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The Art of the Resume

Looking Good on Paper

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General Resume Guidelines

- Length: It is best to limit an entry-level resume to one typed page. Be as concise as possible in stating information in each section of your resume.

- Font: Avoid fonts smaller than 10 point and larger than 12 point.

- Paper: Use 8 1/2” x 11” 20 lb paper. Print your resume with a laser or high quality ink-jet printer.

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Using visual appeal for your resume…

- Use eye appealing fonts that are easy to read

- Simple list

- Columns

- List with bulleted descriptions

- Coordinate with other sections

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Sections

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Organization: Heading

Name, phone number, address and email address should be a the top of the resume
Name should stand out
Don’t abbreviate

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Q: Is this a good sample?

John Smith

1234 Streetname, #1

West Lafayette, IN 47907

765-555-5555

jsmith@msn.com

Activity: The facilitator may initiate discussion by posing the following questions:

Is this contact information section complete? Why or why not?
What can be improved?

Key Concepts: Although an email address may be included, this sample does provide essential content; it serves its main function—providing information. In an age of desktop publishing and word-processors, however, many resume readers will expect more with visual layout and design. This sample looks as though it were produced with an old-fashioned typewriter. A person whose resume seems to be written in the “typewriter age” may seem out of date or perhaps not familiar with current technologies. To make a good first impression, students should consider experimenting with the visual component of this and other resume sections.

Rationale: The purpose of this slide is to get student actively thinking about how to develop this section with work on visual layout design. The next slide provides an overview of basic ways to get beyond the “typewriter age” resume.

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Objective Statement�

Job Goal or Objective: a short sentence that serves as an “at a glance” statement of your career interests. Begins with “To…” Use action verbs.
Target: simply listing the title of the job you are interested in.

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First Approach: Brief

To obtain a summer internship in

sales/marketing at Owens Corning

A full-time position as a system analyst

A summer internship as a project engineer

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Second Approach: Descriptive

A summer internship in a sales/marketing position at Owens Corning where I can employ my team building skills and versatility to create new ideas

A full-time position as a systems analyst which will allow me to use my programming, technical writing, and supervisory skills to lead a group of dynamic employees

A summer internship as a project engineer with a construction company that will utilize my experience in field engineering, cost controlling, and estimating

Key Concept: A descriptive objective statement gives employers a glimpse of the student’s qualifications. This type of objective statement is sometimes very difficult to help a student develop. Tutors can ask students questions about what type of job they are looking for, or go on websites and pick key words off of the job or company description.

Goals of a descriptive objective statement:

1. Summarize student’s qualifications for a specific position

Attract the employer’s attention
Introduce the rest of the student’s resume

4. Explain how you will help the organization rather than focusing on how the organization can help you

The descriptive objective statement is a little like the thesis statement of a paper, it defines the purpose of the rest of the document.

Should include briefly:

Length of position

Job Title

Field or industry

Relevant skills and qualifications

This type of objective statement is harder to read, but pinpoints specific skills and gives more detail.

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What is an experience section?

 A section that emphasizes your past and present employment and/or your participation in relevant activities

 Other common names: Professional Experience, Work History, Field Work, Volunteer Work, etc.

 Special names: Technical Experience, Supervisory Experience, Aviation Experience, etc.

Rationale: The experience section gives more students trouble than any other resume section because frankly it is the hardest to write. Why? Primarily because in addition to listing information about experiences, one has to describe them. Much of this workshop will be devoted to the special challenges of writing descriptions.

Activity: Invite discussion by asking the following:

Why would someone consider using a special name for the experience section?

Key Concept: Some students decide to use more descriptive names or headings to describe their experience section. There are two good reasons for doing so, if necessary: 1) section headings present information about you very quickly, and 2) section headings allow emphasis of certain kinds of experiences. If your experiences can be described with a more detailed heading, consider using one because readers will see your qualifications at a glance.

If you have many experiences, you might also consider grouping them into two different experience sections such as “Leadership Experience” or “Management Experience.”

Activity: Pose the following question before advancing the the next slide:

Why do employers care so much about the experience section?

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Work Experience

Include positions you have held which are related, in some way, to the job you are seeking

Can be both paid and volunteer positions

Be creative with this section of your resume by describing and emphasizing your experiences in the most relevant way possible.

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What goes into this section?

 Company or organization and location (city, state)

 Position title

 Dates of employment or involvement

 Descriptions of responsibilities, duties, achievements, etc.

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Getting started…

List your past and present experiences.

Include:

- jobs

- volunteer positions

- appointments

- assistantships

- internships

- etc.

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Describing experiences…

 Tailor the content of this section by relating it to your career goals and information asked for in job ads and descriptions

 Keep descriptions brief and use active verbs to highlight your duties/responsibilities

 Select content that supports your qualifications and matches job description

 Use professional wording, integrating job-specific terms

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Developing your descriptions

 Use varied action words to describe experiences

 Answer the journalistic questions:

- Who?…With whom did you work?

- What? …What duties did you perform?

- Where? …Where did your job fit into the organization?

- Why? …What goals were you trying to accomplish?

- When? …What timelines were you working under?

- How? …What procedures did you follow?

Activity: Provide students with the Writing Lab handout called the “Skills List,” located at the Purdue OWL (Online Writing Lab) at Ask students to skim through the list, putting a checkmark next to all those action words they feel apply to them. Then ask students to place another checkmark next to words they think employers in their field would want to see. Words with two checkmarks should definitely be worked into their resumes!

Key Concepts: In the English language, information is conveyed more efficiently through verbs than any other part of speech. If you choose the word “collaborated,” for example, in one of your descriptions, you not only help describe that particular experience but you also reveal that you have collaborating skills. Moreover, action words show you in action—as somebody who not only has abilities but also uses them.

Because verbs are so important on your resume, students should try to avoid unnecessary repetition and use the maximum variety.

Key Concept: One problem many students face in writing descriptions is excessive conciseness. Although it is good to be “clear and concise,” sometimes it is in a resume writer’s interest to use more rather than fewer words, especially if doing so helps her prove to resume readers she is more qualified than other applicants. Be as detailed and specific as possible given the space available. Easy to say, but hard to do?

Asking the journalistic questions (the questions reporters often ask when researching a news story) is a useful strategy for making descriptions more detailed. The next slide gives an example of how students might eliminate excessive white space in their experience section.

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Action Verb List

Job Finder Handbook

Page 21—Action Words

Action phrases will help you avoid being too brief and from understating your qualifications.
Example:

Before: Planned activities
After: Planned arts and crafts activities for preschool aged children

Key Concept: The facilitator should remind the tutors that if the students are having trouble thinking of words, there is an action verb list on OWL they can use to look up different verbs for the job descriptions.

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/543/02/

Key Concept: Using action phrases helps writers avoid being too brief and from understating their qualifications. Writers should try to look at their qualifications as a professional would and use concrete words to describe their experiences.

Example: Consider the example above. Is it more impressive to say “swept the floor and cleaned tables” or “created a positive and healthy atmosphere in the restaurant?”

Activity: The facilitator might relate several passively written or understated phrases and ask for ways to make the phrases stronger. Some examples of phrases that need to be rewritten are:

Before: Answered the phone and related messages

After: Took orders and verified their correctness with customers

Before: Planned activities

After: Planned arts and crafts activities for preschool aged children

Before: Made change

After: Handled large sums of money, balanced the cash drawer

Before: Talked to customers

After: Giving quality customer service while promoting the sale of products

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Education

Include High School information with pending graduation date.
GPA: Never include a grade point average (GPA) under 3.0
Can include special awards/scholarships

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Education: Example

Patterson High School, Patterson, CA, graduation pending June 2013.

------------------OR---------------------

Patterson High School

Patterson, California

Anticipated Graduation: June 2013

GPA: 3.8

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Other titles you may include:

Special Achievements
Awards and Scholarships
Classes/Internships
Computer Knowledge
Language Skills
Volunteer Work/Community Service
Committees/Organizations
Extracurricular Activities

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References Section

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What is a References section…

A list of people (not related to you) who can give you a recommendation and vouch for your character, experiences, etc.
Include name, title, employer, mailing address, phone number, and e-mail address (if available)

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References

Example:

John Smith

Microsoft Corporation

Software Designer

1111 Microsoft Ave.

San Jose, CA 95358

(206) 555-5555

Jsmith@microsoft.com

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Common Mistakes

Spelling: Proofread several times.
Capitalization: lowercase generic references to positions and academic courses. Specific titles may be capitalized.
Dates of Employment: in “2007-present,” “present is lowercase
Avoid “I’m, can’t, etc. ”