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Successful Resume Strategies

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What is a resume?A personal summary of your professionalhistory and qualifications.

Career GoalsEducationWork ExperienceActivities and Honors Special Skills

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Purpose of a Resume To get you selected for an interview

Employers get their first impression of your professional standards and talents from the resume.

What information would you most like to see on a resume if you were on a hiring committee?

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Preliminary Research

Find outGeneral job

informationDesired

qualifications

and skillsKey values and

words

Check withOne-stop

Career Centers InternetTrade journals,

magazines, and

newslettersDirectoriesCompany

literature

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Identifying Information Put your name,

address, phone number, and email address prominently at the top of your resume.

Avoid using a nickname to identify yourself.

Consider including your URL address or fax number if you have one.

Use this heading on resume, cover letter, and reference page.

KIMBERLY ANN HURST 1305 Palmer Drive, #1276

West Point, NE 68888

(402) 555 – 1706

khurst@server.com

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Objective An “at a glance” picture of you and

your career objective

A good objective statement answers the following questions:

What position are you applying for?

What are your main qualifications for this position?

How will these benefit the employer?

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Examples of ObjectivesFor practice, complete the Focusing Your

Resume and Cover Letter worksheet:

To utilize my [top two or three qualifications, strengths, skills] as a [position title] at [company name]

Seeking a [position title] at [company name] using my [top two or three skills, strengths, qualifications]

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Work Experience

What goes in this section?Company or organizationLocation (City, State)Position titleDates of employment/involvementDescriptions of skills, knowledge or

accomplishments

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ExampleCabinetmaker May 2002 – June 2005Woodshop USA Anywhere, NE• Set up and operated machines, including power

saws, jointers, mortisers, tenoners, molders, and shapers, to cut and shape woodstock

• Built 15 furniture pieces, Queen Anne to Contemporary

• Designed, built and installed custom cabinets• Delivered outstanding customer service• Employee of the Month: August 2003, January

2005

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Getting Started

Using the Work Experience worksheet list the provide the

following information starting with your most recent position.

PositionCompanyDates

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Describing Experiences Use Action Verbs which are more

descriptive and powerful.

Using the Action verb/Skills lists, go through and place a checkmarks next to all those words that apply to you.

Now go back through and place a checkmarks next to words you think employers in your field would want see.

Words with 2 checkmark should definitely be included on your resume!

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Developing your descriptions 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?

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www.onetcodeconnector.org

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Guidelines Keep statements brief (under 12

words).

Provide examples, quantify when possible.

Avoid unnecessary repetition of action verbs.

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Developing your descriptions

SampleBefore:

• Planned activities

Questions asked: What kinds?, How?, When?, For Whom?

After:• Planned arts, crafts, activities, and

exercises weekly for physically-challenged children

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Making your descriptions match

Column A• Recording OSHA

regulated documents

• Material purchasing and expediting

• Prepared weekly field payroll

• Responsible for charge orders

Column B• Recorded OSHA

regulated documents

• Conducted material purchasing and expediting

• Prepared weekly payroll

• Processed charge orders

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Selling Your Skills

Understated• Answered phone• Wiped tables

Professional• Acted as liaison between clients and

legal staff• Created healthy environment for

customers and maintained positive public image

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Education and Training Section

Shows that you are capable of learning Includes:

Apprenticeship trainingOn-the-job trainingSpecial workshops and

seminarsVocational schoolsColleges

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Example

A College in Nebraska Anywhere, NE

Associates in Applied Science Degree: Office Skills Technology (May 2005)

• Project Management

• Business Presentations

• Document Processing

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Skills and Abilities

Include skills that make you unique, such as computer skills, foreign language skills

Be specific in describing your special skills; name computer programs you know, how long you studied a foreign language

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General Resume Guidelines Limit your resume to one page.

Keep a one-inch margin on all four sides.

Do not write in paragraphs, use bullets.

Use fonts between 10 point and12 point, and avoid fancy fonts.

Use 8 1/2” x 11” resume paper in a light color (white, ivory, tan, gray).

Print on laser or high quality ink-jet printer.

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Resume Writing Tips Use simple, everyday language.

Give examples.

Be positive and enthusiastic.

Be honest, don’t exaggerate.

Don’t mention salary or wages.

Don’t list personal references.

Double space between sections, and single space within sections.

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Electronic Resumes Email attachment, entered online, or

scanned

Use a “plain text” formatEliminate all text formatting Left justify all text

Important to use key words

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References

Mary DelinskyPosition titleXYZ Company123 Millard AvenueOmaha, NE 67907(402) 494 – 3723

Include the names, addresses, and phone numbers of your references.

Always ask permission before you include any information on your reference sheet.

Give your references a copy of your resume so they will be prepared to talk to employers.

This is a separate page.

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What Is a Cover Letter?

A cover letter expresses your interest in and qualifications for a position to a prospective employer.

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What Should My Cover Letter Accomplish?

Your cover letter should introduce the main points of your resume.

It should also help you to “sell” your qualifications to the prospective employer.

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Inside AddressDate

Emma MarkleyHuman Resources DirectorSt. Luke's Medical Center729 South PaulinaSomewhere, NE 68612

Dear Ms. Markley:

Address your letter to a specific person who is hiring.

If unknown, send to a specific position, such as Director of Human Resources.

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Introductory Paragraph

Your first paragraph should:Get the reader’s attention, stimulate

interest, and be appropriate for the job you are seeking.

Make your goal clear to readers.

Preview the rest of your letter. Highlight the qualifications you will discuss throughout the letter.

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Example My knowledge of public relations

and proven communication and leadership skills make me a strong candidate for the position of Media Relations Coordinator that was posted on http://nejoblink.dol.state.ne.us/.

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Goals of the Body Paragraphs

Highlight your strongest qualifications for the position for which you are applying.

Demonstrate how these qualifications will benefit the employer.

Refer employers to your enclosed resume.

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Detailing Your Experience Show (don’t tell) employers your

qualifications.

Include specific, credible examples of your qualifications for the position.

Use numbers, names of equipment you've used, or features of a project that may apply to the job you want.

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Example

As a banking representative at Bank One, I provided quality customer service while promoting the sale of products to customers. I also handled upwards of $20,000 a day and was responsible for balancing the bank’s ATM machine.

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Using Active Language—Don’ts

Don’t be vague in your descriptions.

Don’t use weak verbs such as endeavored, tried, hoped, and attempted.

Don’t use sexist language such as chairman and manpower.

Vague: I worked as a ramp agent at AirOne.

Weak: I attempted to attract customers.

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Using Active Language—Do’s Use concrete words to

describe your experience.

Use present tense to discuss current activities and past tense for previous job duties or accomplishments.

Be as specific as possible in descriptions; list dollar amounts and figures when you can.

Vague: I worked as a ramp agent for AirOne.

 Specific: As a ramp agent, I assisted in loading baggage, oversaw fueling the aircraft, and stocked commissary items on the aircraft.

Weak: I attempted to attract customers.

Strong: I initiated a program to attract customers to Pizza Hut, which resulted in a 5% increase in sales for the month of June.

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Concluding Your LetterI would welcome theopportunity to discuss these and other qualifications with you. If you are interested, please contact me at (317) 555 - 0118 any morning before 11:00 a.m., or feel free to leave a message.

Conclude by asking for a personal interview.

Be flexible regarding a date and time for the interview.

Be specific about how the interviewer should contact you.

Include a thank you.

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Organizing Your Letter In general, cover letters should be no

longer than one typed page. Organize your body paragraphs to

emphasize your strongest and most relevant qualifications. Only include the two or three strongest qualifications from your resume.

Make it easy for readers to scan your letter by beginning each paragraph with a topic sentence.

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Mailing Your Letter With Your Resume Coordinate the

design of your letter with the design of your resume.

Be sure to send both to prospective employers; they both reveal different kinds of information about you.

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Key Points to Remember Appeal to company

values, attitudes, goals, projects, etc.

Elaborate on the information in your resume.

Provide evidence of your qualifications.

Proofread carefully for grammatical and typographical errors. The cover letter and resume should be error-free.

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QUESTIONS

For further assistance contact:

NE Workforce Development or your local college/university