OLMIS

Published Nov-27-2007

Develop a Resume Tips for an Effective and Attractive Resume Functional or Skills Resume Chronological Resume Recent Graduate's Resume Professional Resume Electronic Resume Youth Resume Action Verbs Write a Cover Letter for Your Resume

Resumes are used to obtain an interview. They are not meant to serve the same purpose as a job application. Resumes should be designed to sell you, your skills, and your knowledge to an employer. The style and information will vary depending on you and your particular situation. When you apply for different jobs, design a resume targeted to each position and employer. Spend most of your time writing and highlighting your skills rather than worrying about what color of paper to use.

Name, Address, and Telephone Number

You can use this information to create your own letterhead. Choose a style of font that fits you. Use letterhead on your resume, cover letter, or thank-you notes. Your application packet will look very professional and employers will connect your material with you.

Employment Objective

This is a brief statement about the position for which you hope to interview. This statement should include only one objective or goal. You can also include two or three skills you wish to highlight within the resume.

Qualifications and Accomplishments

List your qualifications and accomplishments, such as sales records, patents, contracts, works published, money saved for companies, or improvements made.

Work Experience

Include the names and locations of employers, beginning with your present or most recent job. If dates are listed, use only the beginning and ending month and year. Provide your job title and a brief description of your duties and accomplishments.

Volunteer Work

If you have done volunteer work that shows you have skills or abilities related to the job you are seeking, it is generally helpful to include it.

Educational Background

List the schools you have attended, beginning with your present or most recent school. List diplomas you have earned at each school. If you did not graduate, state how many years you attended.

If you are a recent graduate, briefly describe activities, accomplishments, awards, honors, and athletics. These indicate a well-rounded person, demonstrate social awareness, and are related to your employment objective. If you have been out of school for a while, give less educational detail, but present your education clearly and concisely. Finally, list recent courses, training, or workshops that are relevant to your employment objective.

Military Service

Include this section if you have had recent military service experience. List any skills applicable to the position for which you are applying. When writing about your experience, change military vocabulary into your future occupation's vocabulary.

Additional Information

Include facts relevant to your employment objective. List awards, honors, and scholarships; professional memberships; athletic or civic activities; foreign languages you speak or write; skills such as typing, or computers and software you can use; equipment you operate; current occupational licenses or certificates; and hobbies or interests related to the job.

References

It isn't necessary to include a detailed list of references on your resume. Instead, create a separate document (and don't forget to bring it to the interview). When writing your reference list, select three people who have known you for at least one year. The best references are employers who know your skills and interests or customers who have received your service. Ask each reference if they would be willing to give you a good reference. People who are unprepared are sometimes not able to give as good a reference as possible.

Source: Excerpted from Oregon Career Information System, © 2007, University of Oregon, all rights reserved.

A resume is a brief snapshot of your skills and experiences. The person who reviews your resume often has to review from tens to hundreds of resumes. Because of this, you need to make your resume both effective and attractive. This is part of the first impression you will make with any company.

Most employers agree the resume should:

• Give a single goal or objective, aimed at one job or employer. If you have many job objectives, you should write a new resume for each type of job.
  
  
• List your education, work history, and skills using the order that best fits your goals and the job in question.
  
  
• Be skills specific. Don't list vague qualities such as "good work ethic," but describe actual achievements such as "reduced company deficit by 50 percent."
  
  
• Have white space showing. If the information is too densely written, readers may miss your key points.

Most employers agree the resume should NOT:

• Have the word "resume" at the top of the page.
  
• Be more than one or two pages in length.

Be Brief

One page of well-organized information will say more good things about you than two or three pages of unnecessary details. It is critical to have your resume highlight the areas of your experience and training that match the job requirements.

Keep sentences short and to-the-point. Emphasize skills and qualifications. Eliminate unnecessary information and make sure statements are easily understood.

Things to Avoid

Do not use the pronoun "I". For example, instead of writing, "I processed books and billing monthly", simply write, "Processed books and billing monthly." Avoid statements like, "duties include" or "responsible for." Identify what you did using action verbs and a quantifiable description whenever possible.

Replace action verbs with nouns critical to the job if the employer electronically scans resumes. Companies that scan tend to be large, technically oriented companies that receive a large number of resumes. Computers screen resumes using key words critical to a particular job.

Avoid use of personal information such as age, height, weight, pictures, marital status, religion, citizenship, or any hobbies or activities not directly related to the job. These have no bearing on your ability to do the work. You may want to provide selected personal
information if you know it will be to your advantage, such as strength or endurance for some labor-intensive jobs. You will need to consider carefully the types of information that will give you an edge.

Dates

Employers check the dates on your resume looking for gaps in employment. Be prepared to explain any breaks in employment. Employers also routinely verify stated dates of employment with your former employers. You may want to consider carefully whether or not to use dates on your resume. By giving dates you could reveal your age; age has no bearing on abilities.

Make it Attractive

Give your resume eye-appeal. Use adequate margins, double-space after each section, be sure the type is clean and dark, and strive for an uncluttered appearance. Use bolding, underlining, capital letters, boxes, bullets, and spacing to emphasize areas. Use these features sparingly; too much becomes a blur to the reader. Use an attractive font that is easy to read and is no smaller than 10-point type.

Proofread Your Resume

Proofread your resume carefully. Correct spelling and grammar are VERY important. Have the resume checked by more than one person before you send it out.

Source: Excerpted from Oregon Career Information System, © 2007, University of Oregon, all rights reserved.

A functional or skills resume highlights skills and potential, rather than work experience and education. It is very helpful when you are changing careers, you have good skills but past job titles are not related to your job goals, or there are gaps in your work experience.

Tips for This Resume

Choose two or three skill categories as section headers based on important skills in the occupation. These skill categories should be ones that you want to promote about yourself. Use two to four skill statements under each section header. Use short phrases, not complete sentences. Relate the skill statements directly to the employment objective. This requires some research or study about the occupation. Even if your experience does not seem relevant, it demonstrates skills to an employer. You could use the experience section to list both paid and unpaid experiences.

Place the section that is most related to the employment objective at the top of the list. Highlight your skills and potential by using action or skill words, such as "managed," "sold," "coordinated," "improved," or "planned." Provide measurable or quantifiable results when possible.

Place your education right after the employment objective if it was within the past five years and is related to your employment objective. If your education is not related to your employment objective, place it toward the end of your resume.

Source: Excerpted from Oregon Career Information System, © 2007, University of Oregon, all rights reserved.

A chronological resume highlights your work experience. It starts with your most recent position, then describes the next job until all the important jobs are listed. This style is the most common of all resumes. It is useful for people with work experience who have been laid off, or for those who are changing jobs. It is not recommended if you have major gaps in employment or have had many job changes.

Tips for this Resume

Include the most details about your most recent employment. Highlight demonstrated skills and accomplishments in the experience section, not just duties. Showing the reader your contribution to the organization is important.

Use concrete examples such as numbers, percentages, amounts, and descriptive statements. Use short phrases that include action verbs.

Place education information at the bottom or top of a chronological resume. When education is within the past five years, it usually should be at the top. In this sample resume, the work record is most like the employment objective, so it is before education.

You may want to underline or highlight your former employers and schools.

Source: Excerpted from Oregon Career Information System, © 2006, University of Oregon, All rights reserved.

People who have just graduated may not have a lot of work experience in their chosen field. Resumes for recent high school, General Education Development (GED), or college graduates can stress the skills gained from education, summer and part-time jobs, and interests. Relate your education, work experience, and interests to the type of work you desire. This can be a good way to present your qualifications.

Tips for This Resume

Both high school and college graduates can use this resume.

Place a summary of your skill set right after your employment objective. Next, list your education and related courses section. Use a format that shows how your skills and schooling fit your stated employment objective. Highlight both paid and unpaid relevant experiences.

List semester hours and grades when they are a 3.26 (out of 4.00) GPA or better. Employers may be impressed by your ability and drive. Describe outside activities if they relate to your employment objective, show a well-rounded personality, or demonstrate positive social abilities such as leadership or teamwork.

Mention scholarships, awards, or honors you received if they add or are relevant to your employment goals. If you are attending college, people realize that you have completed high school. Only include high school if it adds something new and relates to your goals.

Source: Excerpted from Oregon Career Information System, © 2007, University of Oregon, all rights reserved.

Resumes for professionals state education and experience supported by qualifications.There are no wrong resumes for the professional. Any style or combination of styles can beused for this resume.

Tips for Using a Professional Resume

• You would use this resume if you have completed your college degree in a professional field.

• Use the following tips to enhance your resume:

• Include details that make you stand out from others.

• Use action verbs such as planning, developing, or organizing, when describing your capabilities and accomplishments.

• Include any licenses or certificates that are required for the occupation.

• Mention any professional associations where you are a current or active member.

Professional Vita

Some positions require a vita. Much of what is said about resume development andwriting applies to a vita. A vita is longer than a resume. It includes detailed accountsof work experience, research, publications, and contributions.

A vita includes all of your professional activities, with detailed emphasis onactivities and accomplishments required for the job for which you are applying.

When planning a vita, organize your information into clusters of related topics. Theseclusters can include your objective, professional expertise, education, professionalexperience, community service, publications and presentations, and honors and awards.

(Courtesy Oregon Career Information System, 2002.)

A growing number of companies rely on electronic resumes. Before you apply to a company, ask the company if they use electronic databases or scanning techniques for selecting applicants. If they do, use electronic resume formatting. This special format ensures that your resume scans well. Once your resume is scanned, employers transfer the words into a searchable database. Employers might start by searching the database for names, addresses, phone numbers, education, job titles, and employers. Then they search for specialized data such as computer languages, countries, foreign languages, colleges, and employment dates.

Tips for This Resume

When formatting this type of resume it is critical to use nouns, such as software names or position titles, rather than verbs. Technical or industry jargon is good to use in this type of resume. Avoid using uncommon abbreviations. An example is shown above.

Place your name on one line and your address on a separate line. This allows the scanner to retrieve your name cleanly. It is important not to center your contact information, because centering does not transfer well over e-mail.

Use basic fonts such as Courier, Helvetica, or Arial. Use 10- to 14-point font size. Smaller type can confuse a scanner. Do not use boldface, shading, italics, underlining, or graphics. Columns and tabs do not work well in electronic resumes. Avoid parentheses, brackets, or bullets.

Use standard 8 1/2 x 11-inch light-colored paper. Clear copies scan best. Send only originals, not copies or faxes. Print on one side of the paper. Limit page length to 1-2 pages. Do not fold or staple. Words that fall into a crease cannot be easily scanned.

Source: Excerpted from Oregon Career Information System, © 2007, University of Oregon, all rights reserved.

Resumes for youth can highlight education and interests. They can emphasize summer, volunteer, and part-time jobs. Relating your experiences and interests to the type of work you want is an effective way to describe your qualifications. This resume is useful for people with little or no work experience.

Tips for This Resume

Middle and high school students can successfully use this resume.

Present your information in a way that best shows your skills for the job objective. For the section on formal or informal evaluations, you can use report cards, teacher conference reports, part-time jobs, and other evaluations.

List grades when your average is 3.26 or better. Your ability and drive may impress employers. Activities outside class and school are important when they relate to the job objective, show a well-rounded personality, or show positive social abilities. Mention awards or honors you have received.

Source: Excerpted from Oregon Career Information System, © 2007, University of Oregon, all rights reserved.

Here is a sample of action verbs that will be useful to you. Go through the list and see which ones you can use to make your resume more active and action oriented.

accelerate	establish	originate
achieve	estimate	perceive
adapt	evaluate	perfect
administer	examine	perform
advance	execute	persuade
analyze	exhibit	pioneer
apply	expand	procure
approve	facilitate	propose
arrange	finance	prove
assemble	forecast	publish
assist	form	reconcile
attain	govern	reduce
buy	guide	regulate
budget	handle	reinforce
build	implement	reorganize
command	improve	report
complete	influence	research
compose	inspect	reshape
conceive	install	resolve
conduct	institute	revamp
contract	instruct	review
control	integrate	revise
convert	introduce	save
coordinate	invent	secure
create	investigate	serve
decide	lead	simplify
design	license	sell
develop	locate	sort
direct	maintain	stimulate
discover	manage	strengthen
display	manufacture	structure
double	market	succeed
edit	maximize	support
eliminate	motivate	systematize
employ	negotiate	tutor
enact	obtain	verify
enlarge	operate	write

Information adapted from Oregon CIS (© 1999 University of Oregon for Oregon CIS) with permission. No further reproduction is authorized.

Always write a cover letter when sending your resume to a prospective employer. While resumes summarize your qualifications, cover letters should sell you to employers. You want the letter to convince the employer to take action on your resume and invite you for an interview. Be specific about your qualifications, and list a few results that occurred because of your skills.

The cover letter should be brief and to the point. Don't use jargon or be too technical. Tell the employer why you are interested in the job, what qualifies you for the job, and request an interview.

How to Address the Letter

Address your letter to a specific person by name. If you do not know the name of the hiring official reviewing your resume, call the employer to
find out. Explain that you would
like to send a letter to the person in charge of reviewing applications.

Content and Format

The introduction (first paragraph) is your reason for writing. The middle (second paragraph) covers your main qualifications and accomplishments, and the reasons you are interested in the job. The ending (last paragraph) is a request for an interview. Try to move away from focusing on yourself and move toward focusing on the company that you are applying to.

Give your letter a businesslike appearance. Print or type it on the same high-quality bond paper as your resume. Make sure that your envelope is typed, not handwritten, matching the professional look of your resume.

Pay close attention to grammar and spelling. Spell checks don't always know how you want to spell a word. Have a friend or two proof each cover letter.

How to Use the Cover Letter

Many job seekers mail their resumes to prospective employers, even when no openings have been announced. Your letter should emphasize your skills, why you want to work for the organization, and how you will contribute to the organization. Make sure that you enclose all the materials, such as your resume and writing samples, to which you refer in your letter.

The most important point to remember about your cover letter is that you should write an original one for each position for which you apply. Do not try to write a form letter that could be used for many different employers.

Source: Excerpted from Oregon Career Information System, © 2007, University of Oregon, all rights reserved.