James writes:
I’m searching for a guide on how to write my resume, but I can’t seem to find
anything. If you could give me some tips, or a site that I could go to, that would
be greatly appreciated.
The Career Doctor responds:
Can’t find anything on resumes? Wow. There’s tons of stuff available on resumes —
in magazines, books, and on the Web… but I’ll give you a quick primer.
Your resume is a critical marketing tool. Your resume has to entice a prospective employer enough — through its focus, content, and style — to first consider your
qualifications for the job at hand and then to invite you for a job interview. A resume
is a statement of your unique mix of experiences, education, and skills. You must
not lie on your resume, but you must always remember its goal.
I think the most important thing any job-seeker should do before attempting to write
a resume is to first sit down and make a list of your skills and accomplishments from
all your previous experiences (work, volunteer, school, etc.) because you will take
from this list those critical skills and accomplishments — not your duties and
responsibilities — that highlight your fit for the next job you are seeking.
The next step is researching and identifying the job — and all the requirements of
that job — that you are seeking because it is critical that your resume is focused on
specifics. You should also research the potential employers that may have jobs that
you seek so that you can incorporate some of their keywords into your resume.
Wait! Does this advice suggest that job-seekers need to have a specifically tailored
resume for every single job they apply for? Yes! There is absolutely no reason for you
not to develop a different resume for each job and employer. For most job-seekers,
this task will simply mean tweaking small parts of your resume for similar jobs.
Once you have the content down, you should focus on the style and look of your
resume. Do not use a template; design your own. Follow a consistent style. Use
normal fonts and sizes. Use bullets rather than paragraphs. Do not use personal
pronouns. Consider using a career/job objective or profile section. Always list
education and experience in reverse chronological order (starting with the most
recent stuff). Do not list any personal information (such as age, marital status,
weight). Do not include controversial information. And ALWAYS, ALWAYS,
spell-check and carefully proofread your resume for any and all errors.
Read our articles published on Quintessential Careers: The
Scoop on Resume Length: How Many Pages Should Your Resume Be? and
10 Resume Mistakes to Avoid.
You can gets lots more advice, including resume samples, resume-writing tutorial, and more, in this section of
Quintessential Careers: Resume and CV Resources.
Shreena writes:
I am applying for a summer undergraduate work placement in a
large company of opticians. One of the questions of the application forms is as follows: “Provide details of key achievements in your
current role including facts and figures and performance targets to
indicate the business outcome that resulted.”
Do I need to write about my role as a student at university? There are
no real business outcome that results from being a student.
The Career Doctor responds:
Thank you so much for asking this question. Everyone reading
this blog who knows a college student should be sure that
s/he reads my answer.
Most college students should leave college with two types of
experience: actual work experience gained through internships
and part-time jobs and practical experience gained through
class projects and papers.
When writing their resume, most students don’t have too hard
a time describing work experience, but one of the most
common errors I see is that students often discount those
class projects.
As the application states, the company is looking for your key
achievements/accomplishments to date. If you have previous
work experiences, list those along with their outcomes. But
don’t forget about those class projects.
For example, at the university where I previously taught, many major courses
required completing a project, often with a real client. For example,
in a marketing research class, students might work with a local
business in uncovering a problem and suggesting solutions.
When describing those student experiences, remember the same
rules that apply to describing your work experiences: always try to
quantify your descriptions, focus on outcomes and project objectives.
A sample explanation of a student project:
Market Research Project for DeLand Electronics
Developed detailed SWOT Analysis
Assisted in writing survey questionnaire
Managed survey mail-out to 1,000 residents
Compiled strategic solutions based on survey results
For more information, consider reading this article on Quintessential Careers:
For
Job-Hunting Success: Track and Leverage Your Accomplishments.
Gail writes:
My question is how and where on my resume could I let employers
know I’m looking for 24-32 hours a week. How should I word this?
Should I put this in my objective?
The Career Doctor responds:
Ready for a frustratiing answer? It depends.
OK. Let me explain. If you are responding to job postings or online job
ads that request part-time workers, then there is no need to even have
it listed on your resume because employers will assume if you are
applying for a part-time position that you are actually seeking part-time employment.
However, if you are sending out cover letter and resume packages to a
variety of employers — what we refer to as the cold calling method — then
you must say somewhere that you are looking for part-time rather than
full-time employment. I have a personal preference for putting it only in
your cover letter, but you could also add it your job objective section of
your resume: “To contribute extensive experience, training, and skills
in a part-time project-management position.”
I recommend that job-seekers use a qualifications summary; if done correctly, this
section serves as a short-cut for enticing hiring managers to make the
decision to continue reading your resume. A warning, though: If done
incorrectly, this section could also stop your resume from being read.
Review all the Resume
Resources (including articles, tools, and tutorials) published on Quintessential Careers.
Allison writes:
I thought I’d take a chance and see if I could have a question
answered that I didn’t find addressed on your Quintessential Careers Website. (Excellent site, by the way).
I am required to turn in a resume for a school district with whom
I am applying. I have been in the same type of position for 9 years,
doing relatively the same type of work (counseling). Since each of
the jobs I have held have virtually the same description, how do I
address that under the work experience?
I wondered if I should do a functional resume and bullet all the skills
I have acquired through the years and then just list the schools (or
districts) in which I have worked under the work experience.
The Career Doctor responds:
Kudos first for planning in advance — and for doing the research — with regard to
your resume. Resumes are extremely important documents, and I am always
amazed at how many bad resumes I see — poor focus, too wordy, ugly/boring
appearance, with typos and misspellings. Resumes are one of the main tools
with which prospective employers judge you — and help them decide whether
to call you for an interview.
The key element of resumes you are missing is that a resume is not some
statement of job duties or descriptions. A resume is about showing how you
took a job and made it your own — and helped the employer in the process. A
resume highlights your key accomplishments in every job. And even when
you have held similar jobs over a long period, you should still have quantifiable accomplishments in every position.
So, you certainly could make a chrono-functional resume, where the job-seeker chooses about three broad functional skills areas, but what would you list under the
functional categories? Not job duties. In addition, most employers loathe functional resumes. I think a standard chronological resume
would work fine for you as long as you take the time to sit back and examine
your accomplishments in each job.
Here are some Quintessential Careers resume resources that you may find useful:
Dan writes:
I am an architect in my late 50s who is finding it exceedingly difficult even with
an exceptional work history to get any response to resumes sent to executive-search firms. This even when (1) it would seem my background would match
perfectly with senior management position requirements advertised, (2) I state
my salary is negotiable, and (3) when asked, I respond that I am open to
relocating if necessary. In a youth-oriented profession such as architecture,
is there a certain approach that should be following in submitting in seeking
a position or in the job-hunting process in general?
The Career Doctor responds:
As baby boomers continue to get older, I think we will see many changes
in how older job-seekers are viewed — and we’re already seeing some of
those changes — but perceptions are slow to change (and vary by industry
and profession).
Are you focusing all your energies on executive recruiters? And if so, why?
Recruiters can be one source of job leads — but should only be one source.
Remember that headhunters work for the employers — and not job-seekers —
so you need to be just as aggressive in following-up with these recruiters
as you would employers.
Have you been networking? I know long-time readers of my blog are
probably tired of me constantly beating the networking drum, but all studies
point to the importance and power of networking when job-hunting. And many
professional organizations also often have career and job postings on their
Websites and at conferences. Investigate all the possibilities.
One of the other things I’ve discovered about older job-seekers, especially
those who have been out of job-hunting for many years, is that they are often
weak on job-search techniques and tools. What does your resume look like? Have
you taken dates off your degrees and limited your list of experience to no more
than 20 years of work? Is your resume centered around accomplishments and achievements?
Finally, what about the resources of your alma mater? Contact the college where
you received your architecture degree and see how the career services and alumni offices can help you with your job search.
Get more help with your resume by reading numerous articles and reviewing samples
in the Resume Resources section of
Quintessential Careers.
LaShun writes:
It seems every piece of advice about cover letters says to call the company
you want to work for to get a SPECIFIC NAME of the person who has the authority
to call you for an interview. But what if the company refuses to give that information?
Most of the companies I call say just send a resume to the HR department
at an email address or fax number but won’t give a name. And when I do get
a specific name, I’m sure I’m not the only one who called. What else can I do?
The Career Doctor responds:
I empathize with all the job-seekers who are finding it harder and
harder to get the name of the hiring manager — which is what all job
experts recommend you do. Unfortunately, companies seem to be
making it harder and harder for job-seekers to identify and follow-up
with the hiring manager.
You have several options for getting the name (and correct spelling)
of the hiring manager. You could call the human-resources office, but
remember that office’s role is one of screening. So, I would avoid HR
altogether and simply call the main switchboard and ask the receptionist
for the name of the department manager for the position you are seeking.
Receptionists are wonderful sources of information — so cultivate them!
You could also default to writing to the division or company president and
hope your application trickles down to the hiring manager, but more often
than not, if it does trickle down, it goes to HR. The final possibility is
another important use of your network; contact all the people in your
network and see if anyone works or knows someone who works for the
company — and then ask that person to use internal channels to get
you the name of the hiring manager.
One final comment about the many employers who state in job ads:
“no phone calls.” This comment refers to applying by phone — but should
not stop any job-seeker who has submitted an application from
following-up to check on the status of his/her application.
Will writes:
I have a whole lot of experience, but not a tremendous amount of in any
one area. How could I narrow down my choices so I know what kind of job
to pursue? Also, what would be the best way to lay out my resume?
The Career Doctor responds:
There’s good news and bad news here. As employers continue to downsize
and have employees multitask by combining job functions, there is certainly
a need for job-seekers who have multiple talents and abilities. On the other
hand, job-seekers without a specific focus will rarely ever get a second look
from employers.
So, as you mention, your task is to find a way to parlay your years of
varied job experiences into some cohesive strategy that plays itself out
on your resume. You don’t want to be seen as someone who does not
know what you want to do, or one who gets easily bored.
What is it you want to do next? If you truly have no clue, take the time to
conduct some self-assessment. First, spend some time reviewing all your
experiences (work, hobby, etc.) and make two lists — one with activities you
enjoy and one with activities you never want to do again. You could also
consider taking one or more assessment tests, many of which you can find online.
Once you have a better picture of your likes and interests, the next step
is researching careers that closely match your profile. Take the time to
do this important career exploration. Many online and print
resources can help you in this process. My favorite is the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Outlook Handbook.
Once you’ve identified a career path (or paths), the next step is finding
employers in that field — and developing a strategy for breaking into it. In
any job market, but especially in this job market, your key to success is
building a new network for your new career. Find and join professional
organizations in your new career field, use alumni networks to find
people in your new career field.
Use the Career
Exploration Resources section of Quintessential Careers to help you.
And learn more about networking in the The
Art of Networking section of Quintessential Careers.
And all sorts of great resume-writing tools can be found in the
Resume Resources section of Quintessential Careers.
SEH writes:
How do you build a ‘“good resume” if you have LOTS of gaps in your job history?
I know that to get in to explain to someone face to face, you need a way to get
your foot in the door, and trust me, with my resume, I’m not going anywhere!
The Career Doctor responds:
Employment gaps are always a challenge when developing a resume. Small
gaps are not that unusual anymore as the employment landscape has changed
over the last decade or so. If you have a large gap — or multiple gaps — however,
you will need to be a bit creative in dealing with the issue.
The ideal situation is when you can show you were doing something productive
during your employment gap — getting additional training, education, certifications or working part-time, freelancing, consulting, or volunteering.
If you were ill or dealing with a family emergency, or simply out of the workforce
by choice, your best bet may be to develop a chrono-functional resume. A functional
resume is organized around three or four skills areas (such as communications, leadership, customer service, project management, etc.). You then list key
accomplishments from all your experiences within each skills cluster (such as,
directed marketing campaign that doubled annual sales over a three-year period
while industry growth remained stagnant).
Be forewarned that employers and recruiters look suspiciously at chrono-functional resumes. However, for some job-seekers,
a chrono-functional resume is really the only choice; thus, the key is then developing a
superior resume that wins over even the most diehard skeptic (and keeping your chronological resume handy in case the chrono-functional version isn’t effective).
For more tips and advice, read this article from Quintessential Careers:
How to Handle a Gap in Your Job History.
Lynn writes:
I have recently made a slight shift in my job field. I was an administrative
assistant for more than six years and now I am working in the Accounting Department.
How do I reflect the change in duties from administrative assistant to (I don’t
really have a title now)…accounting. I have been doing this for only a month,
but I recognize that the pay is better on this side of the fence. Some of my
daily functions parallel what I was doing in my previous position. However, I
want to show progression on my resume without looking like I job hop.
The Career Doctor responds:
I am a very big proponent of keeping one’s resume current. You never
know, especially in the current economic and corporate climate, when
you’ll be in a situation where you need to have your hands on an up-to-date
resume. So, I laud your efforts.
And when you get promoted (or transferred) within your current employer,
that’s not job-hopping. In your case, it shows that your employer values
your work enough to expand your job responsibilities.
You really need a job title, so you should either ask for a new one — or
suggest one to your boss. Once you have the new job title, you can show the
progress from administrative assistant to the new position on your resume.
While it may be a bit too early in your new position to identify some of your
key accomplishments, remember that whenever you are describing jobs on
your resume you should try and identify quantifiable accomplishments rather
than list duties or responsibilities. Employers want to know how you made
the job your own — and how you excelled in it.
You can find some great advice on writing a powerful resume — in the form
of articles and tutorials — in the Resume Resources section of Quintessential Careers.
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