Today you learn the skill every shortlister uses and almost nobody is taught: reading a job advert the way the person who wrote it meant it.
Adverts hide three different things in ordinary sentences. Some lines are hard gates you must clear. Some are advantages that help but do not block you. Some never name a skill at all, yet they are the real test of whether you would cope on the floor. Today you will label all three on a sample advert, then annotate one advert of your own for your Digital Portfolio.
Three labels you will use on every advert from now on. Learn the difference before you start marking anything up.
| Term | What it means for you | Real example |
|---|---|---|
| Essential skill A requirement the employer will not bend on | If you cannot show it, stop and decide whether to apply or close the gap first | Leaving Certificate required; weekend availability; Garda Vetting before start |
| Desirable skill An advantage that helps but does not block you | Apply without it if the essentials are covered; use it to separate a strong application | Previous retail experience; plant knowledge listed as a bonus |
| Competency The underlying capability hiding in plain language | Name it in your own words so you can evidence it later from school, sport or part-time work | Decide what needs doing without being asked = initiative and self-management |
Giveaway words: must, required, and essential usually mean a hard gate. Advantage, bonus, and would be welcome usually mean desirable. Competencies often sit in the last paragraph, with no label at all.
The Ashgrove advert is in the interactive at the bottom of this step. Pick a label, then click the words it fits.
When the model is shown, compare it with your labels.
Create or open Job Description Annotation 1 in your Strand 1.1 folder (a Google Doc, a Word file or your school's portfolio template). Give it three headings. Under each one, paste words from the advert and add one line on why.
| Heading | Words from the advert | Your line on why |
|---|---|---|
| Essential | “A full driving licence is essential” | Essential is a gate word. Without it I cannot get the job. |
| Desirable | “Spanish would be an advantage” | It would help, but I can apply without it. |
| Underlying competencies | “You will often be the only person in the shop” | Working alone: making decisions without a manager to ask. |
These three rows come from a different advert. They show the layout only.
- Use a live Irish advert if you already have one open. If not, use the practice advert below.
- Your labels must be your own, not copied from the model.
- You are done when you have at least two essentials, two desirables and one underlying competency, named in your own words.
Practice advert: Café Assistant, Harbour Street Kitchen (open it for Part 2)
Written for this lesson, not a live vacancy. Part-time, 16 hours per week including Saturday. Closing date: next Friday.
You will take orders, make hot drinks to our standard, keep tables cleared, and help close the café at the end of your shift.
You must be available every Saturday and be comfortable handling cash and card payments. A food hygiene certificate is required before your first paid shift; we will book and pay for the course if you do not already hold one. You need to be able to work calmly when the queue is long and the kitchen is calling.
Previous café or retail experience would be an advantage, and basic Irish for greeting regulars would be a real bonus, though neither is required.
We are a small team, so you will often decide the next job yourself between customers. That means noticing what needs doing and starting it without waiting to be told.
Label this school advert
Talk these through with the person beside you, then decide whether either answer belongs as a short note under your annotation.
- Where in the Ashgrove advert did a competency hide outside any bullet list, and how would you evidence that competency from school, sport, home or a part-time job?
- If a shortlister spent forty seconds on your annotation, which single label would matter most to them, and why that one?
Optional stretch: if you already have a Skills Audit entry, add one line to Job Description Annotation 1 naming the skill that best matches the strongest competency you found today. If not, skip the stretch or note one concrete evidence moment from school, sport, home or part-time work instead.
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