Writing targeted applications
A targeted approach means that you have identified one or more options that are of interest to you including possible job role/s. Ideally you will also have identified the types of organisations that you would like to investigate regarding availability of these types of jobs.
Why is a targeted approach so important? Finding employment means is all about marketing yourself, your capabilities and the contribution you can potentially make to an organisation. This means that your marketing material – especially your resume, must contain information about you that is relevant (or targeted) to the job role you are seeking.
An alternative, and usually unsuccessful, approach, taken by many graduates is to make their marketing material "generic" in nature, that is, regardless of the job role they are applying for, they send to employers the same "one size fits all" resume. The self-marketing messages in this type of resume are usually so broad and bland that they have little impact on the employer, and as such the graduate's application is unsuccessful.
Tip: One indicator about your effectiveness in targeting your resume to the role you are applying for is your strike rate in gaining interviews. If you are not getting an interview for 50% of your job applications, chances are either your resume is not sufficiently targeted, or you are applying for the wrong type of job.
It makes sense doesn't it, that if you are unclear about the type of work you want to do or are capable of doing, and this is evident in your self-marketing, it is hardly surprising that prospective employers will be any the wiser!
If you are unsure about the type of employment you want, try some of the self assessment activities involved in career planning.