How do you keep employers from skimming over your resumé and cover letter, or worse, tossing it out immediately? The Harvard Business Review reports that as many as 95 percent of job candidates whose documents make it to the Human Resources desk are eliminated even before a hiring manager can lay eyes on them. Making it over that threshold can sound simply impossible!

Contributor to Forbes and Executive Director of Career Development at New York University, Trudy Steinfeld suggests that the number-one way you can make your application stand out from the rest is to describe how you can make an immediate contribution to the organization you are applying to. Now, we all know that in order to achieve this, you have to do your homework: study the organization, its collateral, its goals or mission, who is in its leadership positions. You should also analyze any hard metrics and company history that is available. Learning about the organization’s culture will make it easier for you to understand and share how you will be a good fit. Most of all, if you can demonstrate how your individual skills relate to the position – and how no one else possesses your unique blend of knowledge and experience – you will be one step closer to scoring some face-time with that elusive hiring manager.

Having an advanced business management degree such as a Master’s in Organizational Leadership (MSOL) will not only strike the attention of employers with how you look on paper, but also give you the ability to communicate how your skills will make such an impact occur. Once you land an interview, you will be able to elaborate on your professional experience with relevant, academic language. There’s no better feeling than receiving good feedback from potential employers. It gives you confidence to move forward, and allows you to taste success. It’s easy to understand the value of a Master’s in Organizational Management and Leadership when you picture real-life situations like this. With programs like Goodwin College’s MSOL degree program, the possibility of landing your dream job becomes much more vivid.

What is it about a Master’s in Organizational Management and Leadership that conveys your advanced skills to employers, both in your portfolio and in person? Well, MSOL programs like Goodwin’s include a curriculum that develops your executive-level skills. For instance, some core classes (with titles like: Talent and Performance Management, Sustainability of Innovation and Strategic Advantage, and Leading Organizational Change) focus on big-picture thinking and company development. Your knowledge of these niche topics will show employers that you have invested your time in honing your leadership skills. Developing the ability to successfully manage others, guide the process of change, and implement sustainable practices are all skills that you’ll be able to commit to any given company if they hire you. How’s that for dangling a carrot in front of the hiring manager’s nose?

It is important to remember that in graduate school, you are in charge of the direction of your education. You have the power and ability to steer your learning towards your individual career goals. For example, some of Goodwin’s graduate leadership courses are particularly helpful for dedicated roles, which gives you further advantage when applying to relevant jobs. The course Public Sector Leadership and Community-Based Change examines how an organization’s executives work alongside community leaders and the media to influence effective policy change and enforce ethical conduct. If the public sector or non-profit feels like the right fit for your interests, as well as your personal and career goals, this would be the course to take advantage of. Alternately, Leadership Consulting gives students the opportunity to learn about contract and relationship-building, data gathering, and goal-setting. If managing client relationships and problem solving towards innovative results sounds like a challenge you would be happy to accept, consulting could be the career path for you. The more specific you can get in terms of describing your skills in relation to job duties, the better chance you will have in achieving the right job match for you.

Bringing a Master’s in Organizational Management and Leadership to the table, no matter which sector you are passionate about, is a surefire asset. With flexible, online courses through Goodwin College’s MSOL program, there’s no excuse for not enhancing your cover letter – and your career! Learn about our MSOL admission requirements, or contact Goodwin at 800-889-3282 for more information about our Master’s in Organizational Leadership program.