English · Chapter 37
Study notes aligned to the official NEB syllabus.
This Language Development unit of the Grade 12 Compulsory English textbook takes career opportunities as its theme, and it is the most practical unit in the book. It is examined through comprehension, vocabulary, grammar and writing rather than literary study. The reading text, "Presenting Yourself", is a piece of practical advice on how a job-seeker should present himself or herself to employers, in writing and in person. The unit surrounds this text with comprehension questions, the vocabulary of work and job applications, a grammar focus, a speaking or listening activity such as a mock interview, and a writing task that asks students to prepare a curriculum vitae and a job application letter. Its usefulness reaches well beyond the examination.
"Presenting Yourself" is an expository text rather than a story. Its central argument is that ability and qualifications alone do not win a job; the candidate must present skills, experience and personality in a form that employers can see quickly and trust. Because an employer usually meets the applicant first on paper and then in a short interview, everything the applicant does creates an impression, and first impressions are hard to undo.
The advice begins before any application is written. A job-seeker should know his or her own strengths, skills and achievements, should find out what the employer does and what the post requires, and should match the two honestly. The written presentation comes next. The curriculum vitae, also called a resume, should be short, clearly organised and truthful, with personal details, education, experience, skills and referees set out under headings and free of spelling or typing errors. The covering letter that accompanies it should be brief and formal, should state the post applied for and where it was advertised, should explain in a few sentences why the applicant suits the post, and should politely ask for an interview.