RESUME & COVER LETTER GUIDE

Use a resume to:

 

• Respond to an advertised job vacancy
• Send to employers that interest you after you have researched the organization
• Accompany graduate school or other important application forms
• Present at an interview to a potential employer
• Submit to employers before on-campus interviews
• Accompany a request to a past or current employer or professor to write a letter of recommendation
• Reinforce a personal contact you have already established with a employer

 

How to develop a resume:

 

1.       Analyze the job description for skills and abilities – Read through job descriptions for the skills and abilities that employers are seeking.  Read through the descriptions and highlight the required skills, attributes and qualifications.  Use these words in your resume.

2.       Create a list of accomplishments – Take some time to think about your accomplishments: things you did well, enjoyed doing and were proud of.  Include education/training, volunteer opportunities, jobs, projects, school assignments, travel and group/team activities.  Describe in detail what you did, who you did it with, what equipment you used and what happened.  Quantify your results, if possible, and use commonly understood terminology. 

3.       Analyze experiences for relevant skills areas

4.       Write descriptive phrases – Using action verbs, write short phrases to describe what you did that illustrates each skill.  Be concise and specific.  Arrange the descriptive phrases in order of relevance to the position for which you are applying.

5.       Choose the appropriate format - There are several resume formats that suit individuals with different backgrounds with varying experiences.  Choose the one that is best for you:

 

Chronological:

This type of resume lists your experience in reverse chronological order, starting with the most recent.  You may arrange your headings in various ways, depending upon what aspects of your background that you wish to stress.  This format works best when your work, volunteer, and academic experiences relate directly to the type of job for which you are applying.  It is preferred by most business employers.

 

Skills/Functional:

This resume highlights your most important skills or functions.  Headings are built around these areas.  Job titles, employers and dates of employment are listed in a brief section at the bottom of the page.  This format allows you to highlight skills, knowledge and relevant abilities to the position regardless of where and when you obtained them.  It works well when your work experience is not directly related to your career goal, you are entering a job market for the first time, or you are making a career change.

 

Hybrid:

This resume combines both the chronological and skills resumes.  It allows you to maintain the popular chronological resume while including a summary of your skills.  It can be organized in a number of ways, but most hybrids start with a skills summary followed by a list of experiences with descriptions in reverse chronological order.

 

RESUME DO'S & DON'TS

 

Do:

 

• Use good quality paper (at least 20 lb. bond) paper
• Use a readable font and print on laser printer
• Be specific in your objective, if you use one
• Emphasize results produced, significant achievements, recognition from others
• Quantify when possible and use specific examples
• Check the spelling of every word; make sure grammar and punctuation are correct
• Have someone else proofread your resume
• Get feedback from several people
• Begin phrases with action verbs such as "developed," "originated," "led," etc.
• Be truthful about your accomplishments
• Keep your resume to one page unless you have extensive experience related to your job objective

 

Don't:

 

• Use resume templates (i.e. Resume Wizard).  It is difficult to adjust sections and your resume looks like all other candidates who used the same template

• Begin phrases with "I" or use complete sentences
• Include personal information such as marital status, social security number, age or national origin
• Use flashy graphics or colored paper
• Mention controversial activities or associations
• List unrelated, detailed duties such as "opened mail" or "filed documents"
• Exaggerate your experience
• Use meaningless words or phrases such as "seeking a challenging position" or "seeking a position working with people"
• Start phrases in the experience section with "my responsibilities (or duties) included"
• Use abbreviations

 

 

 

REFERENCES

 

Because it is assumed that a candidate will furnish references upon request, it is unnecessary to put "references available upon request" at the bottom of your resume.   However, when an employer does request references, include them on a separate piece of paper with current contact information (names, titles, addresses, phone numbers and e-mail) of 3 to 5 persons who have agreed to provide recommendations for you.   

 

Some suggestions relating to selecting and working with your references:

 

·         Always ask the person's permission to use him or her as a reference.  Do not assume that the person will be willing to recommend you.  This courtesy is appreciated and may avoid later embarrassment -- or a negative reference.  "Would you be comfortable giving me a strong recommendation?" opens the subject.  Be prepared to hear a "no" or to deal with some reservations.

 

·         Give the person providing the recommendation a copy of your current resume.  In many cases, he/she will know you in only one context (in the classroom, as an advisor, as a supervisor in a work situation).  The reference may be stronger if the person has fuller knowledge of your other accomplishments.

 

·         Discuss with the person the type of position you will be seeking or share descriptions of specific positions for which you are being considered.  If there are particular skills or information you hope he or she will include in the reference, mention these.

 

SENDING RESUMES & COVER LETTERS ELECTRONICALLY

 

To send your resume as an attachment:

 

• Create your resume using a common word processing program

 

• Give the document a name the recruiter will associate with you (i.e. MillerJennifer.doc)

 

• Be absolutely sure your document is free of viruses.  Send it electronically to a friend to make sure it is easy to open, the formatting stays correct, and the document is virus-free.

 

To send your resume in the text of the e-mail message:

 

• The cover letter should appear first, above your resume

 

• Do not use bold, underlining, bullets, distinctive fonts, colored text, or html codes.  Use asterisks (*), plus signs (+), dashes (-), ALL CAPITAL LETTERS, and combinations of these to highlight text.

 

• Align all text to the left margin

 

• Using your word processing software, select "File-Save As" and change the "file type" to "text only."  Name the resume version something such as "resume text version."

 

• Re-open your text version and view the differences.  The text version is now ready to e-mail or paste into a web-based form.

 

• Send it electronically to yourself and to a friend with a different e-mail system to see how it will look

 

• Text resumes look plain and ordinary, but employers are used to this

 

To make your resume scannable:

 

Some large employers utilize resume database tracking systems.  They scan incoming resumes into a database (sometimes letters, too) and when they have openings, they can retrieve resumes using relevant keywords.

 

• It's okay to ask the employer if you should provide a scannable resume.  Some companies will indicate on their website if they scan resumes

 

• Include industry or job-specific keywords, especially relevant skills, understandable abbreviations, major, specific fields of study, and experience

 

• Use 10 to 14-point font size

 

• Do not use italics, underlining, fancy fonts, bullets, and multiple columns. 

 

• Use spacing or ALL CAPITALS for emphasis

 

• Do not center text