A-Z about Resume Writing

Resume Writing
How to build a resume?

When you apply for a job, your prospective employer will want to see your resume. Your resume is a marketing tool that outlines your skills and experience relevant to the job. It can also be called your Curriculum Vitae (CV).

Your resume should be dynamic which means you should update it regularly, whenever you finish a job or complete a training course. It should also be tailored for each job you apply for. It might be a good idea to create a master resume and then use it to create tailored versions for each job application.

What to include in your resume?

Your resume should include your contact details, education, employment history, and the contact details for your referees. You can also include a statement of your career objective, relevant computer skills, relevant professional affiliations and other relevant skills (for example, languages). Some people like to include information about their hobbies and interests so that the employer can get to know more about their personality and interests outside of work.

Key information that should be included:

• Contact details:
• name
• address
• phone or mobile number
  
• contact email
• Career objective
• Employment history:
• include all relevant work history, including volunteering and work experience
• provide details on the name of your employer, the job title, the period of employment and your key achievement
• Education and training qualifications:
• all relevant education and training qualifications should be listed in this section
• provide details on the name of the institution where you studied, course title and date completed
• Demonstrated skills:
• look at the details and selection criteria of the job
• consider what skills are required for the position and then list your relevant skills
• if relevant, include information about your proficiency in the range of relevant software programs you use. You usually record your proficiency as either 'basic', 'intermediate' or 'advanced'. Be honest as the employer will expect you to perform at the level you have indicated in your resume
• Special achievements:
• use this section to highlight your special achievements
• special achievements can be a work goal, community work, volunteering or a sporting achievement
• Referees:
• contact details for someone who has supervised your work (teacher, coach, supervisor) or who has a good knowledge of your ability to do the job.

You don’t need to include personal details such as your date of birth, marital status and gender.

The most important thing when writing your resume is to make sure that it is relevant to the job you are applying for.

Choosing your referees

Your referees can include a:

• previous employer
• teacher
• trainer
• co-ordinator of voluntary work
• person you’ve done ‘odd jobs’ for.

If you do have a strong work history, try to include at least two previous employers or managers.

When choosing your referees you should also make sure your referees know you well and can be contacted easily. Contact your referees to let them know you've put their names down and to get their consent to be named as a referee. You may also want to talk to your referee about the type of job you are applying for, the skills required and how you match the requirements of the job.

Formatting your resume

You want to make it as easy as possible for a potential employer to read through your resume so keep the format simple.

Do not use bold or italics formatting in the main text of your resume—only use this formatting for headings and sub headings. If your resume is longer than one page include page numbers, your name and contact number in the footer on all pages.

Updating your resume

Your resume is a living document so remember to update it regularly and keep copies of each update. You will find your resume a handy reference if you need to refer back.

A tailored resume is a great tool to enhance your employment opportunities and if you are not getting interviews with your current resume, then change it.

Presenting your resume

You should proof read your resume thoroughly. A good way to double check everything in your resume is to read it aloud or ask a friend or family member to read it.

When you are happy with your resume, you should print it on clean white paper. Some people like to present their resume in a folder.

You can also attach a covering letter. More information on writing to an employer is available:

It is also very important to follow any instructions the employer gives about presenting your resume.

When you go to an interview, it is a good idea to take two copies of your resume so you can leave one copy with the employer. If you are attending a panel interview, take one copy for each panel member.




Some MORE queries about RESUMES......................


What is the most common resume mistake made by job hunters?
Leaving out their Job Objective! If you don't show a sense of direction, employers won't be interested. Having a clearly stated goal doesn't have to confine you if it's stated well.

What's the first step in writing a resume?
Decide on a job target (or "job objective") that can be stated in about 5 or 6 words. Anything beyond that is probably "fluff" and indicates a lack of clarity and direction.

How do you decide whether to use a Chronological resume or a Functional one? The Chronological format is widely preferred by employers, and works well if you're staying in the same field (especially if you've been upwardly-mobile). Only use a Functional format if you're changing fields, and you're sure a skills-oriented format would show off your transferable skills to better advantage; and be sure to include a clear chronological work history!
What if you don't have any experience in the kind of work you want to do?
Get some! Find a place that will let you do some volunteer work right away. You only need a brief, concentrated period of volunteer training (for example, 1 day a week for a month) to have at least SOME experience to put on your resume.
Also, look at some of the volunteer work you've done in the past and see if any of THAT helps document some skills you'll need for your new job.

What do you do if you have gaps in your work experience?
You could start by looking at it differently.
General Rule: Tell what you WERE doing, as gracefully as possible--rather than leave a gap.
If you were doing anything valuable (even if unpaid) during those so-called "gaps" you could just insert THAT into the work-history section of your resume to fill the hole. Here are some examples:

• 2003-05 Full-time parent -- or
• 2002-04 Maternity leave and family management -- or
• Travel and study -- or Full-time student -- or
• Parenting plus community service

What if you have several different job objectives you're working on at the same time? Or you haven't narrowed it down yet to just one job target?

Then write a different resume for each different job target. A targeted resume is MUCH, much stronger than a generic resume.

What if you have a fragmented, scrambled-up work history, with lots of short-term jobs?
To minimize the job-hopper image, combine several similar jobs into one "chunk," for example:

• 20033-2005 Secretary/Receptionist; Jones Bakery, Micro Corp., Carter Jewelers
  

-- or--

• 2003-055 Waiter/Busboy; McDonnell's Restaurant, Burger King, Barista.

Also you can just drop some of the less important, briefest jobs.
But don't drop a job, even when it lasted a short time, if that was where you acquired important skills or experience.

What's the best way to impress an employer?
Fill your resume with "PAR" statements. PAR stands for Problem-Action-Results; in other words, first you state the problem that existed in your workplace, then you describe what you did about it, and finally you point out the beneficial results.

Here's an example: "Transformed a disorganized, inefficient warehouse into a smooth-running operation by totally redesigning the layout; this saved the company thousands of dollars in recovered stock."

Another example: "Improved an engineering company's obsolete filing system by developing a simple but sophisticated functional-coding system. This saved time and money by recovering valuable, previously lost, project records.

What if your job title doesn't reflect your actual level of responsibility?
When you list it on the resume, either replace it with a more appropriate job title (say "Office Manager" instead of "Administrative Assistant" if that's more realistic) OR use their job title AND your fairer one together, i.e. "Administrative Assistant (Office Manager)"

How can you avoid age discrimination?
If you're over 40 or 50 or 60, remember that you don't have to present your entire work history! You can simply label THAT part of your resume "Recent Work History" or "Relevant Work History" and then describe only the last 10 or 15 years of your experience. Below your 10-15 year work history, you could add a paragraph headed "Prior relevant experience" and simply refer to any additional important (but ancient) jobs without mentioning dates.

What if you never had any "real" paid jobs -- just self-employment or odd jobs? Give yourself credit, and create an accurate, fair job-title for yourself. For example:

• A&S Hauling & Cleaning (Self-employed) -- or
• Household Repairman, Self-employed -- or
• Child-Care, Self-employed

Be sure to add "Customer references available on request" and then be prepared to provide some very good references of people you worked for.
How far back should you go in your Work History?
Far enough; and not too far! About 10 or 15 years is usually enough - unless your "juiciest" work experience is from farther back.

How can a student list summer jobs?
Students can make their resume look neater by listing seasonal jobs very simply, such as "Spring 1996" or "Summer 1996" rather than 6/96 to 9/96. (The word "Spring" can be in very tiny letters, say 8-point in size.)

What if you don't quite have your degree or credentials yet?
You can say something like:

• Eligible for Indian credentials -- or
• Graduate studies in Instructional Design, in progress -- or
• Master's Degree anticipated December 1997

What if you worked for only one employer for 20 or 30 years?
Then list separately each different position you held there, so your job progression within the company is more obvious.

What about listing hobbies and interests?
Don't include hobbies on a resume unless the activity is somehow relevant to your job objective, or clearly reveals a characteristic that supports your job objective. For example, a hobby of Sky Diving (adventure, courage) might seem relevant to some job objectives (Security Guard?) but not to others.

What about revealing race or religion?
Don't include ethnic or religious affiliations (inviting pre-interview discrimination) UNLESS you can see that including them will support your job objective. Get an opinion from a respected friend or colleague about when to reveal, and when to conceal, your affiliations.

What if you got your degree from a different country?
You can say "Degree equivalent to Indian Bachelor's Degree in Economics-Tehran, Iran."

What about fancy-schmaltzy paper? Employers HATE parchment paper and pretentious brochure-folded resume "presentations." They think they're phony, and toss them right out. Use plain white or ivory, in a quality appropriate for your job objective. Never use colored paper unless there's a very good reason for it (like, you're an artist) because if it gets photo-copied the results will be murky.

Thank You All

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