1600 Welsh Avenue, #292
College Station, TX 77840
April 22, 2011
Africa Bridge
17600 Pacific Highway, Suite 327
Marylhurst, OR 97036
To whom it may concern,
I am writing to apply for the position of finance and operations manager. Possessing a keen interest in
East African development and having four years relevant work experience in financial, office and
program management, I think I may be a good match for your requirements. I have a B.A. in economics
and am currently finishing up my master’s degree in international economics and development where I
will have successfully completed a wide array of graduate-level finance, economics and business courses
as well as two graduate-level econometrics courses.
I would like to pursue a career where I can put my knowledge and skills to good use. I am returning to
the Portland-area where I was born and raised and would love to find employment within an
international development organization. My professional success can attest to my proficiency in
financial, office and program management. I have reconciled financial reports from international
country offices, worked with finance staff to perform general ledger and banking duties and performed
payroll oversight. I have also helped with audit preparations.
Also attached is a copy of my resume for your review. As you will see, my work history also includes
bookkeeping in Quickbooks, grant management, technical writing and work with USAID. I have strong
interpersonal, communication and organizational skills, and I pride myself on my attention to detail.
Moreover, my university capstone group and I are currently writing a report for Zambia’s Ministry of
Labor and Social Security concerning labor market reform, and this experience has greatly sparked my
interest in East African development.
Thank you for your consideration. I am available for work beginning the 23rd of May. I am very
interested in your organization and would very much enjoy being able to meet with you so that I may
explain how I can make a contribution to Africa Bridge as the finance and operations manager.
Sincerely,
Alexander Chester
Master of International Affairs Candidate in Economics and Development - 2011
George H.W. Bush School of Government and Public Service
Texas A&M University
(979)422-9307
CHESTER, ALEXANDER
CONTACT: ACHESTER@BUSHSCHOOL.TAMU.EDU, 979-422-9307
NATIONALITY: UNITED STATES
KEY QUALIFICATIONS:
Mr. Chester will graduate in spring 2011 with a Master’s of International Affairs in international economics and
development from the George H.W. Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M University. He
has over four years experience in international and domestic community and economic development where he was
heavily involved in financial operations including bookkeeping, budgeting, expense reporting, journal adjusting,
handling accounts payable, banking and maintaining financial files. He will have successfully completed two
graduate-level finance classes in addition to multiple graduate-level business and economics classes. Mr. Chester
also has over three years of technical writing experience as a grant writer. He is currently co-authoring a report for
Zambia’s Ministry of Labor addressing productivity and growth in their labor market. Furthermore, he has acquired
invaluable leadership skills through his roles as youth educator and volunteer coordinator and has over two years of
customer service experience. Mr. Chester is fluent in English and Kyrgyz and is currently studying Turkish.
EDUCATION:
2011
2004
2004
Master of International Affairs, International Economics and Development, The George H.W. Bush School
of Government and Public Service, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas
B.A., Economics, Gonzaga University, Spokane, Washington
Minor Degree, Philosophy, Gonzaga University, Spokane, Washington
WORK EXPERIENCE:
2010
2008-2009
2005-2007
2005
2004
CNFA, Inc., Washington, District of Columbia
Bienestar, Inc., Hillsboro, Oregon
United States Peace Corps, Kopuro Bazar, Talas, Kyrgyz Republic
Affiliated Computer Services, Tualatin, Oregon
Bioject, Inc., Tualatin, Oregon
EXPERIENCE DETAILS:
CNFA, Inc., Washington, District of Columbia
Operations and Compliance Intern
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Reconciled the expense reports of 23 international program offices
Adjusted the accounting journals to reflect changes made in the accounting system past post date
Handled the organization’s accounts receivable and petty cash deposits
Handled the mailing of all accounts payable
Maintained all vendor financial files
Maintained country files for all of CNFA’s international program offices
Bienestar, Inc., Hillsboro, Oregon
Office Manager
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June 2010 – August 2010
February 2008 – July 2009
Managed bookkeeping, accounts payable, deposits, financial files and supply purchasing
Wrote successful grants
Organized constituent database, bulk mailings and blast e-mails
Created organizational pamphlets and newsletters
Youth Program Coordinator
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Developed, implemented or administered nine new youth programs
Established local partnerships
Coordinated volunteers
United States Peace Corps, Kopuro Bazar, Talas, Kyrgyz Republic
TEFL Volunteer
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September 2005 – December 2007
Taught English to primary and secondary students and colleagues
Successfully solicited in-kind donations
Wrote a successful grant to USAID to establish an English language center in my community
Conducted after-school language and culture clubs
Set up cross-cultural dialogue between my students and U.S. students
Coached my school’s basketball team
Worked with other volunteers to organize and implement community projects
January 2005 – August 2005
Affiliated Computer Services, Tualatin, Oregon
Credit Supervisor/Care Supervisor
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Supervised the crediting of money to customers’ accounts
Provided tech support for customers’ phones
Twice promoted
May 2004 – December 2004
Bioject, Inc., Tualatin, Oregon
Assembly Inspector

Tested products and recorded data for Federal Drug Administration approval
LANGUAGES:
Speaking
Reading
Writing
English
Excellent
Excellent
Excellent
Kyrgyz
Excellent
Fair
Excellent
Turkish
Fair
Fair
Fair
Spanish
Novice
Novice
Novice
Italian
Novice
Novice
Novice
INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE:
Kyrgyz Republic/Kazakhstan, United States Peace Corps, September 2005 – December 2007
China/Japan, Personal trip, September 2004
Italy/Turkey/Greater Europe, Gonzaga University study abroad, September 2002 – May 2003
COMPUTER EXPERIENCE:
Software:
Microsoft Office, Intuit QuickBooks, Intuit Quicken, Raiser’s Edge Database
Statistical:
STATA Statistical Software, UCINET
Web-based:
Cooler E-mail
CERTIFICATES:
Portland Community College, Certificate of Proficiency in Accounting in Quickbooks 2007, June 2008
United States Peace Corps, Certificate of Foreign Language Proficiency, Advanced High in Kyrgyz, December 2007
VOLUNTEER EXPERIENCE:
Portland Community College, Bond Measure Advocate, October 2008
Sabin Elementary School, Tutor, March 2005 – June 2005
Portland Impact, Tutor, December 2004 – June 2005
YWCA of Spokane, Basketball Coach, March 2004 – May 2004
St. Aloysius School, Football Coach, September 2003 – November 2003
UNIVERSITY EXTRACURRICULARS:
Graduate:
Aggies for International Development (AID), Intramural Sports
Undergraduate: Gonzaga Bulletin, Crew Team, Amnesty International, Knights of Columbus, Intramural Sports
REFERENCES:
Dr. Kishore Gawande
Texas A&M University
979-458-8034
Mr. Val Crasnitchi
CNFA, Inc.
202-296-3920
Ms. Karen Shawcross
Bienestar, Inc.
503-693-2937