- •Unit I negotiating the job market Ex.1. Read the text and do the assignments that follow.
- •A) Translate the words and word combinations in bold type into Russian. B) Answer the questions.
- •Ex.2. Translate into Russian. University career services
- •Ex.3. Use an appropriate word or phrase from the box to complete each sentence. For example, though, whereas, in addition, similarly
- •Ex.4. Read the text and do the assignments that follow. Graduate employment
- •Ex.7. Fill in the words. Career (n) — career (a) — make / have a career
- •Ex.8. Fill in the words. Qualify (V) — qualification (n) — qualified(a) overqualified (a)-- underqualified (a) — unqualified (a)
- •Ex.9. Fill in the words. Employer — employee; interviewer — interviewee; examiner — examinee; trainer — trainee
- •Ex.10.Put one of the following words in each space in the sentences below.
- •Ex.11. Choose the word or phrase which best completes each sentence.
- •A) human b) personnel c) personal
- •Ex.13. Here is a list of words and expressions connected with work. Divide them into the following categories:
- •Ex.14. Fill in the gaps with the words from 1) and 2) to learn about unemployment benefit.
- •Qualify, get by, report, fire, look for
- •Besides, that’s why, secondly, so
- •Ex.15. Fill in the words. Commute, salary, prospects, promotion, retire, pension, ambitious, perks, increments, commission choosing the right job
- •Ex.16. Complete the following passage about the role of search firms in recruiting, using topical words.
- •Which of the job-titles would best describe the following?
- •Ex.18. Look at these job advertisements. Change them so that a man or a woman should feel equally free to apply.
- •Ex.19. Compare the meanings of the words in each group. Consult the dictionary if necessary. Use the words in sentences of your own.
- •Ex.20. Translate into English.
- •Talking points:
- •How would you go about looking for a job in Russia?Unit II job applications
- •Letters of application (covering letters)
- •Ex.1. Here is an example of a letter of application. Notice how it is laid out.
- •Ex.2. Read the following letter of application and replace the underlined sentences with more appropriate ones from ex.1.
- •Ex.3.Which of these endings to job application letters are most (least) effective? Why? Which encourage the reader to look favourably on the application?
- •Ex.4.What kind of letters do employers like to receive? Tick what you think correct.
- •Read this letter. Do you think the writer will get the job? Why? Note down what you think is right and what is wrong with j. Henderson’s letter.
- •Ex.5. Complete the extract from the letter of application below, using an expression from a) in the correct form and a preposition from b).
- •To believe, to collaborate, to result, to report, to benefit, to apply, to work, to be, responsible, to be involved, to succeed;
- •From, in (4), to, on, for (2), with.
- •Ex.6. Translate into English.
- •Curriculum vitae
- •Ex.7. Read the newspaper article about curriculum vitaes and answer questions 1-15 by choosing from the sections of the article (a-f).You may choose any of the sections more than once. Which section:
- •Story of your life
- •Ex.8. Give the layout of a standard cv by referring to the above article. Ex.9. Put the parts of the text in the right order. Begin with 1. Application forms
- •Ex.10. Fill in the words. Refer, referred, referring (V), reference (n)
- •Referee(s) x6, applicant(‘s) x5, employees, employers, report on, quote, job description, assessment, reference referees and the references they give
- •Ex.12. Open the brackets to use topical words and phrases.
- •Informal letter
- •Ex.15. Translate into English.
- •Ex.16. Fill in the blanks with topical words.
- •Ex.17.Render into English.
- •Ex.1. Read the text and answer the questions.
- •Interview technique What to wear
- •Arriving for interviews
- •Talking shop
- •Leaving the interview
- •Ex.2.Refer to the text and make a list of important dOs and don'Ts.
- •Be up to, bring out, call in, come up,get by, go on, look over, take on
- •Ex.4. Fill in the words.
- •Interview(V) — interview (n) — interviewer-- interviewee
- •Ex.5. Replace the words and expressions in italics with words which are similar in meaning, in the correct form.
- •Ex.6. Read and answer the questions. Job benefits
- •Ex.7.True or false? If false, correct it.
- •Job seekers ill-suited for interviews
- •Ex.8. Render into English. Собеседование
- •Ex.9. Read the text and answer the questions. Fit for hiring? it's mind over matter
- •Talking points
- •Ex.10.This is part of a report that a personnel manager wrote after interviewing a candidate for the position of Director of Software Development. Put the verbs in brackets into the correct tense.
- •Interview assessment
- •Ex.11. Here is a list of phrases generally used in business interviews to help you role-play interviews for a job. Questions frequently asked by interviewers
- •Possible Questions and Statements by Someone Looking for a Job.
- •Application form
- •The interview
- •Hard times
- •Happier times
- •Ex.15. Put the words in the blanks. What do the phrases in italics mean? Can you think of other contexts where they might be used? Work, job, trade, earn
- •Ex.16. Write a composition on this topic.
- •Additional reading
- •University arranges jobs for students
- •Focus words
- •Increment
- •Vocation
Hard times
After about six months, Paul started to dislike the constant moving around, and after a year he hated it, he hated living in hotels, and he never really made any friends in the new company. Unfortunately his work wasn't satisfactory either and he was told to leave the company a year later.
After that, Paul found things much more difficult. He was out of work / without a job for over a year. He had to sell his car and move out of his new house. Things were looking bad and in the end Paul had to work only some of the day or some of the week on a fruit and vegetable stall in a market.
Happier times
To his surprise, Paul loved the market. He made lots of friends and enjoyed working out in the open air. After two years, he control of the stall. Two years later he opened a second stall, and after ten years he had fifteen stalls. Last year Paul stopped working completely at the age of 55, a very rich man.
Ex.15. Put the words in the blanks. What do the phrases in italics mean? Can you think of other contexts where they might be used? Work, job, trade, earn
You can ____ good money as a foreign exchange dealer.
I took the machine to pieces but found it impossible to fix — in the end I gave it up as a bad ____.
We are two of a ____, so we should never agree.
He’s gone, and a good ____.
Thanks for that screw: it was just the ____.
Jack plans to ____ his way through college.
We gave him a raise because he is a good worker and always on the ____ .
He is a jack of all ____ and master of none.
This particular task requires close teamwork and if any one of us lies down on the ____, we shall never be able to finish it in time.
Ex.16. Write a composition on this topic.
Write an account of a job application you were involved in, starting from the time you found out about the vacancy and ending with the time you heard whether you got the job.
Additional reading
YOUTH EMPLOYMENT IN GREAT BRITAIN
Most of the working population in Britain-about 90 % - are employees who work for a wage which is paid either weekly or monthly. Another 6% are self-employed, working on their own and paying themselves from the profits of their work. Another 3% are employers who must first pay their employees and then pay themselves from the profits of their businesses. However, it is not simply true that the 3% of employers directly employ all the employees. About a third of the working population are employed by the State. And many of the biggest 'employers' in Britain are not individuals but trusts, or financial organizations representing hundreds or thousands of shareholders. These big businesses are managed; it is in the interests of managers to make profits, part of which will be put back into the business in the hope that it will become even more profitable, and part of which will be distributed among shareholders. The management will be among the shareholders.
How do the young find their place in these various types of establishments? What problems do they face? These are the questions that mostly interest us.
When a pupil leaves school at 16 or later, he or she must find a job. School leavers without special qualifications will probably visit a 'Jobcentre' or look through local newspaper advertisements. Perhaps, there is a factory in the district, or someone says there is a shortage of clerical assistants in a nearby office. School careers offices can offer advice. But ultimately it is up to the boys and girls themselves to find work.
Graduates from universities and other colleges are in the same position except that they are older and looking for different kind of work. Usually they start their search near the beginning of their third year in college. The professional work many of them want normally requires further specialised training, so the first step is to get a place on a training course - and a grant or some other funds to pay for the course. Probably, the first stage will involve some kind of exam or an interview -necessary procedures for choosing which applicants shall be given place on the course, which may lead to a job in the end. (Such courses are essential for librarians, computer programmers, social workers, accountants, planners and many other kinds of qualified workers.) Certain organisations take graduates directly and train them while they are working - for example, the BBC. (The BBC is immensely popular with those graduates who are looking for exciting jobs in the 'media'. They will eagerly study newspapers for announcements of vacancies, and apply in their hundreds for any one vacancy.) A committee has to read through the papers and select maybe eight or ten applicants for interview. At the interview they will be asked their reasons for wanting the job, and have to answer questions about their academic career, other activities and (often) questions which seem to have no point but which reveal their personality and general suitability for the job. From the candidates' point of view, interviews can seem both bewildering and artificial: » What does he want me to say? What's she getting at? How do I appear to them? and Would I be better being more 'natural'? and Can I be natural in this artificial situation anyway?"
Eventually someone will be selected. If the fortunate candidate is not happy with all the conditions of the job (pay, hours of work, pension rights and so on) he doesn't have to accept it - but once he has signed the contract he cannot leave the job without giving notice (of maybe 3 or 6 months) and he cannot be thrown out of the job without notice and without good reason. All the other candidates have to start looking elsewhere.
Having found the job, you certainly don't expect to stay in it for life - very often you move from one employer to another and consequently from place to place to get promotion or a better salary. Very often young people find themselves on short-time contracts (1 or 2 years) at the end of which they have to look for another job. Such uncertainty is part of their life.