As you prepare for your job search, you will need specific tools: a resume, a cover letter, and a professional LinkedIn profile. These items are designed to communicate relevant experience and skills to your target audience, employers.
A resume is a marketing tool. It paints a picture of your skills, abilities, and experiences, and it showcases your qualifications to employers.
Because recruiters and hiring managers screen candidates by looking at their resumes, your resume must be up-to-date, error-free, complete, and targeted to the position you are seeking.
Employers will spend, on average, only 10 seconds reviewing your resume. The most important information on your resume must be clearly placed so that recruiters can find it quickly and easily.
RESUME SAMPLE
Format
Guidelines for one-page resumes:
- Individuals with less than 10 years of experience
- Good for networking
- Can be used for all professions
Guidelines for two-page resumes:
- Individuals with over 10 years of experience
- Consultants or those who do project work
- Critical content belongs on the first page
- White space matters — don’t crowd your information
- This format is often the standard in business
Curriculum Vitae or CV guidelines:
- For academic or research positions
- Uses/roles include professor, higher education administrator, researcher
- Typically two or more pages in length
Section Headings
Required Section Headings:
- Education – Top (recent grad) or bottom placement; includes degrees, majors, training/certifications
- Experience – Title options include Professional Experience or Work Experience; may sub-categorize based on the role being sought (e.g., Marketing Experience)
Optional Section Headings (based upon role and positioning):
- Professional Summary
- Skills Summary
- Publications and Presentations
- Awards, Honors, and Distinctions
- Volunteering and Community Involvement
- Professional Affiliations
Content
- Use concise bullets beginning with action-oriented verbs
- Ensure that verbs are past tense unless you are currently in the role
- Avoid personal pronouns like “I,” “my,” or “we”
- Use a readable font like Times New Roman, Garamond, Helvetica, or Arial
- Do not use a font size smaller than 10 point
- Use technical language but only if relevant in your field
- Avoid acronyms and jargon
Tailoring
- Review the role description carefully, noting the tasks expected and skills needed
- Customize your skills and experience to fit each role that you’re targeting
- Research role-specific keywords and skills and, if appropriate, incorporate into your resume
- Include target industry, function, or company terminology
Details
- Ask another person to review your resume to catch errors
- Spell check online and in hard copy (Spell check can’t distinguish “its” from “it’s”)
- Align all bullets and margins
- Follow the same format for all dates
- Use the same font, typeface, bold and italics throughout
- Proofread one more time to create an error-free resume
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