JOB ADVERTISEMENTS AND APPLICATIONS | Sintesi del corso di Lingua Inglese

JOB ADVERTISEMENTS AND APPLICATIONS: THE REFLECTION IN THE MIRROR

Job advertisements and commercial advertising have much in common; for example the persuasive

language involved in the way a company presents itself and the position it offers has much in common with

the linguistic resources exploited in commercial advertising.

There are common features between an unsolicited letter of application and the job advertisement.

Bhatia analysed unsolicited job applications and the discourse structure and language used in job

advertisements.

In discussing genre there are 3 essential aspects around which the analysis must revolve:

1. Genre is a recognisable communicative event with a set of identifiable communicative purposes

2. It is highly structured following certain conventions

3. Constraints are involved regarding allowable contributions in terms of their positioning, form and

functional value.

Text-genre must be placed in a situational context.

He distinguishes 3 levels of linguistic analysis:

- Lexico-grammatical features specific features of language

- Text patterning highlights the tactical aspect of conventional language use, where restricted

values are assigned to features of lexis, syntax or even discourse

- Structural interpretation of the text-genre highlights the cognitive aspects of language and also

comments on the resources writers use to convey their communicative aim

The point of departure of this analysis is an unsolicited job application letter.

Bhatia compares sales promotion letters with unsolicited job application letters and sets out that they are

very similar because:

- They are persuasive in nature

- They share the same communicative purpose, medium and language form

The only difference is that the sales promotion letter offering a product or a service is unsolicited whereas

the job application letter is usually written in response to an advertisement.

Structure of a job application letter:

- Establishing credentials located within the opening move. The applicant might address the

prospective employer in terms of adversary glorification.

- Introducing candidature the applicant refers to the position advertised. Essential detailing of the

candidature = the applicant gives precise details of his qualifications and past experience. Indicating

value of candidature= the applicant must convince the prospective employer of his worth and more

specifically that he has the pre-requisites required for the job

- Offering incentives it’s reinforcing the part of the message in which he lists his own particular

qualifications

- Enclosing documents

- Soliciting a response in some cases the applicant seeks preliminary contact by offering to call for

an telephone interview instead of waiting to be called

- Using pressure tactics rare in the context of a letter of application , it is a more common feature

of the sales promotion letter.

- Ending politely formulaic expressions

Job advertisements

There are some common features with commercial advertising like the headline which advertises the

position available, the sub-headline giving information on the place of work and salary, the bodycopy which

contains the structural description of the advertisement, the logotype, the payoff that brings the final

signature.

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JOB ADVERTISEMENTS AND APPLICATIONS: THE REFLECTION IN THE MIRROR

Job advertisements and commercial advertising have much in common; for example the persuasive language involved in the way a company presents itself and the position it offers has much in common with the linguistic resources exploited in commercial advertising. There are common features between an unsolicited letter of application and the job advertisement.

Bhatia analysed unsolicited job applications and the discourse structure and language used in job advertisements. In discussing genre there are 3 essential aspects around which the analysis must revolve:

Genre is a recognisable communicative event with a set of identifiable communicative purposes
It is highly structured following certain conventions
Constraints are involved regarding allowable contributions in terms of their positioning, form and functional value. Text-genre must be placed in a situational context. He distinguishes 3 levels of linguistic analysis:

Lexico-grammatical features specific features of language
Text patterning highlights the tactical aspect of conventional language use, where restricted values are assigned to features of lexis, syntax or even discourse
Structural interpretation of the text-genre highlights the cognitive aspects of language and also comments on the resources writers use to convey their communicative aim

The point of departure of this analysis is an unsolicited job application letter.

Bhatia compares sales promotion letters with unsolicited job application letters and sets out that they are very similar because:

They are persuasive in nature
They share the same communicative purpose, medium and language form The only difference is that the sales promotion letter offering a product or a service is unsolicited whereas the job application letter is usually written in response to an advertisement.

Structure of a job application letter:

Establishing credentials located within the opening move. The applicant might address the prospective employer in terms of adversary glorification.
Introducing candidature the applicant refers to the position advertised. Essential detailing of the candidature = the applicant gives precise details of his qualifications and past experience. Indicating value of candidature= the applicant must convince the prospective employer of his worth and more specifically that he has the pre-requisites required for the job
Offering incentives it’s reinforcing the part of the message in which he lists his own particular qualifications
Enclosing documents
Soliciting a response in some cases the applicant seeks preliminary contact by offering to call for an telephone interview instead of waiting to be called
Using pressure tactics rare in the context of a letter of application , it is a more common feature of the sales promotion letter.
Ending politely formulaic expressions

Job advertisements There are some common features with commercial advertising like the headline which advertises the position available, the sub-headline giving information on the place of work and salary, the bodycopy which contains the structural description of the advertisement, the logotype, the payoff that brings the final signature.

There are 2 kinds of advertising texts:

The discursive text
The schematic text: it is more explicit in guiding the reader through the specific information regarding in particular the position and the necessary qualifications since part of it is organised in sections. It is more explicit in its communicative purpose  Establishing credentials the company indulging in self-glorification, emphasising its strengths, qualities and prestige in the world of industry or employment  Introducing the job position job title is set at the top of the text in form of a headline  Essential detailing of the position full description of the post and the relevant duties of the successful candidate  Indicating value of candidature sort of checklist of pre-requisites of the position to make the applicant decide if he possesses the qualifications, experience and motivation to apply.  Offering incentives incentives offered to show how the applicant will be rewarded for his conscientious work in the light of future prospects. To convince the reader of the attractiveness of the job  Enclosing documents apply by sending in the CV  Using pressure tactics the closing date of application ; the employer exhorts the applicant to make a self-evaluation or self-appraisal of himself  Soliciting a response applicants are sometimes invited to make preliminary contact before sending in their application or there can be a very direct address targeting an emotional response  Ending lengthier form of signature

Lexico-grammatical features Verbs common verbs are need, require, look for, look to, seek Noun and adjectives positive nouns and adjectives (often in the superlative form)

Text patterning Noun groups and phrases noun groups are exploited to pack in as much information as possible in the limited space available Disjunctive language disjunctive and abbreviations modes are characteristic of the schematic type of advertisement Adjuncts are a feature in the packing of information into the text ; they are found in a marked position at the beginning of a sentence ; they give emphasis to that part of the information which it contains and they have to condense as many details as possible into the limited space available. Addressing to the candidate it can be addressed with the 3rd^ person calling him the candidate or the employer can address the applicant directly using the 2nd^ person pronoun you or there can be a switch from 3 rd^ to 2nd^ person. It goes from the more distant to the direct to the very direct approach

Commercial advertising and some similar features Headline usually in bold larger print; the force of the headline is to set up an incentive and challenge the prospective candidate and thus give purpose to the job. It creates a working relationship between the prospective employer and applicant. It can use the imperative, or disjunctive language or a string of adjectives. Selling the job using all the linguistic means possible to attract the applicant. Use of signs and symbols

JOB ADVERTISEMENTS AND APPLICATIONS, Sintesi del corso di Lingua Inglese

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JOB ADVERTISEMENTS AND APPLICATIONS: THE REFLECTION IN THE MIRROR