Resume Tips
Putting Together an Eye-Catching and Effective Resume
Your resume has only one purpose, and that is to get the attention
of an employer and make them want to interview you. The initial
screening process is often based more on the quality and clarity
of your resume than on actual abilities and accomplishments.
Keep your resume in a computer file and modify it for each job
you apply for. Stress specifics in your background relevant to
the position you are seeking.
- What to include:
- Contact Information: Your name, home
address, telephone number, and e-mail address should be
easy to locate at the top of your resume.
- Education: If you have a college degree
or higher education, name the institution and your degree.
Include your GPA only if it was a 3.0 or better. Include
any courses or areas of focus relevant to the position
you are seeking.
- Experience: Chronological format is
preferred with the most recent job first. List both paid
and volunteer experience. Include the job title, dates
of employment, and company name and location for each job.
Briefly describe your responsibilities for each position
with an emphasis on achievements.
- Skills: List computer skills and other
skills relevant to the position you are applying for. Also
list proficiency in foreign languages if applicable.
- Additional Information: Include hobbies
and membership organizations that are relevant to the job
you are seeking.
- References: References should be listed
only when requested.
- What to avoid:
- Typos, spelling errors, and poor grammar.
- Missing or inaccurate contact information.
- Unexplained gaps in employment.
- Long paragraphs (no paragraph should exceed 10 lines).
- Long resumes.
- Meaningless objectives or introductions.
- Pictures, graphics, or URL links.
- Complete sentences with personal pronouns such as "I" and "we."
- Personal information such as weight, height, sex, health,
age, religious affiliations, or personal details about
your family.
- Keep it brief - one or two pages in length. Margins should
be no less than 0.5". Keep sentences and paragraphs short
and concise.
- Use bullets to highlight key skills and accomplishments.
- Avoid fancy formatting and graphics. Most resumes are scanned
and entered electronically into company databases. Extensive
page formatting can get lost, causing text to become unreadable
in the scanned version.
- If e-mailing your resume, make sure you save it as a file type
that can be read by the recipient. Microsoft Word is an acceptable
format for most companies.
- Have someone proofread your resume to be sure the spelling
and grammar are perfect.
- Print your resume on plain white bond paper.
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