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Test Item File for Excellence in Business Communication, Fourth Canadian Edition
Chapter 15
1) Your career probably won’t be as stable as careers were in your parents’ generation.
A) True
B) False
2) Employers do not struggle with the ups and downs of the economy, just as employees
do.
A) True
B) False
3) Lifetime employability means that there will always be a job available during your
lifetime.
A) True
B) False
4) Employers do not expect recent college and university graduates to have a sound
understanding of international affairs.
A) True
B) False
5) It is not a good idea to take interim assignments because you may not be available
when that full-time position comes along.
A) True
B) False
6) Few professional societies have student chapters or offer student discounted
memberships.
A) True
B) False
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7) When considering your ideal job, you should think about what kind of corporate
culture you’d find most desirable.
A) True
B) False
8) Your career-building efforts normally stop once you are hired.
A) True
B) False
9) As part of your job search, it’s a good idea to keep abreast of business and financial
news.
A) True
B) False
10) Potential employers will not try to find you online unless you instruct them to view
your information.
A) True
B) False
11) Most employers prefer to post job openings through the help-wanted advertisings.
A) True
B) False
12) As many as 30 percent of all job openings are never advertised.
A) True
B) False
13) The hidden job market refers to the job openings that are never advertised.
A) True
B) False
14) Your classmates could turn out to be some of your most important business contacts.
A) True
B) False
15) The purpose of a résumé is to list all your skills and abilities.
A) True
Incorrect: Correct
B) False
Correct: Incorrect
16) A successful résumé inspires a prospective employer to invite you to interview with
the company.
A) True
B) False
17) The more good information you present about yourself in your résumé, the better.
A) True
Incorrect: Correct
B) False
Correct: Incorrect
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18) Showing frequent job changes on your résumé is a positive thing because it proves
you enjoy change.
A) True
Incorrect: Correct
B) False
Correct: Incorrect
19) A good résumé can be customized for different situations and different employers.
A) True
Correct: Correct
B) False
Incorrect: Incorrect
20) All résumés should be organized chronologically.
A) True
Incorrect: Correct
B) False
Correct: Incorrect
21) A functional résumé is organized around a list of accomplishments and focuses on the
person’s areas of competence.
A) True
Correct: Correct
B) False
Incorrect: Incorrect
22) When giving your background and qualifications on a résumé, you always use
complete sentences.
A) True
Incorrect: Correct
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B) False
Correct: Incorrect
23) If you plan to include a career objective or summary of qualifications in your résumé,
you make it as vague as possible to keep from limiting your prospects.
A) True
Incorrect: Correct
B) False
Correct: Incorrect
24) The education section of your résumé includes any relevant seminars or workshops
you have attended.
A) True
Correct: Correct
B) False
Incorrect: Incorrect
25) If you have worked in your chosen field for a year or more, your résumé de-
emphasizes your educational background.
A) True
Correct: Correct
B) False
Incorrect: Incorrect
26) In the work experience section of your résumé, you leave out any jobs that do not
relate directly to your career objective.
A) True
Incorrect: Correct
B) False
Correct: Incorrect
27) Your résumé lists past jobs in chronological order, with the oldest job first and the
current job last.
A) True
Incorrect: Correct
B) False
Correct: Incorrect
28) When listing work experience on a résumé, you emphasize significant
accomplishments in each job.
A) True
Correct: Correct
B) False
Incorrect: Incorrect
29) It is inappropriate to mention community activities or volunteer work on a résumé.
A) True
Incorrect: Correct
B) False
Correct: Incorrect
30) Prospective employers do not like résumés that are gimmicky, boastful, or too slick.
A) True
Correct: Correct
B) False
Incorrect: Incorrect
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31) As a general guideline, if you have less than 10 years of professional experience, try
to keep your résumé to one page.
A) True
Correct: Correct
B) False
Incorrect: Incorrect
32) To fit everything on one page, it’s okay to sacrifice white space on your résumé.
A) True
Incorrect: Correct
B) False
Correct: Incorrect
33) Some examples of key words to include in your electronic résumé would be “works
hard,” “knows foreign languages,” and “gets along well with others.”
A) True
Incorrect: Correct
B) False
Correct: Incorrect
34) To make your résumé scannable, you need to convert it to ASCII format.
A) True
Incorrect: Correct
B) False
Correct: Incorrect
35) When posting work that supports your website résumé, be sure you have permission
to publish or link to material created for a previous employer.
A) True
Correct: Correct
B) False
Incorrect: Incorrect
36) The type of people who find work in today’s changing workplace are ___________
A) versatile.
B) life-long learners.
C) adaptable.
D) All of the above apply.
37) Before trying to identify employers who are likely to want you and vice versa, you
begin by ___________
A) limiting your search to a particular industry or functional specialty.
B) talking to friends who have interesting jobs.
C) analyzing what you have to offer and what you hope to get from your job.
D) reading carefully through company literature from a wide variety of firms.
38) This is the least preferred way many organizations choose to find new employees.
A) Through personal recommendations
B) Advertising
C) Looking for someone inside the organization
D) Hiring an employment agency
39) Networking is _________________________________
A) walking up to strangers at social events and handing over your résumé.
B) meeting prominent business people at business events and asking them about
employment opportunities.
C) sharing of information between people who might be able to offer mutual help at some
point in the future.
D) an opportunity to demonstrate your ability to solve problems, plan projects, and so on.
40) Your résumé emphasizes ___________
A) your work experience.
B) getting the job.
C) what you’ve accomplished.
D) your career objective.
41) The most traditional way to organize a résumé is ___________
A) chronologically.
B) functionally.
C) geographically.
D) alphabetically.
42) The best organization for the résumé of someone with a strong employment history
along a progressive career path would be ___________
A) chronological.
B) functional.
C) targeted.
D) portfolio.
43) If you are planning a career change and want to prepare a résumé emphasizing skills
that qualify you for a job in your new field, the best organizational plan for your résumé
would be ___________
A) chronological.
B) functional.
C) targeted.
D) indirect.
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44) A type of résumé that emphasizes a candidate’s skills and accomplishments while
also including a complete job history is termed ___________
A) a chronological résumé.
B) a functional résumé.
C) a combination résumé.
D) an indirect résumé.
45) Which of the following would be the most desirable wording to use on a résumé?
A) “I was in charge of a staff of six employees.”
B) “I supervised six employees.”
C) “Was in charge of entire departmental staff.”
D) “Supervised staff of six employees.”
46) If you are still a student and have little work experience, your résumé should
emphasize ___________
A) summer jobs you have held.
B) your educational background.
C) your hobbies and interests.
D) volunteer work you’ve done and service organizations in which you’ve been active.
47) When you describe your work experience on your résumé ___________
A) start with your most recent job and work back chronologically.
B) describe one or two jobs in detail so that employers get an idea of your work ethic.
C) list only full-time positions.
D) try to come up with fancier titles for the jobs you’ve held.
48) When listing activities and achievements, you should probably avoid mentioning
___________
A) participation in athletics.
B) involvement in fund-raising or community service activities.
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C) membership in political or religious organizations.
D) speaking, writing, or tutoring experience.
49) In the “Personal Data” section of your résumé, you list ___________
A) hobbies or miscellaneous experiences that may help you get the job.
B) any health problems or disabilities you have, whether or not they may affect your job
performance.
C) your age, marital status, race, colour, religion, and national origin, which are required
by law.
D) any experience in the military, whether or not it has a bearing on the job.
50) Do not include on your résumé items that could encourage discrimination, such as
___________
A) home address.
B) hobbies.
C) marital status.
D) military service.
51) Which of the following is not a common problem that employers see in résumé?
A) They are too slick.
B) They are amateurish.
C) They are filled with misspellings and grammatical errors.
D) They are too simple and concise.
52) To achieve the best physical appearance for your résumé, you ___________
A) make sure it is jarring and “jumps out at you.”
B) leave plenty of white space.
C) use coloured paper.
D) use a variety of typefaces in various colours.
53) Uploading your résumé into an employer’s database has the same goal as creating a
scannable résumé, but first you need to __________________
A) rewrite the whole thing.
B) convert it to plain text (ASCII) format.
C) purchase a special software program.
D) create a web version of your résumé.
54) An electronic résumé differs from a standard print résumé in that ___________
A) it includes a list of key words.
B) the Work Experience section always gets listed first.
C) you leave out the Education section.
D) all of the above.
55) The preferred way to send a plain-text résumé is ___________
A) through regular mail.
B) by fax.
C) via email as part of the body of the email message.
D) via email as an attached file.
56) When distributing your résumé __________________________
A) send it via the most expedient mode.
B) using email works the best.
C) deliver in the method requested.
D) let the employer know beforehand which method you will be using.
57) A successful __________ __________ includes processes like preparing a résumé
and preparing for an interview.
58) The most traditional way to organize a résumé is __________.
59) A(n) __________ résumé is organized around a list of skills and accomplishments.
60) For a résumé, use short, crisp phrases starting with __________ verbs.
61) The __________ __________ section of a résumé may highlight your strongest
points in a brief summary of qualifications.
62) In the __________ section of your résumé you list schools you’ve attended and
degrees you’ve received.
63) In the __________ ___________ section of your résumé you list jobs you’ve had and
responsibilities you’ve held on those jobs.
64) __________ is usually given less emphasis in a résumé after you’ve worked in your
chosen field for a year or more.
65) Relevant hobbies may be listed in the __________ __________ section of your
résumé.
66) To prepare an electronic résumé, you need to make its format appropriate for
__________ into an electronic database.
67) To change your traditional paper résumé into a scannable one, you must convert it to
plain-text or __________ format.
68) An electronic résumé should include a list of __________ __________ that will help
employers identify your skills.
69) A key advantage of an __________ version of your résumé is that you can provide
links to supporting details and other materials.
70) What is an e-portfolio, and how do you use it during the job search?
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71) Describe the most preferred and least preferred ways organizations prefer to look for
new employees and explain why one way is preferred more than the other.
72) Name at least three qualities you need to convey on any résumé.
73) List two strategies for handling gaps in your employment history when writing a
résumé.
74) List four ways you can start networking now.
75) List four specific things that you would include in an employment portfolio.
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76) In addition to your name, what should be included in the Contact Information section
of your résumé?
77) Rewrite the following to make it a more active statement: “I was in charge of
customer complaints and all ordering problems.”
78) What potential risk do some experts associate with including a career objective on
your résumé?
79) Name at least five types of information that should be excluded from all résumés in
order to discourage discrimination.
80) List at least seven of the 10 most common mistakes recruiters see on résumés.
81) Describe five factors that are likely to affect your entry into the job market and your
career success in years to come.
82) List at least five questions you might consider when you are deciding what you want
to do.
83) List and describe the three methods for organizing a résumé along with the
advantages and disadvantages of each one.
84) Describe the main sections or elements that are included on most résumés.
85) Explain how to select keywords to include on a scannable résumé.