5 Tips For Writing A Stellar Statement Of Interest

By Emily Plummer on December 23, 2015

Remember when we were all just kids, without a care in the world, or a responsibility to worry about? Our lives revolved around playtime and our parents took care of the more practical side of things.

But real life is upon us as we continue to make our way through college. With each passing day we move closer to the “real world” and gain new responsibilities. That doesn’t have to be a bad thing. Though we continue to take on more and more work, we are increasingly more conscious of our world, making us active participants in its structure and events.

Part of this transition from childhood to adulthood involves entering the workforce. And in attaining a place in the workforce, we go through many applications, resumes, interviews, and of course, statements of interest. These deceivingly simple submissions can be incredibly frustrating and difficult to write given their limited word count and significance in determining your candidacy for the job.

theguardian.com

To help you get through this process, here are a few tips to make your statement of interest shine and stand out from your competition.

1. Catch their attention.

Capture the reader’s attention! This does not mean you have to be a superb writer or start off with a statement that is shocking. It just has to make the reader want to keep on reading. Give them a reason to read your piece intently, without putting it down. This will help you stand out and allow the reader to pay full attention to what you have to say.

2. Quantify.

This is an idea that many people miss. Employers like to see quantifiable data about the work you have done, its impact, etc. So anywhere and everywhere you can, insert numbers that can illustrate the extent of your work experience.

If you volunteered at a high school, don’t say, “I volunteered to tutor several high school students struggling with math.” Instead, make this experience more tangible, with, “I volunteered to tutor eight high school students three times a week. By the end of the semester all of them had improved by at least one letter grade.”

3. Don’t repeat your resume.

Your statement of interest is not a reiteration of the things potential employers already know about you from your resume. It is a chance to expand on what is not expressed in the bullet points of your work and volunteer experience.

This is your opportunity to connect different experiences together. How does your volunteer work at an elementary school relate to your work in a research lab or your years on the tennis team? Give your potential employer an idea of your goals for the job and for yourself in the future.

What is your motivating force, and why do you want this job? Let your writing be a way for the reader to get a sense of who you are before they even meet you.

4. Capitalize on your strengths.

Are you a good writer? Make it known! Show off your talents by implementing illustrative language and by making the description of your goals and experience into a story. Whether or not this skill directly relates to the field you are being hired into, it will catch the reader’s attention and make your statement memorable.

If you don’t consider yourself a very talented writer, that’s okay too. Just focus on conveying your ideas clearly and in a way that is not the obvious. Tell a story, a memory, or a vision for the future to lead into or imply the experience you have or the goals you wish to accomplish. Don’t just write the first thing that comes to your mind or answer the question in a very straightforward manner, like “My career goals are …”

Take your time to make it interesting.

5. Focus on what’s important to you.

This statement is about you. It lets you speak directly to your future employer and tell them anything you want. So focus your writing on what is most important to you.

Often the word count restricts you from writing about a variety of subjects, so pick one that encompasses many aspects of you: your goals, your growth, your most valuable experience (i.e. teamwork, teaching). Then go into further detail about this specific topic, rather than glossing over the importance of a large variety of topics.

Good luck out there!

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