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Resumes
Employer
directories, job listings, occupational information,
personal assistance on career changes, job hunting
strategies, and resources for creating your resume and
cover letter are available to you at Career Services.
Learn how to get the most out of the information that's
here for you.
When
preparing your resume, it is important to remember that
the purpose of a resume is to get you an INTERVIEW. In
the thirty seconds your resume will be looked over, you
must convince a prospective employer that you deserve an
interview. Therefore, do no attempt to present an
autobiography of yourself. Focus on your
accomplishments and your skills that you have acquired
and what you have to offer a particular company for the
future.
Creating
Your Blueprint
Formats
Resume Sample
Tips
Action-Oriented
Words
The
Do's and Dont's
Common
Employer Critiques of Resumes
Scannable
Resumes
Frequently
Asked Questions
Reference
List Example 1
Reference
List Example 2
Coming
soon:
Curriculum Vita (used in the academic arena)
Creating
your blueprint
To begin your resume, make a
detailed list of all of your experiences.
Segment these experiences into
categories such as
- EDUCATION
- WORK
EXPERIENCE
- INTERNSHIPS
- VOLUNTEER
WORK
- COLLEGE
ACTIVITIES
- PROFESSIONAL
GROUP MEMBERSHIPS
- HONORS
- AWARDS,
- SPECIAL
TRAINING
Optional
items for your resume include:
- Additional
skills (Computer Skills, Languages, etc.)
- Relevant
Coursework
- Publications/Research
- Job
Objective
Formats
Include everything that you can
think of because your resume can be revised later during
a resume appointment with a counselor at the Career
Services Office. Once you have compiled a list of
experiences into categories, you will need to decide on
the format that best exemplifies your accomplishments
and your goals. The two formats most often used are the
CHRONOLOGICAL and FUNCTIONAL resume.
A
CHRONOLOGICAL
resume focuses on past experiences.
It is the most effective
format to use when:
- staying
in the same field as prior experience
- job
history shows growth and development
- entering
a highly traditional field
- previous
employers are highly prestigious
It
is the least effective format to use when:
- you
have a spotty work history
- changing
your career goals or if you have had frequent job
changes
A
FUNCTIONAL
resume focuses on strengths and accomplishments.
It is the most effective
format to use when:
- emphasizing
capabilities not recently used in work experiences
- changing
careers
- you
have a variety of unrelated work experiences
It
is the least effective format to use when:
- entering
a highly traditional field
- performed
limited work functions
- emphasized
a management growth pattern
Tips
Once
you have gathered and organized your information, there
are several things to keep in mind as you begin the
actual writing process:
- Be
consistent.
- Use
bullets to draw the reader's attention to your verb
phrases.
- Use
phrases to describe your skills instead of
sentences.
- Condense
ideas.
- Be
specific.
- Be
neat and organized.
- Use
quality resume paper in shades of cream and gray.
- Use
a laser printer.
- Be
HONEST about your information including your GPA.
- PROOFREAD.
- Have
someone else proofread your resume, and EDIT! EDIT!
EDIT!.
- You
should NEVER include in your resume:
- References
to race, religion, sex, or age
- Photos
Reasons for job changes
- Self-serving
claims
- Abbreviations
or jargon
- Irrelevant
information
Individual
resume counseling is available by appointment. Please
contact the Career Services Office at 357-2235 to make
an appointment. We also provide drop-in hours for resume
appointments on Tuesday and Wednesday nights from 5 pm -
8 pm in Pratt Hall room 302.
Action
Words
The
following "action" words can be used as the
first word of sentence fragments in your resume.
Always begin your statements with an action word that
describes a certain skill or ability you possess.
A thesaurus can be a helpful tool in this process!
Accelerated
Accomplished
Achieved
Adapted
Administered
Analyzed
Approved
Completed
Conceived
Conducted
Conferred
Constructed
Contracted
Controlled
Converted
Coordinated
Created
Cut
Delegated
Delivered
Demonstrated
Designed
Developed
Devised
Directed |
Doubled
Drafted
Edited
Effected
Eliminated
Enlarged
Equipped
Established
Evaluated
Exhibited
Expanded
Expedited
Formulated
Guided
Implemented
Improved
Increased
Influenced
Initiated
Installed
Interpreted
Invented
Launched
Lectured
Maintained
|
Managed
Motivated
Negotiated
Operated
Organized
Originated
Participated
Performed
Pinpointed
Planned
Prepared
Produced
Proficient
Programmed
Promoted
Proposed
Proved
Provided
Recommended
Recorded
Reduced
Reinforced
Researched
Responsible
Revamped |
Reviewed
Revised
Scheduled
Set up
Significantly
Simplified
Sold
Solved
Streamlined
Structured
Succeeded
Successfully
Supervised
Supported
Taught
Trained
Translated
Trimmed
Tripled
Uncovered
Unraveled
Widened
Won
Wrote |
The
Do's and Dont's of Resume Writing
Do
- List
a page number and your name on each
additional page
- Be
clear, concise, and precise
- Avoid
abbreviations except fully understood words
i.e., PA, B.S., etc.
- Include
a cover letter when mailing your resume
- Proofread!!!
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Don't
- Lie
or exaggerate about your accomplishments
- Use
personal pronouns like "I" or
"My"
- Staple
or paper-clip pages
- Use
big words or professional jargon
- Round
off your grade point average
- Write
long paragraphs or sentences
- List
high school activities
- Include
a photograph
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Common
Employer Criticism of Resumes
- Misspellings,
bad grammar and wordiness
- Too
long, short, or condensed
- Poor
layout, physical appearance
- Poor
punctuation
- Lengthy
phrases, sentences and paragraphs
- Too
slick, amateurish and "gimmicky"
- Too
boastful or dishonest
- Poorly
typed and reproduced
- Irrelevant
information
- Critical
categories missing
- Hard
to understand or requires too much interpretation
- Does
not convey accomplishments
- Text
does not support objective
- Unclear
objective
- Too
much jargon
Tips
for Scannable Resumes
In
order to cut costs, some employers have begun using
computers to read resumes. The development of
scanners and Optical Character Recognition software now
enables an employer to "read" and store
thousands of resumes into a candidate database, which
can be searched for keywords when a vacancy needs to be
filled. As the use of this technology grows, it
will change the way in which resumes are prepared.
For now, the following tips can be used to make your
resume more "scanner-friendly":
- Use
nondecorative typefaces, such as Helvetica, Futura,
Univers, Optima, ITC Avante Garde, Goth, Time, New
Century Schoolbook, ITC Bookman, Palatino, or
Courier. These fonts are easier for scanners
to recognize.
- Use
a font size of 10 to 14 points.
- Avoid
italics, script, and underlining. Avoid using
graphics and shading.
- Use
light-colored, standard-size 8-1/2" x 11"
paper, printed on one side only.
- If
you know your resume is going to be read by a
scanner, do not fold, staple, or wrinkle it.
Frequently
Asked Questions about Resume Writing
How
long should my resume be?
It depends on your audience and on
your own life experiences. While the "one
page" rule may apply to most traditional students,
students who have a significant amount of
experiences ( e.g., students in nursing or education,
non-traditional students, graduate students, or campus
leaders) may need to use two or more pages.
Should
I list my GPA?
Students who have an overall or
major grade point average of 3.0 or above should include
it! Showing that you have done well academically
will enhance you resume.
Do
I need to have my resume typed and printed
professionally?
If possible, resumes should always
be printed on high-quality bond paper using a laser
printer or high quality typewriter. Avoid dot
matrix printers! You can produce your own resume
using word processing, or you can choose to have someone
assist you. Contact local copying and word
processing businesses for prices.
What
type of personal information should I include?
Generally, stay away from
information indicating your age, sex, marital status,
religion, height, or weight. This information does
not tell an employer about your skills or abilities, and
can be used to discriminate against you. Only
include hobbies if they are related to your career.
Will
creativity on my resume make it stand out?
Stay away from fancy formats or
designs that will focus the employer's attention on your
resume presentation style rather than on its content.
For the most part, employers are not impressed with
gimmicks. Be conservative in your need to be
creative.
For more information on scannable
resumes, see The Electronic Resume Revolution by
Joyce Lain Kennedy and Thomas J. Morrow (John Wiley
& Son, Inc., 1994.)
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