components of a great resume

8/19/2019 Components of a Great Resume

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%. CUSTOMIZED COVER LETTER

*our cover etter shoud contain content that is different from your resume and shoud

match up very "e "ith the ;o+ description. This means you "i need to re)"rite it for

each ;o+ you appy for.

1&. REALISTIC E"PECTATIONS

?e optimistic( +ut reaistic. :f a ;o+ description ists a re<uired task that you’re confident

you can do( try to "ord your past e,perience to refect it. ?ut if a ;o+ description ists

seven re<uired skis or certifications and you ony have three of them( then you don’t

meet the <uaifications and shoudn’t appy.

!ith the start of a ne" year( it’s a great time to update your resume and refect a +it on

your strengths and ;o+ specific skis. ?eing a+e to effectivey and succincty summari&e

your skis( education( and e,perience is important for everyoneregardess of "hether

you intend to seek empoyment in the near future. These resume tips are intended to

hep you put forth the +est possi+e impression of yoursef on paper. *ou ony get one

chance to make a great impression( so make yours count@



!hether you’re a freshy minted graduate or a professiona "ith decades of e,perience(

your rsum shoud incude five critica eements. :ncuding these five parts "i hep youcarify your thinking( focus on key skis and accompishments( and craft a rsum that

"i hep you stand out from the cro"d.

:f you’re searching for a ne" ;o+( check your resume and make sure it has these five

critica eements$

An Bngaging %ummary

9icki ?aca( o"ner of The Resume %peciaist in %t. -ouis 8ark( >inn.( reminds ;o+

candidates that a rsum o+;ective is /fro"ned upon. :t has +een for over 50 years.4

:nstead( kick your rsum off "ith a section that +riefy summari&es your professiona

<uaifications. /The o+;ective used to te the empoyer "hat the candidate "ants(4 ?aca

e,pains. /The summary is focused on "hat you( as a candidate( can do for the

empoyer. This is the fee)good section. :t’s e<uivaent to the handshake. #ighighting

soft skis here gives your resume a core of humanity.4

8roof of B,pertise

/Core competencies4 is a good tite for this section if you have t"o to five years ofe,perience or are s"itching careers. or peope "ith onger "ork histories( /professiona

skis4 might make more sense. Do+ seekers appying for trades or technica positions

can use /technica competencies.4 This section "here you ist your skis( kno"edge

and e,perience( ?aca says.

Reevant B,perience

This is the section most peope focus on( +ut they end up paying more attention to ;o+

duties and descriptions than accompishments( ?aca says. *ou shoud incude resuts(

effects and contri+utions made at your former ;o+s( aong "ith the company name( ;o+

tite and years Enot e,act datesF of empoyment.

Bducation #ighights

:nstitution( dates attended and the degree or certification you received are isted in the

education section. 8rofessiona deveopment( continuing education( on)the);o+ training



and other nontraditiona education shoud +e incuded here as "e.

The ina Touch

:t’s possi+e there are other things you coud add to your rsum that don’t <uite fit in

any of the other sections. or a technica position( this coud incude e,perience "ith

proprietary or customi&ed soft"are. or an e,ecutive position( you coud incude

eadership activities. :f there are ma;or a"ards( recognitions and accompishments that

deserve a itte more attention than a detai in another part of the rsum( they can go

here.

There "i +e differences in some of these sections depending on "hether you’re a

recent graduate( changing careers or ooking to move up in eadership. :f you have a

<uestion a+out "hether you shoud incude something( ?aca suggests "riting /so"hat4 after it. /:f you can’t ans"er it( then take it out or re"rite it.4 As an appicant( /my

overriding concern is( ho" can : differentiate mysef from a the other peope appying

for these ;o+s #o" you do it is to point out the frosting on the cake( not ;ust the cake.4

components of a great resume

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