Technical and Scientific Writing (HU333)

Objectives

• To demonstrate that you've researched a company, its industry, and its competition
• To present yourself to a potential employer as a consistent, focused, package
• To write a focused cover letter and resume
• To answer tough interview questions intelligently and to ask intelligent interview questions

The Problem

Most new college graduates just want to get a job. Oftentimes they present themselves inconsistently to a potential employer, who gets to know a job candidate through a cover letter, a resume, an interview, and professional and personal references (a personal press kit). Also, many recent graduates don't take the time to research a company. Very few tailor their personal press kit to the needs of a potential employer. How do you want to present yourself? What response do you want a potential employer to have to your "personal press kit," and how can you control that response? How can you demonstrate that you've done your homework, that you know what this employer needs, and that you're the best candidate to address those needs?

Your Job, Your Deliverables

Develop a Personal Press Kit consisting of five elements. Here are their descriptions:

1. Corporate Profile
   
   Research a company you want to work for. Collect sales and marketing literature for that company, like: annual report, sales literature that the company prints about its products, general marketing literature about the company, a job description, Web pages, press releases, newspaper clippings, interviews with employees, and so on. Analyze how the company presents itself. What image does it want to project? What are its corporate objectives? Where does it see itself in two, five, or ten years? What do you know about the industry the company's in? What do you know about its competition? If you've worked for the company in a co-op or internship, where are there discrepancies between the marketing and sales literature and what you know? Develop a corporate profile of this company, citing specific examples from the literature you've collected and including a competitive analysis and an industry analysis. Make sure your observations are convincing by giving specific examples from the literature you've collected. The length of this profile should be at least two pages. (I'm assuming single-spaced copy.) Note that a corporate profile is an audience analysis.
   
   
2. Answers to Interview Questions
   
   Pretend that you're on an interview at the company you profiled. Write a thorough, thoughtful response to each of these interview questions. Your answers should perceive and control the response the interviewer has to your answers. Your answers should reflect the research you've done on the company.
   
   (Hint: When you write your answers, have at least one other person else read them. Show that person your corporate profile, too. Ask that person to tell you what impression he or she gets of you through these answers and whether your answers demonstrate that you've applied the research you did on the company. If the impression he/she gets and the impression you want to leave are in conflict, rewrite your answers.) The length of your answers should be as long as it takes to leave the impression that you want to leave.
   
   Remember: This part of the assignment is about CONTROL! Don't leave it to a potential employer to define who you are and what you're good at.
   
   Answer these questions in the order in which they're presented. Do not answer a question by referring to an answer you gave to another question.
   
   
   • Why do you want to work here and what do you have to offer us?
   • Do you prefer working alone or as a member of a team and why?
   • Where do you see yourself in 3-5 years?
   • How would you handle working on a project with someone you don't get along with?
   • Suppose that you're asked to write something (a memo, a report, a specification, a letter, and so on) that violates your sense of what is ethical. What should/would you do?
   
   
3. Questions for the Company
   
   You can leave a good impression on a potential employer if you ask questions in an interview. Write three questions that you could ask the interview of the company you profiled. The questions should demonstrate that you've researched the company, its industry, and its competition, and that you know exactly how you can help this company meet its objectives today and in five years.
   
   
4. Cover Letter
   
   Write a cover letter to the company you profiled that introduces you and that requests an interview. The cover letter should demonstrate that you've research the company, its industry, and its competition, and that you know exactly how you can help this company meet its objectives today and in five years. Length: one page.
   
   
5. Resume:
   
   Write a resume that is tailored to the needs of the company you profiled. The resume should demonstrate that you've research the company, its industry, and its competition, and that you know exactly how you can help this company meet its objectives today and in five years. Length: one page.