The First Step Toward Landing Your Next Job

n What information should be in a resume? n Characteristics of a successful resume. n  Functional or Chronological. n  Scannable resume.

n  Identify Yourself

n  Education

n  Continuing Education

n  Work or Professional Experience

n  Volunteer Experience

n  Activities

n  Computer Skills

n  Professional Associations

Optional Sections

Objective

Special Skills and Abilities

Reference Statement

n  Focuses on skills. Uses action words to define the responsibilities of your job-related experience.

n  Easy to read and understand. n  Visually powerful and free of gimmicks. n  One page!

n  Language is grammatically correct. n  Spelling has been checked. n  Formal Style

n  Typos and Grammar Slips •  “Great attention to detail.” •  “Proven ability to track down and correct erors.” •  “Am a perfectionist and rarely if ever forget etails.” •  Accomplishments: Completed 11 years of high

school.” •  Don’t use “I” or “me”

n Must always be 100% truthful. n Contains no inappropriate personal

information. n Produced on a computer. n Data presented in chronological order

(unless functional).

n Doesn’t go in chronological order. n  Based upon competencies or skills. n Used for career changers or those with

unconventional work histories (or executives). • Might say “Sales Experience” then list it. •  Typically brief with a simple list of positions

held, etc.

• De-emphasizes importance of specific jobs.

n Drawbacks to this system (not as popular).

n Watch bullet points (don’t always scan). n How about a dash - ? n Use labels or keywords. n  Less is more. n Keep the design simple. n Minimize use of abbreviations.

n  No spelling or grammar errors. n  Neat, clean, and professional looking. n  Length should be 1-2 pages. n  Margins at sides and bottom. n  Layout makes reading easy. Use of white

space is effective.

n  Important titles should be emphasized. Experiment with fonts & styles; bold, italic, and underlines. No more than 2 or 3 different sizes.

n  Information is logically recorded. n Use Action Verbs for accomplishments &

results.

n  Bullet points when possible for accomplishments.

n Quantify your results whenever you can. n  Format - chronological