Way to Russia Talk Lounge

Thomasineurope

Here I have cut & pasted both my cover letter and resume. The resume will have a colored photo attached which isn't reflected below.

Please be kind as I have never attempted to prepare a resume for a teaching position before. That being said, constructive criticism is welcome as I really want to assure my best chances of gaining employment.

Please feel free to contact me personally with any comments.

Thank you!
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Cover Letter:

Thomas L. Lowers
2121 Alhambra Blvd, Sacramento, CA 95817, U.S.A.
Email Address: thomaslowers@hotmail.com
Telephone: + 01 (916) 601-9641

Dear Director:

Having completed the TESOL / TESL certification in September of this year, not to mention my ongoing studies in the Teaching of Business English, I am now eager to begin a teaching career within my favorite city of Saint-Petersburg, Russia. I am therefore writing today to apply for a position with your school to become a Teacher of English as a Second Language for students of any available age and or level.

While I have always envisioned myself entering into a teaching career, it was not until last year when I volunteered with an active member of The Peace Corps that I made the decision to pursue such as my primary profession. While acting as a chaperone to a TESL class within Kazakhstan, I accompanied 12 students across the country in order to introduce them to the various cities and sites important to their history and culture. During this time, I witnessed and experienced first hand the personal rewards one receives by way of working as an educator and role model in this field. Rewards of which make the accompanied commitments and sacrifices worth while. I can honesty say that my time traveling across Kazakhstan with our students is one of the most valued experiences I have been fortunate enough to engage in while traveling the world. It is this experience which has prompted me to seek the personal role as a TESL teacher myself, within your organization.

While teaching may be considered a career change for me from my background in business and finance, mentoring of fellow associates and training of staff has been a responsibility of which I have been rewarded with for years. I therefore feel you will find that my employment background, coupled with my TESL certification and expansive travel experience abroad, have prepared me with the skills and flexibility necessary to teach English overseas.

My preference in employment would entail a full academic-year assignment, to begin in the January of 2008, if not sooner. It is also my hope that this opportunity may then remain available thereafter, perhaps for years to come. While my enclosed resume provides an outline of my education, training and employment, it simply cannot convey adequately my enthusiasm for teaching. It is therefore my hope that we can engage one another further within an interview, scheduled at your earliest convenience.

I appreciate your consideration of my application and I thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

Thomas L. Lowers
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Resume:

THOMAS L. LOWERS
2121 Alhambra Blvd, Sacramento, CA 95817, U.S.A.
Email: thomaslowers@hotmail.com
Phone: + 01 (916) 601-9641

PERSONAL DETAILS
Birth: U.S.A., 06/09/1978
Marital Status: Single
Citizenship: American
Mother Tongue: English

EDUCATION
2007-Present: Elementary Russian - Sacramento City College, West Sacramento, CA
2005: CA Department of Real Estate Salesperson License Exams - DRE, Sacramento, CA
2001: General Education - Sacramento City College, Sacramento, CA
1992-1996, San Juan High School, Graduate - Citrus Heights, CA

TESOL / TESL TRAINING
2007-Present: Teaching Business English - Oxford Seminars, Sacramento, CA
2007-Completion: TESOL / TESL Certification - Oxford Seminars, Sacramento, CA

EXPERIENCE
2001-Present: Mortgage Loan Officer / Mentor - WIN Financial, Sacramento, CA
1999-2001: Business Development Supervisor / Salesperson Trainer - iMotors.com, Sacramento, CA

AFFILIATIONS
2006 - Present: The Hospitality Club - Volunteer Travel Advisor & Host
2007 - Present: Expat Focus - Amateur Travel Writer & Volunteer Travel Advisor

RELEVANT SKILLS & EXPERIENCE
Foreign Languages: Elementary Level Russian
Travel Experience: Within Russia - Saint Petersburg, Moscow, Nizhny-Novgorod, Kazan, Samara, Irkutsk and across the route of the Trans-Siberian Railway. Outside of Russia - Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, China, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, England, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kazakhstan , Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Mexico, Monaco, Mongolia, Netherlands, Northern Ireland, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Scotland, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan. All noted travel has been done independently and for the purpose of pleasure.
Interest: International Travel, Writing, Photography, Music, Dance, Motorcycling

REFERENCES & TRANSCRIPTS
Available upon Request: Copy of TESOL / TESL Certification, Passport & Reference Letters

jo jo 7 · Posted: Thu Nov 08, 2007 6:20 pm Post subject:

IF you don't get this job with this cover letter and resume I would be very surprised. Nice job!

Good Luck!

Thomasineurope · Posted: Sat Nov 10, 2007 3:00 pm Post subject:

darthvader · WayToRussified Joined: 09 Dec 2005 Posts: 378

Reads well. Your concluding penultimate paragraph is strong.

Personally, I don't write many professional documents using too heavy a "first person" emphasis. However, you have not overdone this + what you have done actually adds a more personal touch........

A couple of errors I noticed. One of your sentences should read:

"....I can honestly say that my time traveling across Kazakhstan with our students was one of the most valued experiences........"

Later, check your whole document's spelling and grammar carefully using Microsoft Word spell checker (or similar software). Then find another couple of adequate people to check through for errors.....

Thankfully, staff check my writing at work quite often Wink

jo jo 7 · Posted: Sat Nov 10, 2007 10:16 pm Post subject:

Thomas...Oh I see the errors now...whoops! Better change what Darthvader noticed... Shocked

darthvader · WayToRussified Joined: 09 Dec 2005 Posts: 378

Thomasineurope