Ability Assessment – a test designed to show the employer your level of skill in job-related areas.
American Standard Code for Information (ASCII) – a file format that permits files to maintain their structure and be read correctly by a tracking system. These files are usually professional documents, such as a resume.
Annual Report – a yearly financial report available to the public that shows how a public company is doing overall.
Annual Review – Also called a yearly evaluation: A formal review of the employee’s performance by the employer; employees can use this evaluation as a good time to negotiate a promotion or a wage increase.
Application Form – a form used by employers to collect standard information about applicants; usually required in addition to a cover letter and resume.
Application Package – the combination of the cover letter, resume, and application. This package is the first chance an applicant has to impress a potential employer.
Aptitude Test – A test conducted by a potential employer to measure your skill level and suitability for a role within the company.
Background – the sum of an individual’s past education, training, and work experience.
Benefits Package – The compensations that an organization offers employees on top of their base salary, includes: overtime, insurance, sick and personal days, and vacation time.
Bi-lingual – a person’s ability to speak two different languages fluently
Blog – Web pages created to share opinions and thoughts; these are then discussed. “Blogging” is defined as participating in a blog. A “blogger” is the person who wrote the blog.
Bonus – Extra pay given to an employee as a reward for a good job or as an incentive to continue a good job.
Business Cards – a technique a professional uses to present his or her contact information on a small piece of cardstock.
Career Fairs – An event when many employers meet in one location to interview large numbers of contenders in a short amount of time. A career fair can benefit applicants because they can interview with several companies in the same day.
Career Mission Statement – Also known as the ‘objective’ on a resume.
Career Specific Skills – abilities that are related to a specific career; education in the area and career experience help applicants gain these skills. Employers usually list the skills as credentials on their job postings.
Challenge – a job or assignment that requires extra effort due to the difficulty involved.
Chronological Resume – a type of resume that first lists your work history, with your most recent job listed first.
Consultants – Experienced specialists in a field; these professionals are usually paid to help companies with less experience.
Contractors – Professionals in a specific industry that work independently; these workers are hired by companies that cannot do the job the contractor does.
Cover Letter – an introductory letter that is sent with a resume. In many instances, the cover letter is as or more important than a resume.
Cross-career Skills – Skills that benefit applicants looking for a position in any trade; the abilities are acquired through life and work experience and translate into any industry.
Dismiss – to release from employment; to fire.
Education – the instruction received during training (usually school).
ESN – External social networks (ESN) are online networking sites open to anyone. These sites are made to draw companies who wish to advertise.
Employer – the company or person who employs
Experience – previous positions held at other jobs, on a resume applicants should include dates (also called: work history and professional experience)
Fire – to release from employment; to dismiss
Fluent – A person’s ability to understand, verbalize, and write in a language that is not the language they first learned
Functional Resume –a type of resume that emphasizes skills and experience, instead of chronology of your work experience.
Functional Skills – a set of skills that employers analyze along with career specific skills; these skills include: communication, optimism, resourcefulness, ability to work as part of a team, etc
Graphology – a study that focuses on finding the character of the person writing, by examining their handwriting
Group Interview – an interview where several applicants are interviewed at the same time
Growth Industry – advantageous to work inside of a growth industry; strong companies succeeding in a market with rapid growth potential
Head Hunters – a way for job seekers to find a job; headhunters search for high-level employees only
Hybrid Resume – a resume that combines the best aspects of other types of resumes.
Illegal Interview Questions – questions asked by an interviewer with the intent of finding out unnecessary personal information; these questions are insignificant to the position and should not be included in the interview.
Interest – Any activity that an applicant participates in, outside of word, that they enjoy or want to learn more about.
Internal Promotions – advancement from within the company where an employee works; usually given to those with a successful record of accomplishment. Applicants should inquire about the possibility for internal promotions before accepting a position with a company.
ISN – Internal social networks (ISN) are a type of online networking group that are made up of people within a company, association, or group; ISN’s are closed to the public and normally require an invitation to enter.
Interview – A meeting between an employer and an applicant
Job Description – the advertisement a company posts for the opening at the workplace; job descriptions list qualifications, including: education, experience, skills necessary, pay, responsibilities, etc.
KSA – Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
Lateral Move – a move to another company, working at a similar level as your previous position. Usually occurs when the company offers more opportunity for internal promotion and advancement.
Letter of Recommendation – a form of referral designed to help a candidate stand out from the other job seekers; usually comes from a previous employer. A letter of recommendation usually provides a list of strengths and describes your work ethic.
Letter of Resignation – a formal letter presented to a work place to inform them that you are resigning from your current position.
Maternity Leave – A woman’s leave of absence from work after giving birth.
Mirroring – a natural behavior engaged in by people while interacting; one person assumes the dominant role while the other is submissive. Physical stance and posture indicate this state of interaction.
Nationality – The position of belonging to (or originating from) a specific country.
Native Language – The first language a person learns to speak
Need-based Selling – a way to market yourself to potential employers; first, a candidate must identify the needs of the employer and demonstrate how they can meet their needs more effectively than anyone else can.
Networking – establishing, preserving, and increasing contacts within the professional world by interacting with other business people; a continuous process that allows workers to connect with others in the industry.
Notice – an advanced notification to an employer of an employee’s intent to resign.
Objective – A statement on your resume that describes what you are looking for in an industry and how you can meet the employers needs.
Perk – the abbreviation for perquisite; something the employer supplies in addition to a regular salary (i.e. gas allowance)
Personality Assessment – A test intended to determine your motivation, personal interests and values, actions, and attitude; the personality assessment is usually given as part of the interview.
Personnel – The people who work for a company
Personnel Officer – The person at a company who is responsible for finding and training new hires and managing new employees
PLCs – Large, public corporations that sell shares of stock to the public
Promotion – the progression in status or position at a company
Prospects – an opportunity for promotion; further success
Psychometric Testing – A test given to applicants intended to establish if the candidate’s personality and skills meet those needed to perform the position successfully. These tests gauge character and abilities.
Qualifications – The combination of a person’s experience and education that makes them right for a particular job.
Raising Your Profile – a way to ‘sell’ oneself to others in the professional world by emphasizing your reputation. Employers will use this to determine your motivation and ability.
Recruit – the process of looking for new employees to hire
Retire – to end employment with a company and leave the work force, normally because of age
Salary – the regular payment of an employee by the employer
Salary Negotiation – a discussion between the interviewee and interviewer to decide upon the interviewee’s starting salary. Salary negotiation can also be used during an annual review to negotiate an increase in salary for a current employee.
Skill – an ability or capacity in a particular activity
SMART Goals – an acronym that stands for specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time-bound; utilized for goal setting.
Social Networking Site – an online community designed to connect people with others who share common interests and enjoy the same activities; users create profiles for themselves and communicate with other users.
Soft Skills – another term that describes transferable skills
Strategic Networking – networking with people with the intent of using the relationships gained as a resource in the future
Training – A process in which a person learns about a particular skill (i.e. customer service training)
Unique Selling Proposition (USP) – An explanation of a product’s benefits; putting a USP on a resume lets the job seeker show how their distinctive qualities will add to a company
Work history – an applicant’s record of previous jobs they have held (see: EXPERIENCE)
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