Business English: Talking About Work Experience

 In today's post, we'll be looking at the language and grammar tools needed to talk about your work experiences (past and present). We'll discuss what to do, and not do, at job interviews.

Read the short passage  below:

James' Work Experience

I've had many jobs in my working life. In high school, I worked as a kitchen assistant in an Italian restaurant.  I was a customer service representative at medium-sized retail finance company for three years. Now, I teach English. I've been teaching English since April 2000. 

Question: When did James start teaching English?

Answer: He started teaching English 15 years ago.


Why? In the last sentence, James uses the present perfect continuous. He's talking about something he started in the past, and continues to do in the present. 

If you're talking about your work (or life) experiences, you'll have to use different tenses to make clear what you're doing now, and what you have done in the past.  Please study the timeline graphs below.

  (graphics by languagelearningbase.com)


 If you're talking about what you do now on a daily or regular schedule, use the present simple. 

 I teach English. 

 The present continuous is different: it refers to actions that are ongoing or not finished. 

I'm currently working for ABC English.


 If you're not concerned about the date or time of a past event,  use present perfect simple.

I've worked for large corporations like Mitsubishi.


If you need to say when a past event happened, you can use the past simple.

I've worked for large corporations like Mitsubishi. I taught English there from May 2002 to July 2003.

The past continuous is for past events that were in progress or unfinished (check out the post on storytelling ). When explaining past events or decisions, we use often use the past continuous and past simple together.

I was living in Canada before I got an offer to teach in Japan.

In the passages above, we used adverbs (currently) and time expressions (since April 2000). Please study the chart below before going on to the exercise.

Exercise

Read the sample resume below. Then answer the questions. Use the comments section for your answers.  Use a dictionary if there are any words you don't know.

1/ What did Rachel study in university?


2/ How long has she been a sales clerk?


3/ What does she usually do in her job? (list 3 items)


4/  Does Rachel work at Most States Insurance now? 


5/ Has she won any awards in her working experience? 


6/ What computer skills has she learned?

Bonus Exercise: write your resume and (if you like) e-mail it to jlbteaching@gmail.com. From February 4th to 11th, I'll give you general feedback on your writing.

(Please: protect your privacy. Don't write your resume in the comments section)

Apologies: detailed proofreading is only for clients of JLB Language Services.


 

Advice: Resumes & Job Interviews

There are many different resume styles. If you're not sure how which one to use, you can check out monster.ca resume samples for ideas. There also advice on how to write resumes.

The important thing to remember is to make your resume easy to read. For example, using a font like courier or arial. Start with your present job, then list your previous jobs. A standard resume is 1 or 2 pages. 

Write about your job duties and what you learned while working (new skills, technology, training, etc), and your achievements (awards, promotions, etc). 

If you want to write in more detail about your work experiences, write a separate cover letter (see samples)In a cover letter, you would explain how you could help a particular company. It should not be more than 1 page.

Remember: companies see many resumes and cover letters, sometimes thousands; make yours as interesting and clear as possible.

In a job interview, body language is very important. The best way to sit, for example, is straight up, with your hands on your knees. See the graphic below.

 (graphic by: placement.freshersworld.com)

This posture makes you look more relaxed and professional. Below is a great video showing you how to have successful job interviews.

Eye contact is also important. Don't stare directly at the interviewer's eyes for more than 10 seconds. People feel uncomfortable with long stares. In a group interview, hold eye contact for 2 or 3 seconds per person.

You can focus on the forehead or the wall behind the person. Don't look out a window, or at your hands, or the floor. 

 Job interviews are in "work settings" but it is important to be friendly. Show interest in the conversation with positive expressions and good questions (see the post on small talk).

Try the English Media Lab listening exercise below. Be sure to take notes because the questions appear at the end of the dialogue. 

Business Listening - Job Interview 


A job interview can be a fun, learning experience. Go in with a positive, upbeat attitude and you'll have a better chance at getting the job.