Project 3
Student id: k16
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<DOC>
<docHead>
<!--required header includes metadata about the assignment (title, author, version)-->
<title>Title of Assignment</title>
<author xml:id="your_id_here">Gurtaj Khatra</author>
<version n="num_of_version" date="2016-01-01"/>
</docHead>
<!-- root element for P3 here -->
<cover_letter>
<header>
<name>Gurtaj Khatra</name>
<contact_info>
<!-- One or More Contact -->
<contact type="address">54 Westland Ave</contact>
<contact type="address">Boston, MA 02115</contact>
<contact type="phone"> 508-353-9888 </contact>
<contact type="email"> gurtajkhatra@gmail.com </contact>
</contact_info>
</header>
<greeting>Dear Mr. O'Brein: </greeting>
<intro_para>
<intent type="purpose">I am writing to apply for the Software Engineering Co-p<note
type="instructor" resp="#kgs">typo</note> role over at
<!-- Repeated word -->Smartleaf. </intent>
<reason>Currently I am going into my last coop here at Norteastern. With my previous two
coops<note type="instructor" resp="#kgs">why the inconsistency with
capitalization and punctuation with Co-op vs. coop?</note> I have working in
finance related positions. First I worked at a small startup company of about four
people, and for my second I was at a much larger company of more than 30,000
people<note type="instructor" resp="#kgs">this doesn't seem to fit into an intro
paragraph; how does this info relate to the current position?</note>. Not only
do I find what Smartleaf is working on to be fascinating, I also would love to get
experience working in a medium sized company.
<!-- Long sentence - break up for conciseness + clarity --></reason>
<proposition> I believe that my experience as a Computer Science student working in more
finance oriented<note type="instructor" resp="#kgs">finance-oriented</note>
positions would make me a perfect candidate for this position.<note
type="instructor" resp="#kgs">why? does it relate somehow to the position of the
work that the company does?</note>
</proposition>
</intro_para>
<para_background>
<experience type="school"> Currently, I am a Computer Science student here at
Northeastern University. I believe that my experiences with going through my classes
and projects has helped me build skills to excel in industry<note type="instructor"
resp="#kgs">you're using the passive voice here and it makes it sound as if you
are unsure; another way to say this more directly is "I have built skills to
excel in industry through my classes and projects at NU."</note>. For example, I
have taken classes where I have learned about object oriented programming and other
software design patterns, and worked on projects with common industry languages such
as Java and tools such as Intellij. However, I believe that one of the main
advantages of going to Northeastern was being able to gain experience through
different coops. </experience>
</para_background>
<para_background>
<experience type="work">My first coop was working at Mavenomics, a small company in
Cambridge. I created and implemented tools for data analysis and visualization into
their main product using languages such as <programs>python and
JavaScript</programs>, and frameworks such as <programs>d3.js and
React.</programs> My tools were used by portfolio managers at hedge funds to aid
in research into investment opportunities in multiple industries. Due to the small
nature of the company, I gained exposure different aspects of the company such as
accounting, management, and day to day operations. It gave me a<note
type="instructor" resp="#kgs">agai, passive voice here</note> deeper
understanding of how businesses are run, and how they develop over
time.</experience>
</para_background>
<para_background>
<experience type="work"> My next coop was working for Goldman Sachs in New York, a much
larger company. During my time there, I learned more about applications of Computer
Science in the field of finance. I worked with traders daily to build tools to
analyze risk on different portfolios using a mixture of their proprietary technology
and some open source frameworks, such as Elasticsearch. Not only did I improve my
software skills during my time there, but I also learned how to clearly express my
software ideas to individuals with no background in software. On top of that, I
gained experience with working in a team oriented environment and learned how to
navigate my way though a corporate environment to get tasks done.</experience>
</para_background>
<closing_statements>
<!-- Include element "closing statements -->
<compatability>I believe that I have the experience and skill set to excel in a position
at SmartLeaf, and I feel like the medium sized company environment would be a great
fit for me. My experience in working with financial technology will make it so I can
hit the ground running, and immediately start contributing to a project I am
assigned<note type="instructor" resp="#kgs">could just end after 'a
project.'</note>.</compatability>
<next_step> I'm excited to hear back from you, and would appreciate the opportunity to
meet and talk in person. </next_step>
<acknowledgment>Thank you for your consideration.
<!-- Run spell check on final draft --></acknowledgment>
</closing_statements>
<signature>
<salutation>Sincerely,</salutation>
<pb/>
<pb/>
<name>Gurtaj Khatra</name>
</signature>
</cover_letter>
<docReview>
<!-- Writer' Memo -->
<!-- Where are you in the process?
Currently I have a rough draft of a cover letter
2. What is your rhetorical situation?
I’m writing a cover letter for a coop position I found on NEUCool. The company is a place called Smartleaf, and it builds computer algorithms automate wealth management.
3. What is going well?
Overall, I feel like writing a cover letter is a fairly straight forward, and I think I managed to follow the schema and put together a decent cover letter.
4. What has been difficult?
Reading over my cover letter, I feel like it seems a little bit scattered. I think I should add more about why I would be a good fit. -->
<reviewer type="peer" xml:id="m19"/>
<report type="peer" resp="#m19">
<p>For Project 3, Gurtaj wrote a cover letter. A cover letter would be included with a
resume as a response to a job opening. Overall, Gurtaj's writing follows this genre;
it is broken up into introduction, experience, and closing sections. The bulk of the
writing deals with his experience, which is appropriate for a cover letter. The
sentences and tone are professional, which is important because he is addressing a
hiring manager who has the power to continue or stop the job application process.
The word choices are mostly appropriate, and they detail his technical experience
with different software components. However, I think that the contractions should be
left out of professional writing. I also think that the experience sections could be
developed with more details of the work and projects Gurtaj has done.</p>
<p>I think that Gurtaj has followed the basic schema of a cover letter well. However,
the experience sections could use more information. He mentions in his school
experience section that his classes and projects helped him build skills, but he
does not explain what the classes and projects were and the skills he got from them.
In the paragraph about Mavenomics, he could detail what specific projects he worked
on. In the Goldman Sachs paragraph, he could explain the work he did when he
"learned about applications of Computer Science in the field of finance." I think
that this paragraph is especially important considering that he wants to work in
finance-oriented positions. While it is good to know and address the desired work
environment, I think that the size of companies is over-emphasized. I think that the
main focus should be on the work that Smartleaf does, and everything should tie to
that and the desire to get more experience in finance-type positions.</p>
</report>
<reviewer type="instructor" xml:id="kgs"/>
<report type="instructor" resp="#kgs">
<p>This is a solid start, but there are some minor and bigger issues you will want to
address before using this as a cover letter. Pay close attention to the comments I
added above. In particular, pay attention to passive voice and be as specific as you
can wherever you can--you have a tendency, especially when talking about skills
you've developed, to remain vague and superficial.</p>
</report>
</docReview>
</DOC>