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Most Recent Question: Providing Salary Requirements
Dear Annemarie
How do I write a salary requirement if I have just graduated and have only had summer jobs?
Thanks you,
Stephanie
Dear Stephanie
With all job seekers at any level, whether graduate or seasoned executive, I would recommend avoiding detailing your salary requirements (or salary history) within your resume or cover letter. A resume is your marketing document, promoting your skills, academic qualifications and overall value you offer to a potential employer, with the aim of securing you an interview. While the discussion of salary is important, disclosing your requirements within your marketing document is unwise, and should be left until you have had an opportunity to portray your candidacy to the decision-maker.
Remember, even as a graduate, you can still draw upon your academic achievements, projects and short-term work experience as marketable skills, all of which are certainly transferable within the corporate world. So while you may not have extensive experience in your field, you should not feel that you have no real value to offer a prospective employer besides your recently accomplished academic qualification. Think about identifying:
- Projects completed during your course, which could provide you with excellent transferable skills, promoting cutting-edge knowledge in your chosen area that you can contribute to the organization.
- Committees and memberships held during your studies, demonstrating collaboration toward goal achievements.
- Short-term work assignments, demonstrating your accomplishments and contributions to the ongoing success of the business.
- Voluntary work.
- Community involvement, etc.
There are also a number of strategies that you can follow prior to an interview in order to ascertain what salary range you should be targeting. This information will also be useful during the salary negotiation stage.
- Research the marketplace to ascertain what the current market rate is for the type of position you are applying for; with your level of experience; and within the particular area (state) you are going to be working. Salary does fluctuate between states and cities, and you need to be aware of this as well.
There are many terrific websites you can visit, for instance: www.salary.com
- I would also recommend researching the company. The information you compile can be utilized during the interview, demonstrating to the decision-maker your enthusiasm, and you may be able to locate what their current staffing salary structure is. Researching their competitors may also provide you with a level of salary offered for such a role.
There are numerous avenues you can take to locate this type of information, try the company's (or competitor's) website, or try www.hoovers.com.
By identifying the above information, you will have an excellent guideline of a fair and reasonable salary range to work within, and what the company should be offering. Remember also to delay salary negotiations as long as you can at the interview, and try to get the decision-maker to make the first move in disclosing their salary range.
All the best in your new career!
Annemarie
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