Finding job vacancies
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GatwickDiamondJobs.com is the hub for job opportunities in the area from Croydon to Brighton, and Crawley to East Grinstead and information about improving your chances of finding a job with education and training.
Register with GatwickDiamondJobs.com to upload your CV and apply for all the jobs on the site with one click.
You will also get regular job alerts by e-mail and our weekly newsletter with all the latest information about finding a job in the Gatwick Diamond.
You can also look for jobs in the local paper or online using social networks such as Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn.
What do you want to do for work?
The first step in getting a new job is deciding what you would like to do for work: what are you good at and what do you enjoy doing?
Gaining a qualification or getting some work experience will help you show your interest in a particular job.
Once you have decided what you want to do, you can get more knowledge by reading about the industry in newspapers, online or by following relevant companies and people on Twitter.
Writing a great CV
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Your CV should be an accurate and relevant reflection of your professional and personal experience.
Employers will spend 20-30 seconds scanning your CV so you need to make sure they can find the information they're looking for quickly and easily.
General CV Writing Tips
Your CV should:
- be two pages long
- be tailored to the job you're applying for
- be formal with no extravagant fonts or colours
- not use slang or jargon
- not have any spelling mistakes
Structuring your CV
Your CV should start with your name and contact details. Include your postal address, a professional e-mail address and a telephone number so the employer can choose how to contact you.
Your personal profile should be a brief explanation of your skills and objectives. It should be written in the third person, e.g. 'Jill Smith is an intelligent professional with management experience...' not 'I am an intelligent professional with management experience...'.
Next up is your career history which will outline your previous work experience. Start with your job title, the company you worked for and the dates you worked for them. Then add three or four bullet points to list your responsibilities and achievements.
List your educational qualifications starting with the most recent. Name the school or university where you took the qualification and include your grade.
Add a bullet point list of your additional skills such as whether you hold a driving licence or a first aid certificate. Include any computer programs relevant to the job you're applying for.
If you have space, finish with a bullet point list of your hobbies and interests.
Still unsure? Have a look at our example CV.
Read up on what recruiters look at during the 6 seconds they spend reading your CV.
Writing a great coverletter
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So you've got a great CV, but the first thing a potential employer will read is your cover letter.
Even though you will mostly apply for jobs online, your cover letter is still essential and is a great chance for you to sell yourself and highlight important parts of your CV.
When you apply for a job, attach your cover letter to the e-mail and make sure you use a professional e-mail address
Formatting your Coverletter
Your cover letter should be formatted like an official letter and should be no more than one page long.
Write your address in the top right-hand corner then leave a line and put the full date.
If you know the name of the person you are sending your application to, start the letter with 'Dear Mrs Jones' and end with 'Yours sincerely'.
If you don't know the name of the person you are sending your application to, start the letter with 'Dear Sir/Madam' and end with 'Yours faithfully'.
Writing your Coverletter
When you write your cover letter, try to answer these questions:
- What is your background?
- Where did you find out about the job vacancy?
- Why are you applying for the job?
- Why do you want to work for this company?
- Why are you suitable for the job?
Then:
- summarise relevant points from your CV
- state 'I am available for interview at your convenience.
Still unsure? Have a look at our example cover letter?
Using e-mail like a pro
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We use e-mail for many different purposes: keeping in touch with friends and family or finding out about the latest gigs.
But when you send your CV and your coverletter to a potential employer, it's important to appear as professional as possible.
Use a professional e-mail address
Potential employers won't be impressed by casual e-mail addresses like dan_the_man@email.co.uk or sexybeast89@email.co.uk.
Use your full first name and surname or your initial and surname to give your e-mail address a more professional sound like mikesmith@email.co.uk or msmith@email.co.uk.
You can set up a free address with e-mail services such as Google, Windows Live or Yahoo
Make the subject line accurate
Potential employers will receive lots of e-mails. The subject line is the first thing they will read and could affect how and when they read the rest of the e-mail.
Be clear with your subject line. If you're applying for a job as a Sales Assistant, use a subject line like: Application for Sales Assistant vacancy from GatwickDiamondJobs.com'.
Keep your e-mail short and clear
You don't need to repeat the information in your CV and your cover letter in the e-mail.
Potential employers may receive hundreds of e-mails a day. A short and clear e-mail directing them to your cover letter will help them find the important information quickly.
End with an e-mail signature
Most e-mail services will let you write a signature to go at the end of every e-mail you send. These tutorials will tell you how to set up a signature on Google
You can put your full name and, if you want to, your telephone number in the signature. You may also want to include links to a social network like LinkedIn or Twitter if you use it for professional purposes.
Completing an application form
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You may be asked to complete an application form instead of sending your potential employer a CV and a cover letter.
Read the instructions carefully. You may be asked to only use black ink or to complete the form in block capitals.
It is a good idea to write your answers on paper first then transfer them once you are happy with what you've written.
Writing your answers
Do not copy and paste information from your CV. You can use your CV as a starting point but your potential employer will be looking for specific examples of your:
- communication skills
- time management
- ability to meet goals and targets
- flexibility
- organisational and planning skills
- problem solving ability
- creativity and initiative
- teamwork
If you are completing an online application form, make sure you save it after completing each answer.
When you have completed the application form, print a copy or take a photocopy which you can read before your interview. You may be asked questions based on your application form.