Effective Resume Writing
Effective Resume Writing
Your CV is an essential part of your job search, it is your opportunity to make a good impression with the employers. That is why the information in your CV should be relevant, easy to read and attractive.
content
Your resume must give the reader a general overview of your background. Do not overload your CV with careless details. Some key areas are: identification of data, education, work experience, and student / community activities.
Identification data: Your name, address and telephone number are mandatory. An e-mail address may also be included. Do not include information such as height, weight and race, as these are not suitable for the job. Information such as willingness to travel or the availability date can be added to an additional information category at the end of the resume.
Objective: Although there are differing views on whether to include a career goal or not, readers can use this information to quickly find out about your career interests. Objective guidelines: too specific can be limiting, too broad is meaningless. When specifying a goal, you may want to write 2-3 versions of your resume, each with a different goal. When you choose a destination, it should not be more than two lines. You can also omit the target and include it in the cover letter.
Example goals:
“I am looking for a starting position as an accountant in an accounting firm.”
“To gain a position as a financial and investment analyst with a large investment bank or a large company.”
Training: This information should be displayed in reverse chronological order, with your last training displayed first. Indicate the institution, the title of the degree, the major subjects and the honors awarded. Include your GPA only if it is clearly an asset. If you have any questions about including your GPA in your resume, please contact a Career Services representative. Publications, professional licenses or special training may appear in this section. Information about high school should generally not be included. Finally, you can also indicate to which extent you have financed your own education (eg 80%).
Work experience: Usually listed in reverse chronological order (in the past), the information includes the name of the organization, the location, the location, the date of employment and a description of your benefits. Focus on areas that relate to the position you are looking for and demonstrate your ability to take responsibility, to assert yourself and to work hard. IF you have had many part time jobs, highlight the related experiences. Military experience can be included in this section or in a separate category.
Student Organization / Community Activities: Here you have the opportunity to demonstrate your commitment to your major and leadership positions outside of the classroom. This can include social organizations such as sisterhoods, student clubs and volunteer work. Additional categories may be included to highlight certain achievements, e.g. Eg “honors” or “activities”.
References: Do not include references in your resume. In your resume, state that your references are “Available on Demand”. Create a separate list of subject references (3-5), including the name, title, address, and business phone number of each person who has agreed to be a reference to you. Remember to include your name at the top of the page. Take your reference list with you during the interview.
Targeted CVs
“If you’re targeting your resume, you might want to tailor your resume to a particular position, company, goal or profession, for example, you may be interested in both financial banking and accounting, but you may not want the same for both Use CV In this case, it can be helpful to tailor your resume so that you can tailor your resume to each industry to narrow the focus of your resume – by downloading your resume in Microsoft Word, you can create and save a variety of targeted resumes.
design
The look of your resume is crucial.
Margins: Keep margins evenly, ensuring a reasonable space between blanks and printed words.
Style: sentences do not have to be complete. Do not write in first person, upper and lower case (do not use “I”). Use 8.5 “x 11” Bond Resume paper with a conservative hue.
Length: Try not to exceed three pages, unless you have extensive and relevant experience.
format
There are two commonly used formats:
Chronological: Displays education, experience, extracurricular activities, abilities, and achievements in reverse chronological order in each category. Advantages of this style:
Employers feel comfortable with this style because it is widely used
It’s the easiest way to write
Achievements can be viewed as a direct result of work experience
Functional: Organizes skills and performance in functional groups that support your career goals. This should be stated. Advantages:
Draw your attention to your achievements
Enables greater flexibility in presenting skills acquired through low-paid jobs or personal experience
Useful if you have a short or scattered employment record or if you change careers
Choosing a format: If your skills and achievements match your main work experience, choose the chronological format. If you need to bring together certain skills and successes from a wealth of experiences to demonstrate your strengths, the functional format works best for you
No two CVs will look the same; The choice of format is personal. There are two basic questions to answer:
Do I communicate the skills that I have acquired to meet the needs of the employer?
Is the layout I chose the best way to showcase these skills?
language
Use a language that is as convincing and descriptive as possible. The use of action words helps to develop a concise and factual resume
Scannable resumes
Many employers today use computerized scanning systems to check resumes. It’s a good idea to send your resume to a company that sends you two versions: your usual CV and one marked “Scannable” above. If you are unsure or hesitant about sending two resumes, most companies’ recruitment or recruitment departments should be able to let you know if they use resume scanning programs. Here are some ideas to consider when designing your “searchable” resume:
Use only white plain paper in letter size.
Keep your resume on one page only
Laser printing continues scan best (no dot matrix printer)
Do not use underlining or italics because they will not scan well
Try to keep a 12-character font
Send your CV in a large envelope: Do not fold it, as words in the folds will not be scanned properly
Limit the use of bullets and avoid the use of graphics
Review systems often look for keywords or descriptors. Check your resume to make sure you’ve used the keywords that are relevant to your area of expertise
The electronic CV
An “electronic resume” can have different meanings, but generally refers to a resume that is sent electronically to an employer – either via the Internet or by e-mail. The homepages of some companies contain a form that you can fill in and submit online. This is a kind of electronic resume. Some sites that are dedicated to job search support also include these types of resume services. Many students also create personal homepages that contain a link to their resume. For more ideas on using technology in your resume, see the Electronic Resume Revolution by Joyce Lain Kennedy.
Organize the writing of CVs
Step 1 – Write a rough draft and set it aside for a day or two
Step 2 – Edit the design and request feedback from the Career Services staff
Step 3 – Make changes to the final draft
Step 4 – Have two people correct the spelling
Step 5 – Take a laser-printed copy on a printer to make copies. Obtain additional paper and envelopes for cover letters