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Your resume is a summary of your experience, qualifications, and skills. Beyond
providing information about your background and qualifications, the resume and
application letter are sales devices. It is also a supporting documentation for
your application letter. Your application letter is used to emphasize specific
parts of your resume and explains how your background is suited to a particular
job. In today's competitive job market, your application letter and resume must
stand out.
Evaluating Your Skills, Aptitudes, and Preferences
Having a degree alone does not guarantee your chances of success. Through
careful preparation and before writing your résumé and application letter, you
can improve your chances of finding the job you want.
Before beginning your job search, analyze your skills, aptitudes, and
preferences by answering these questions:
· What skills have you mastered in school, on the job, through hobbies or other
interests?
· Are you a leader? What proof can you offer? Do you work well in groups (are
you a team player)?
· Do you communicate well and what languages are you fluent in?
· What are you looking for--security, money, travel, power, prestige?
· What are your reasons for leaving and have you discussed this with your
present employer?
Answering these questions will help you focus on the right company and
environment, as well as assist when writing your resume application letter.
Resume Length
Although there are not any set rules regarding the length of one's resume, try
to be as succinct as possible. The average employer spends under a minute
initially scanning a resume, so make sure that it is attractive, easy to read,
and errorless. It is better to have your resume well organized and detailed,
than trying to limit the length.
Preparing the Resume
Begin work well before you begin your job search. You will need
time to compose, revise, and cultivate it until it represents your best effort.
Organize your resume into the following classes of information:
Name and Address
Career Objective (optional)
Summary of Qualifications
Technical Summary
Education
Professional Experience
Training, Awards, Special Skills
Name And Address
Under the first heading list your full name, your current address, E-Mail
address and telephone number with area code (many interview invitations and job
offers are made by phone and E-mail). Be sure to indicate the best time to be
reached.
Career Objective
You should have a fairly good indication of the specific jobs for which you
realistically qualify. Resist the impulse to be all things to all people. The
key to a successful resume is the image of you it projects--disciplined and
purposeful, yet flexible. State both your immediate and long-range goals,
including any plans you may have for continuing your education. Your statement
of career objectives should show you have a clear sense of purpose and have
given serious thought to your future. If you are applying for a position that
requires relocation, state whether you are willing to relocate and how soon you
are available to work. Take time to express your strengths and what you can
bring to the table. Also, note when you will be available for employment.
Educational Background
List the school, date completed degree or attended, degree or certification and
location of school. Note your GPA if you do not have work experience and if it
is 3.0 or above. Any certifications that you have are important to note, as
well as advanced training.
Technical Summary
This is an optional area that can be added into your resume. It is a list of
all the equipment that you have worked with and how much experience you have in
your skills sets. This makes it easy for an employer to see the breadth of your
experience.
Professional Experience
People with technical skills should be as detailed as possible on their work
experience. Using a bullet format can make it easier to write, since you do not
have to worry about making all your sentences flow together. Make sure to
describe in detail the environment, what your role was/responsibilities, and
what you accomplished. A resume is a way to show how you communicate
effectively and a chance to sell yourself. Therefore, take the time to clearly
and concisely document your accomplishments in your resume. Make sure that you
include promotions if you were at one place for a long time and changes that
occurred which added new skills to your background. Remember that the resume is
the business agenda for the interview.
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