{"id":32,"date":"2015-10-28T10:24:39","date_gmt":"2015-10-28T10:24:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/careerdevelopmentservice\/?p=32"},"modified":"2025-02-26T13:26:42","modified_gmt":"2025-02-26T13:26:42","slug":"copy_paste","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/careerdevelopmentservice\/2015\/10\/28\/copy_paste\/","title":{"rendered":"Don’t copy and paste in haste!"},"content":{"rendered":"

You\u2019ve got an essay due in at the end of the week, a group presentation next week, it\u2019s your housemates birthday night out tonight AND you\u2019re going home at the weekend for your Mum\u2019s birthday. How on Earth are you going to find the time to submit a quality application form before the looming deadline? With your academic and social calendar stacked out, don\u2019t be tempted to cut corners when it comes to those all-important application forms to save a bit of time!<\/p>\n

Whilst copy and pasting application form answers may seem like a quick-fix solution, it ends up being a bigger waste of your time. Reusing previous answers word for word won\u2019t often stand you in good stead for getting through to the next stage of the selection process and put you right back to square one.<\/p>\n

Okay so you may be running on a tight deadline \u2013 follow these top tips to avoid turning to the tempting Crtl+C and Crtl+P<\/p>\n

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  1. Adapting previous phrases\/ examples.<\/strong> Adapting is the key word here \u2013 not<\/em> copying word for word. So you\u2019ve been asked to provide an example of when you have demonstrated successful leadership qualities, last week you filled in an application form which asked you to describe a time when you lead a team through a difficult situation. Great news \u2013 you already have an example you can edit \u2013 just make sure you shift the focus to ensure you are answering the new question.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

     <\/p>\n

      \n
    1. Focus your research<\/strong>. Make clear objectives for your research instead of mindlessly browsing through the company\u2019s website and social media accounts. Consider conducting SWOT or PEST(LE) analyses to help you be selective with your research \u2013 this will build both commercial awareness and provide you with unique points to articulate your motivations for applying to the specific company in question.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

       <\/p>\n

      \u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/strong>\"SWOT\"<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/a>\"PEST\"<\/a>
      \n<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

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      1. Use the job description to guide you<\/strong>. You can use the person specification to help structure a personal statement style question \u2013 for example \u201cPlease explain in your statement why you consider yourself suitable for the post.\u201d Using the listed criteria for your structure will ensure you keep to the point. Be sure to provide evidence for how you meet all of the essential points and any of the desirables you possess. Job descriptions also provide you with a readymade list of key words to highlight in your application- use it! If part of the criteria is to be adaptable and resilient, make sure your application reflects your adaptability and resilience.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

         <\/p>\n

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        1. Book an appointment with the Career Development Service! <\/strong>Having a fresh pair of eyes look over your application form can make all the difference! If you\u2019re unsure of availability don\u2019t hesitate to give us a call on 0116 252 2004 as we often have appointments become available on the day. We can also conduct appointments over the telephone so if getting dressed and traveling into Uni would eat into your already limited time, this is a great option!<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

           <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

          You\u2019ve got an essay due in at the end of the week, a group presentation next week, it\u2019s your housemates birthday night out tonight AND you\u2019re going home at the weekend for your Mum\u2019s birthday. How on Earth are you going to find the time to submit a quality application form before the looming deadline? […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":226,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[31,2,32,11,27,34,33,7],"class_list":["post-32","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-applciation-form","tag-careers-advice","tag-graduate-job","tag-graduate-recruitment","tag-graduate-success","tag-pest","tag-swot","tag-university-of-leicester"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/careerdevelopmentservice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/careerdevelopmentservice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/careerdevelopmentservice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/careerdevelopmentservice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/226"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/careerdevelopmentservice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/careerdevelopmentservice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":35,"href":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/careerdevelopmentservice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32\/revisions\/35"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/careerdevelopmentservice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/careerdevelopmentservice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staffblogs.le.ac.uk\/careerdevelopmentservice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}