The University of Cape Coast Students Representative Council (SRC) as part of the commemoration of its week celebration has held a secretarial conference for students to sharpen their skills in curriculum vitae and resume preparation.
The event-themed, presenting oneself in the best light through writing and composure, sought to help students hone their writing skills in various discourses including application letter writing.
It also aimed to expose students to experts in the field in order to motivate them to develop their writing ability and instill a positive attitude towards writing.
In a presentation on developing persuasive writing for the job market, Dr. Wincharles Coker, a lecturer in the Department of Communication studies at the University of Cape Coast stressed that there is a need for students to put efforts into their writing in order to persuade their readers and outperform their competitors.
To him, CV writing should not be an on-the-spot fill-in but continuous writing to help keep it updated to make it appeal to prospective employers.
“Do not wait until you are told to submit a CV before you put in a CV. You may end up forgetting a whole lot of details and interesting juice that may appeal to your prospective employers and therefore on a monthly basis, on a semester basis always reflect on the things you have done for the semester,” he said.
He further urged the students to also learn to write focused-based CVs and applications in other to hit their targets for particular organizations when applying for a job.
Addressing students on interview preparations, Prof. Peter Kojo Grant of the Department of Classics and Philosophy indicated that employers consider a variety of factors before making a hiring decision.
This he said includes applicants’ ability to do the job and their ability to fit in for the job among other requirements.
He explained that an interview is a plus for any applicant since it suggests that one’s application has cleared the first hurdle hence the invitation to an interview.
“So, before you go to the interview, you do a background check on that particular company or organization and then in doing so you get to know the missions, and visions of that particular company,” he added.
Prof. Kojo Grant further advised the students to also be particular about their appearance and their composure.
For instance, he said “If you go, you stand until you are offered a seat. You sit straight up as much as possible. You look the panel in the eye. You must appear calm; confident and you must have a smile on your face. Then we get to the point where you are being asked questions.”
He said it is needful for the interviewee to be audible and have confidence in answering questions during the interview.
For this reason, he urged students to thoroughly prepare for each interview.
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Source: Emmanuella Gyamfi/ATLFMNEWS
