Application Letter

Chong Wee Pin

Apt. Blk 111, Tampines Street 11

#11-111

Singapore 111111

91119111

chongweepin@gmail.com

February 16, 2012

Human Resource Director

Ministry of Education, Singapore

1 North Buona Vista Drive

Singapore 138675

Dear Director

I am an undergraduate currently on my final semester of the Bachelor of Engineering (Environmental Engineering) course at the National University of Singapore (NUS). I am keen in the opportunity to become a Teacher in Physical Education at the Ministry of Education. I have always been an avid sportsperson and hence have been able to experience first-hand the benefits and teachings that sports can bring to one’s life. Hence, it is my greatest wish to impart these lessons to the younger generation as well as imbue in them the importance of physical activity and sports.

I have extensive experience as an athlete, particularly as a varsity archer representing NUS. The lessons and experiences that I have picked up are invaluable education tools that will enable me to create a vibrant learning process for my prospective students. Furthermore, I  had guidance roles in the archery team as a senior, and helped to organize introductory archery courses every semester for the NUS student population. All these have enabled me to hone my teaching skills, which places me in a good position to cultivate a love for sporting activity in students. I also had experience organizing a sports awareness roadshow for the Singapore Sports Council. As a well-rounded education entails co-curricular and enrichment activities, my relevant experience will assist me in putting together interesting and stimulating activities for the betterment of students. The problem-solving and critical thinking skills that I have gained during my engineering undergraduate studies will too go a long way in me helping my prospective students to cope with any possible problems.

I would love to foster a passion for sports in youngsters so that they will be able to benefit from the invaluable lessons that it will bring about. I will be glad to meet for an interview at your request. Please do feel free to contact me at 91119111 or this e-mail address (chongweepin@gmail.com) if you have any queries. Thank you so much for your precious time and consideration.

Yours Sincerely

Chong Wee Pin

Enclosure (Resume)

Resolving Interpersonal Conflict

No one likes to be involved in interpersonal conflicts. In fact, I may even venture to say that humans are peace-seeking creatures by nature. However, it is indeed unavoidable that we get caught in such a situation once in a while, either as a bystander or a direct party.

Citing a personal experience, I was actually involved in a conflict situation just last semester. It happened during a group project discussion with regards to an oral presentation. Midway through our deliberations, two of my groupmates started debating about the scope and level of detail of our preparations. One was convinced that it was important to be spontaneous during a presentation while the other was adamant that all details and possible scenarios should be taken care of as much as possible. What began as a friendly debate quickly escalated to a heated argument.

Looking back at the episode, it was possible that the conflict arose because of fatigue and elevated stress levels. The particular discussion actually came on the back of a discussion for another project assignment. Furthermore, all of us in the group still had many assignments on hand. All these probably contributed to higher levels of irritability.

In this particular case, the argument occurred ironically from good intentions – both of my friends wanted the project presentation to be an excellent one. However, it evolved into something negative which affected not only the two individuals, but also the mood of the entire group. It took a while for everyone to be able to work as per normal again.

As such, we can see from this personal anecdote that emotional intelligence (EI) not only applies to individuals but also has implications on the larger working group as well. We have read that one of the attributes of EI is self-regulation, which is “the ability to control emotions and impulses”. With this in consideration, it is worth taking note that tempers may fray easily, especially in a professional setting where stakes are high. The question is, can concrete measures be implemented to prevent such outbursts of emotion and impulsive decisions? For example, by appointing a “mediator” in a group setting to ensure positive working dynamics?