 85 customer calls daily and
solved 90% of their concerns.
• Served customers in a positive way, receiving two
customer service awards in the past year.
• Assisted credit manager in account collection by
phone and mail, increasing accounts receivables
by 20%.
• Created a multi-media campaign that increased
enrollment by 700 students in eight years.

16. LIST OF ACHIEVEMENTS
• Re-organized something to make it work better
• Identified a problem and solved it
• Came up with a new idea that improved things
• Developed or implemented new procedures or
systems
• Worked on special projects
• Received Awards
• Been complimented by your supervisor or co-
workers
• Increased revenue or sales for the company
• Saved money for the company
• Saved time for the company
• Contributed to good customer service

17. OTHER COMPONENTS
• Education
Include university, dates, discipline,
and details of degrees,.
• Professional Qualifications
Certifications and Accreditations
• Computer Skills
• Volunteer Experience
• Training and certification
• Awards (Optional and only if
relevant)
• Publications (For Academic roles
only)
• Books (mention as accomplishment)
• Professional Memberships
• Interests/ Hobbies

18. WRITING A
GOOD COVER
LETTER
A BASIC OUTLINE

19. COMPONENTS
• Your contact information,
• A salutation
• The body of the cover letter,
• An appropriate closing and a
signature.

20. STRUCTURE AND FORMAT
• There are two main types of cover letter
• the targeted letter - for use when responding to specific
advertisements
• the speculative letter - for use when approaching companies
“cold”
• The letter should be presented by following standard business
letter protocol and should be written in a simple and concise
manner, with no spelling or grammatical errors
• It should be four to five paragraphs and should not exceed a single
side of A4.
• There may be instances when this is not the case, but always follow
these rules, unless instructed to the contrary.

21. FIRST PARAGRAPH
• Explain your reason for writing and, if
this is a targeted letter, where you
saw the advertisement.
• You should then grab the reader’s
attention by including a few lines
about what you have to offer,
ensuring this is directly relevant to
the particular role (targeted) or type
of position (speculative) that you are
applying for.

22. THE NEXT TWO PARAGRAPHS
• Focus on your skills, experiences and achievements.
• In the case of a targeted letter, it is important to
demonstrate how you meet the essential criteria
specified in the advertisement.
• If this is a speculative application, think about what
skills are looked for in the type of role you are
targeting and make these the focus of the two
paragraphs.
• A cover letter should also include something directly
related to the company that you are writing to.
• It is a good idea to state what it is about their
organisation that interests you and, if you can include
any statistics or snippets of information, that indicate
that you have done some research, this can only improve
your chances.

23. THE FINAL PARAGRAPH
• Thank them for their time and consideration and
proactively encourage an interview, stressing your
flexibility concerning interview dates and times.
• In summary, your cover letter should pick out the very
best bits of your CV, without just repeating the
information verbatim.
• It should convey a positive approach and attitude and
should grab the reader’s attention.
• Sign off with your name and repeat your email address
and phone number.

24. THE APPLICANT
TRACKING SYSTEM

25. WHAT IS THE APPLICANT TRACKING SYSTEM (ATS)?
• An applicant tracking system (ATS) is software that manages the recruiting and
hiring process, including job postings and job applications. It organizes and
makes searchable information about job seekers. As its name implies, an ATS
tracks candidates through the hiring process
• Today, approximately 98 percent of Fortune 500 companies rely on ATS software
to help streamline their recruitment process (topresume.com)

26. TIPS FOR
WRITING AN
ATS-OPTIMIZED
RESUME.

27. If the ad does not
specify, use an MS
Word document
Don't put important
details in the header or
footer. Might get ATS
scrambled!
Optimize your resume
with keywords. This
largely depends on the
role JD.

28. Avoid images,
charts, and other
graphics. They can
become scrambled
or left out
Stick to simple bullet points.
Another scramble alert.
Use a clean resume design
with a clear hierarchy

29. SENDING YOUR
APPLICATION

30. PAY ATTENTION TO THESE
• Make sure your resume is well labelled: name surname month year. E.g. John Doe
June 2020
• Make sure the recipient’s email address is accurate
• Make your cover letter the body of the email
• Make sure the subject accurately states that it is an application. Note that
sometimes the ad specifies how to label your application.
• Do not send your resume as part of an email trail. Always send a fresh application
in a new email.

32. JOB BOARDS
• LinkedIn jobs
• Hot Nigerian Jobs
• Glassdoor
• Jobberman
• Jobgurus Nigeria
• Jobstoday
• Jobomas

33. REFERENCES AND RESOURCES
• Jobs.telegraph.co.uk
• Resumelab.com
• Ecs.ihu.edu.gr/co/
• Topresume.com
• https://simpleresume.com/simple-resume-format-
bullet-points/
• Sending your job application: a few dos and don’ts
by Oluwatoyin Puddicombe (LinkedIn article)

34. CONNECT WITH ME!
• Twitter - @toyintalktalent
• Instagram - @toyinpuddy
• Facebook – Toyin Talks Talent
• LinkedIn – Oluwatoyin Puddicombe