Narrative

Steps and Activities for CL & Resume Project

Note: This project has three major parts. While I would prefer an assignment to be simpler, I feel the complexity is necessary for this assignment. Complexity invites ambiguity and confusion. To counteract those tendencies and to provide clarity on what needs to be done and at what point, I have created this document to provide a map to guide you. Please do keep in mind that while I have made every effort to include all of the steps necessary, I may have missed some. Such is the danger of attempting to pin down all of the steps in a process.

Documents Required for this Project
Writing Prompt
Job Announcement
Company Info
(finished) Resume

(finished) Cover Letter
(finished)
Narrative of your process and Rhetorical Decisions

Narrative
Sales and promotion by their very nature fit the classical definition of rhetoric: persuasion. In other words, promotional documents are meant to attract attention, put forth information that retains audience attention, provide details that hold attention and eventually persuade the audience to action. This is the AIDA method (Attention, Interest, Details, Action). In many ways, this is what you do through your resume and cover letter. They are, after all, promotional materials that promote/advertise you.
While you should be deliberate in all of your writing, you should be especially deliberate in promotional writing. In your cover letter and resume, for instance, you should ideally account for every letter and space on the document. There should be no wasted words–and no wasted opportunities to put your best self forward in these single-paged documents.
And, yes, one page for each is all you allowed, unless you are applying for the type of position that calls for a CV (and even then, it is good practice to still have a one-page resume). Employers expect cover letters and resumes to be no longer than one page unless the person is applying for a CEO or upper management position. Submitting anything longer for most positions, especially entry level ones, suggests self-indulgence and arrogance on the applicant’s part. Conversely, distilling your information down to one page displays courteousness and a consideration for the hiring manager’s time. (Time, in most professions, is a precious commodity.)
All of this means that your cover letter and resume say so much more about you than the things written. They show, among other things, your attention to detail, your work habits, your awareness of conventions and expectations, and your ability to prioritize. All of these are essential skills for most careers. Again, you need to be very deliberate about what you put into a resume and cover letter.
Deliberateness–you will demonstrate this and your rhetorical awareness in this part of the assignment: the process narrative. For this narrative, you will discuss your writing and revision and the decisions you made throughout the writing and designing of your cover letter and resume. You will discuss why you made the rhetorical moves you did throughout.
Why?–Keep this question in mind. It is often the biggest difference between C-level and A-level writing. It is the question that can transform skimpy, undeveloped passages that annoy readers for wasting their time on superficial, obvious statements to well-developed passages that inform and resonate with readers.
This narrative is meant to stretch you as writers. Some of you will end up in positions where you will have to provide narratives, whether in speeches or in company documents. This document is also explanatory, something that many of you will do every day in your careers, whether in person, during a speech, or in writing. Explaining things to others is a key skill in business and in life. This narrative will also enable you to write something in a more conversational tone, a style that many of you gravitate toward. It is also an essential business skill that you have not been able to utilize much in this class, until now.
Here are the general steps you will likely follow for this Section
1. To get an idea of how to approach this part of the assignment, read
“Counter Coulter”
In this article, the authors describe their process of preparing for a debate with Anne Coulter. Throughout, they demonstrate their growing rhetorical awareness of the situation and of their role. Along the way, they describe how their increasing awareness encouraged them to change their speech and its tone.
2. Gather everything you have written for this assignment–your plans, your feedback, your documents, etc. The creation of these assignments had two goals: (1) to help your plan out your drafts; (2) to serve as memory joggers and even passages of your narrative.
3. Write up an explanatory narrative that discusses the feature of effective cover letters and resumes and that specifically points to your resume and CL as examples. Use examples from several drafts. Analyze in writing what was and wasn’t working with early drafts. Compare them to later drafts.
4. Combine your resume, cover letter, explanatory process narrative, and job announcement into a single document with strong headings (and perhaps subheadings).

Rubrics
The cover letter and narrative rubrics are under construction and revision

Your cover letter and resume will be evaluated using the following criteria. If you are doing a letter of application for postgraduate study, use this rubric as a general guide. If you are submitting a personal statement for medical school, please see me for an alternative assignment.

Resume Rubric
Content Needs work satisfactory very good excellent
Is is a format that works best for your situation: reverse chron, functional, functional-chronilogical (Consider the last option to highlight both skills and work history, functional if you have no work history, and chronological if you have an extensive work history in the field.)
Lists essential information that qualifies you for position
Presents most relevant details.
Omits irrelevant and mundane details (Filling salt and pepper shakers? Really?
Presents specific experiences and achievements

Organization & Design
In an order that presents relevant and strongers information where it will be noticed the most
Makes good use of space
Uses contrast
Good Alignment
Proximity (for instance, there is less space after a heading and more before it to differentiate sections and subsections
Repetition
Style and Grammar
Uses strong verbs. Traditionally (and here, we can follow tradition), resumes have entries that begin with verbs. Past tense for old jobs. Lately, many resume entries start with simple present tense verbs for jobs the applicant is still performing.
Higher order grammatical errors (sentence structure/ verb tenses etc) are rare or non existent and do not interfere with meaning.
Lower order grammatical errors are infrequent and don’t interfere with meaning
Word choice is approprate. Wording is precise, meaning what the writer means.
Revision/Process
There is evidence that the author revised thoughtfully and crtically
All drafts turned in on time
Thoughtful revision plans submitted. Plans mention specific areas to revise and discuss why the change is needed

Feature Description %
Content and Ideas Cover letter shows how you can meet the needs of the employer
Cover letter and resume present notable abilities and achievements.

Presents specific experiences and achievements
30%
Organization Cover letter has a controlling idea near its beginning• Letter is coherent and organized, with logical flow between ideas.
Sentences are cohesive, following one another naturally and logically. Old/know info tends to appear near the beginning of sentences
Pronouns, synonyms, and transitional words link paragraphs and sentences.
30%
Process • All drafts are submitted on time and show serious engagement with the assignment.
• Effective and thoughtful work in peer review workshops
• Evidence of effort and thoughtful revision between drafts
• Comments on specific revision in reflection memos and letter (i.e., specifies revision plans in memos and why they are needed; explains in reflection letter why certain passages were revised; discusses specifics of writing process in reflection letter) 20%
Clarity, Mechanics, and Design • Higher order grammatical errors (such as verb tense and form, sentence structure, word order, word choice) are rare and do not interfere with meaning.
• Points are explained thoroughly and with the appropriate wording so that the reader does not have to guess at what is being said.
• Word choice is accurate, appropriate, and interesting.
• Pronouns are clearly referenced and do not lead to ambiguity.
• Lower order grammatical errors (such as articles, word form, subject-verb agreement) are rare and show careful editing.
• Mechanical mistakes (such as spelling, punctuation errors, formatting) are not noticeable
• Formatting is conventional.
• Resume uses design elements (space, proximity, font characteristics, etc.) to present a readable and aesthetically pleasing document.

Analysis Rubric
Feature Description
Content • Discusses specific reasons why rhetorical moves were made
• Refers to specific areas of the text when discussing moves
• Shows awareness of employment document audience needs and expectations
• Writes in paragraph form.
Organization • Organized in linear manner that is easy for American readers to follow
Clarity and Mechanics • Higher order grammatical errors (such as verb tense and form, sentence structure, word order, word choice) are rare and do not interfere with meaning.
• Points are explained thoroughly and with the appropriate wording so that the reader does not have to guess at what is being said.
• Word choice is accurate, appropriate, and interesting.
• Pronouns are clearly referenced and do not lead to ambiguity.
• Lower order grammatical errors (such as articles, word form, subject-verb agreement) are rare and show careful editing.
• Mechanical mistakes (such as spelling, punctuation errors, formatting) are not noticeable