Resumes

WHAT IS A RESUME?

It is your personal marketing tool that clearly identifies benefits that you can offer the employer. * It should be customized for each job and employer or accompanied by a customized cover letter. It highlights what you: HAVE DONE (experience and accomplishments relevant to the job), what you CAN DO (relevant skills, knowledge and capabilities for performing the job), and what you WANT TO DO (objective and professional goals). It makes a first impression on the employer without telling everything about you. It entices the employer to want to interview you for further details.

* "Ask not what the company can do for you; tell what you can do for the company!"

RESUME-WRITING STRATEGIES

• Compose your resume with the employer's and the job's specific needs in mind.
• Be clear, concise and direct. The reader should not have to "figure out" or search through your resume to see how you match their needs and the job requirements.
• Write succinct but informative, punchy phrases using words directly from the job ad or standard key skill words for your type of occupation. Need help figuring out what skill words to use? Research your desired job here.
• Emphasize your uniqueness. Instead of writing, "Worked at reception desk" write, "Conducted efficient needs assessment of customers resulting in accurate referrals."
• Always be HONEST!

RESUME BASICS

• A resume should be 1-2 pages, depending on the extent of your related work experiences.
• Have plenty of "white space" - 1" margins plus other white areas for the employer to take notes.
• Use 20 lb. white, off-white or light gray paper (with matching envelopes if possible).
• Use one font style, e.g., Times New Roman or Arial, size 11 or 12 pt. (A second font could be used for the heading of the resume.)
• Be consistent with verb tenses, bold or all capitalized letters, or other methods to emphasize text.
• Do not abbreviate words unless they are well-known in your industry.
• Include a cover letter with your resume that is customized to address the needs of the specific job.

Your resume must be errorless! (Ask someone to proofread it)

RESUME STYLES

Chronological: A traditional style commonly used when your recent work history relates to the job for which you are applying and there are no major gaps of time. Jobs are listed in reverse chronological order with the most current job first, going back about 10 years, depending on the relevancy of your jobs. Relevant skills used on the job and accomplishments achieved are described. See sample Chronological Resume here.

Functional: This style (sometimes called a Combination resume) is useful for people changing careers, or who have gaps in their employment history. It emphasizes categories of key skill areas that apply to the job objective. Under each category, you provide examples from various work experiences and related accomplishments as evidence for each category. The reader can see the range of your experiences. This style is good for a job seeker who is changing careers; lacks recent, related job experience or education; has an unusual job history; or has considerable work experience. The work history appears near the end of the resume and often includes only the company names and locations and your job titles. See sample Functional Resume here.

PREPARING A RESUME

Step 1: Determine the career field, the job title and/or the job description that you are targeting.

Step 2: Collect information about yourself that you will need to include in your resume. Use the list below, resume-writing books, or pick up Career Services Center's resume handouts, or try this website for ideas on how to identify this information.

Step 3: Inventory and document your relevant skills, areas of knowledge, accomplishment and work-style strengths for the specific career or job.

SECTIONS OF THE RESUME

Every resume is different. Choose which sections to use based on the most relevant experience that you have to offer. You want to use just enough information to "sell your skills" but not so much that you overwhelm the reader.

1. IDENTIFICATION INFORMATION. Your name, address, home telephone number (have an answering machine with a business-like message), e-mail address and fax number. Avoid using your work telephone number as a potential employer may think, "If this person is willing to use work time to look for a job, would they do the same if they worked for me?"

2. OBJECTIVE or JOB TITLE(S)

3. HIGHLIGHTS/SUMMARY OF QUALIFICATIONS and/or relevant SKILLS list. You can include here your . COMPUTER SKILLS. Knowledge of, experience or proficiency with specific software or hardware, programming, graphics, the Internet or Web design

4. EDUCATION and ADDITIONAL TRAINING. Name of school, city and state, degree/certificate (to be) earned, major, dates attended or upcoming year of graduation, GPA (if 3.0 or higher), honors, special classroom projects and most relevant courses or training.

• Do not list your high school if you have attended college.
• List only colleges from which you will or have graduated; not those you attended for awhile and transferred the credits elsewhere.
• Do not list dates attended or graduation year if you do not want your age to be calculated.

5. (WORK) EXPERIENCE. The employer's name, city and state, dates employed, job title, responsibilities, skills and knowledge used, accomplishments, awards and recognitions. Co-op or Internship experiences. Health students include clinical rotations.

6. PROFESSIONAL ATTRIBUTES. Work style traits that would be considered desirable by the particular employer including verbal and written communication skills, teamwork skills, integrity and honesty, interpersonal skills, analytical skills, flexibility, leadership qualities, creativity, detail-oriented, excellent attendance record. Work these attributes into your work experience phrases so that you "prove" you have them.

7. Professional ASSOCIATIONS / AFFILIATIONS relevant to the job. (Note leadership or national positions, special recognitions and projects.)

8. PUBLICATIONS, AWARDS, RECOGNITION (if reasonably current).

9. Professional LICENSES / CERTIFICATIONS (current). (e.g. MLT, RN, CNE, etc.)

10. OTHER POSSIBLE CATEGORIES. Relevant volunteer and community service work, foreign language proficiency, military leadership or high impact roles, security clearance, job-relevant extracurricular activities (including committee work, leadership roles, and innovative projects), travel experience, publications, formal presentations, major research projects.

There is no need to include "References furnished upon request." This is assumed! Also do not include personal data such as hobbies, your birth date, marital status, etc.

ACCOMPLISHMENT WORKSHEET (Print out and fill out)

An ACCOMPLISHMENT DEMONSTRATES HOW YOU:

• have used your skills for a specific task or project
• benefited the company and/or resolved a problem
• improved productivity or work conditions
• made a work process easier or simpler
• achieved something innovative for your employer

1. List a work-related accomplishment that made you proud and that you enjoyed doing

_______________________________________________________________________

2. List two skills and/or abilities that you used to accomplish the above

_______________________________________________________________________

3. What problem was resolved? How did this accomplishment benefit certain people or the company? (Include quantifying descriptions)

_______________________________________________________________________

EXAMPLE

"Developed a system and wrote a manual for routing customer service calls to the appropriate company department, reducing percentage of wrong referrals by 15%."

WORK EXPERIENCE PHRASE WORKSHEET

• Each work experience can include regular duties or a special accomplishment, skills used, knowledge, new ideas implemented, important projects, and management or training performed.
• Begin each phrase with an ACTION VERB and use QUANTIFYING wording (numbers) when possible.

EXAMPLES

Using the Accomplishments listed above, write a work experience phrase that includes a resulting accomplishment:

______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

WORK EXPERIENCE EXAMPLES

When you write your resume, do you make it obvious to employers that hiring you would be a good idea? Here are three ways to make sure that you do:

1. Put benefits first.

Find the benefits of what you've done, put them at the start of your sentences or phrases, and add some quantifying information. This is an easy way to add punch to your writing.

Good "benefits" example:
"Negotiated new long-distance contract with carrier, for increased savings."

Better "benefits" example:
"Saved $42,000 in monthly long-distance costs by negotiating new contract with carrier."

2. Be specific.

In advertising, facts sell. This is because they help prove an advertiser's claims. Your resume is no different. When you make a claim, be as specific as possible. If you do this, your benefits will leap off the page. Let's go from least specific to most specific examples:

Good (but not specific enough):
"Increased productivity and retention among workers."

Better (more specific):
"Substantially increased productivity and retention with new training program."

Best (most specific):
"Increased productivity 15% and retention 23% over six months with new employee training."

3. Prove It.

Anyone can (and does) claim to be "detail-oriented" or "highly organized" in a resume. The way to convince employers that you have the right stuff is not to list 10-20 skills. Instead, focus on the three or four skills that will help you do your next job. Then back them up with facts.

If you claim you're "highly organized" in your Summary of Qualifications, provide proof of this in a corresponding Work Experience statement.

Example of a Work Experience "proof" statement:
"Highly organized and experienced -- managed 425 accounts in territories covering 15 states."

Focus on Benefits. Be Specific. Prove Your Claim.

RESUME OBJECTIVE

An OBJECTIVE:

• reflects your career goals and/or the exact job position for which you are applying
• is optional and can be eliminated from the resume and included in the cover letter, instead
• is not included in a resume when you want to be considered for a variety of positions

An OBJECTIVE can include the:

• CAREER CATEGORY (e.g., social services, respiratory therapy, customer service, sales, teaching, administrative support, drafting, information systems, etc.)
• JOB TITLE of a specific job for which you are applying
• SKILLS that you possess for the job
• RESPONSIBILITIES desired
• LEVEL OF POSITION targeted (e.g., part-time, co-op, entry level)

EXAMPLES

"Programmer/Analyst position in designing new products."

"A part-time staff nursing position in a large teaching hospital."

"To provide efficient, friendly customer service and effective problem solving to customers in a retail environment."

SUMMARY or HIGHLIGHTS OF QUALIFICATIONS section

The SUMMARY section:

• Summarizes your most relevant skills and experience
• Helps career changers display and steer the reader toward their new career direction
• Informs readers unacquainted with your exact career field to know what you have to offer them
• Can include:
• Years of EXPERIENCE in the specific or related fields
• Related EDUCATION (degree name)
• Functional areas of EXPERTISE or related major ACCOMPLISHMENT
• Significant TECHNICAL strengths, LICENSE or CERTIFICATION
• Relevant PERSONAL QUALITIES and WORK STYLE

EXAMPLES

"Pediatric training and work experience in a variety of therapeutic settings. Background encompassing direct service, case work and team treatment. Proven ability to work independently and meet deadlines. Excellent communication and problem solving skills."

-or-

• "Ten years of expertise in the installation and troubleshooting of local area networks (LAN)"
• "Demonstrated skill in meeting deadlines in a demanding environment"
• "Proven ability to communicate with and instruct both technical and non-technical users"

-or-

• "Management professional with over 15 years of experience, distinguished by promotions to progressively challenging assignments"
• "Proven ability to motivate a sales team and lead them toward common department goals"
• "10 years of commission sales experience in manufacturing industry in intensely competitive markets"

ADVICE

• You can have several versions of your resume if you have varied career goals. Each version can then be targeted toward a particular goal. In addition, you can slightly adjust the order of the things on your resume each time you send it out in order to focus on certain skills that you possess relevant to a particular job.
• It may be tempting, but do not have someone else write your resume for you. You will be asked to discuss what it says in an interview. Going through the process of writing it will help you interview better as you think through your achievements and skills.
• Seek the advice of others: Career Services Staff, professors, professionals in your career field.
• Once you have a rough draft, help is available from Lakeland Career Services Center. Just call 440-525-7222 if you would like to make an appointment.

ACTION VERBS

Use action verbs to describe your experience and accomplishments. Each of your work experience phrases should begin with an action verb. Here are some samples:

CHRONOLOGICAL RESUME SAMPLE

This resume style puts the focus on what you have done, highlights your work experience and describes achievements and responsibilities. It is written in reverse chronological order, starting with the most recent experience.

JANE J. JONES

Tier 1 Help Desk Technician position with a focus on
user-friendly technical support and people-oriented customer service

FUNCTIONAL RESUME SAMPLE

This resume style puts the focus on what you can do.
It highlights key skills, qualifications, and strengths that are most relevant to your job target.
These are grouped by functional areas/skill categories.

JANE J. JONES

Updated 07/01/09