Resume

Creation Tips and Techniques

First, lets review what a resume isnt.

It isnt a log of your job history.
It isnt a summary of skills.
It isnt going to automatically get you a job.

Think of your resume this way: Its an advertisement, and YOU are the product. Your
goal is to get hiring managers to buy into what youre selling which means giving
you an interview. To accomplish that, you need to see it as your marketing tool, your
trusty belt buckle of tricks. Without it you are powerless. However, simply having a
one isnt enough to get you an interview.

Lets face it. Writing a resume is a daunting task. While the resources providing
writing tips are many, few actually provide a step-by-step process on how to write
one. However if you want to write it on your own, I commend your courage and I am
here to help guide you through the process.

Think about it everyone has advertisements. Why should anyone buy into yours?
Hiring managers have the difficult task of wading through the ads to find the right fit
for their company.

Much like the flashing neon signs along the Vegas Strip, hiring managers are
attracted to well-formatted resumes with attention-grabbing details. Studies show
that, 8 out of 10 resumes are discarded with only a 10 second glance. So in order
stand out from the crowd its important that yours markets your skills in a way that
demonstrates that you can successfully perform the duties of the job.

A guiding principle of the rsum writing profession is that there are no hard
and fast rules.

To help you do this, weve written easy-to-follow steps on how to write a resume.
Before we get into the steps it should be noted that there is no certified way to write
one. There are some who insist otherwise, but even certified professional resume
writers would admit that, a guiding principle of the rsum writing profession is
that there are no hard and fast rules.

With that being said, below are some tips and guidelines to help you write one that
best presents your career goals.

Step 1: Choose From 3 Formats
So you are staring at a blank page on your computer wondering, Where do I start?
Hundreds ask this same question every day and the reason is most likely due to the
fact that there is no standard rule for formatting a resume.

Your formatting decision comes down to 3 choices: Reverse-Chronological,

Functional, and Combination. Each format has its own advantages and
disadvantages. Below, you will find which one is best for you.

I. Reverse-Chronological
This is the more traditional format and is what you are most likely to come across.
Chronological format is flexible and can be used for applicants with any level of
experience.

I should use if:
I want to show a vertical career progression.
I want to apply to a job in a similar field.
I want to promote my upward career mobility

I shouldnt use if:
I have major gaps in my employment history.
I am changing my career path.
I change jobs every few months.

II. Functional
While chronological places emphasis on career progression, a functional format
focuses on your abilities and skills. Since it heavily emphasizes the applicants
qualifications, functional format is more suitable for those with an expert level of
experience.

I should use if:
I have gaps in my employment history.
I am changing my career industry.
I want to highlight a specific skill set.

I shouldnt use if:
I want to highlight my upward career mobility.
I am an entry-level candidate that lacks experience.
I lack transferable skills

III. Combination
As you can probably guess the combination format merges bits and pieces from both
chronological and functional formats. Like the functional format, it focuses on
specific qualifications, yet the body of the document contains professional
experience similar to chronological format. This format is generally reserved for
those with a great deal of experience in a particular industry.

I should use if:
I want to highlight a developed skill set within a specific career.
I want to change my career path.
I am a master of the subject I am applying to.

I shouldnt use if:
I want to highlight my education.
I lack experience.
I am an entry-level candidate.

Step 2: The Order of Information
Before delving into what information you should add, its important to remember
that the information you include will largely depend on the format you choose. With
that being said, below is a general guide to what information you should add and the
order in which you should add it.

I. Contact Information
The contact information section is pretty self-explanatory. This section does not
require a label (Contact Information or Contact Details). When listing your contact
details you should follow this order:

Name (largest font on page, middle initial is optional)
Mailing Address
Telephone Number (Check that you have an appropriate voicemail
message)
Email Address (make sure its appropriate, dont use your
[email protected] account.)
Link to online portfolio (optional, ensure it is relevant to the position)
LinkedIn Profile

II. Choose a Resume Introduction
Like formats, job seekers have 3 choices for their resume introduction: a
qualifications summary, career objective, and professional profile. The goals of all
three are to gain the attention of an employer by highlighting your skills and
experience that will help their company. However, the method through which each
introduction achieves this goal differs. See below:

Qualifications Summary
With regards to format, the qualifications summary is a bullet point list
(ranging from 4 to 6 points) of your most outstanding career achievements.
Avoid using generic statements and try to list your skills in a way reflects
your unique voice.

Career Objective
A resume objective, also referred to as a career objective, is a 2-3-sentence
statement that provides an overview of your skills and experience. This
resume introduction is best for entry-level candidates.
Professional Profile
The professional profile is a combination of both the career objective and
qualifications summary. It is also the most flexible of the three styles as it can
be formatted as short paragraph of bullet-point list.

III. Professional Experience
The section is the core of your resume, where you are tasked with proving the skills
you have listed in the qualifications summary or career objective. When it comes to
labeling this section some use Relevant Experience, or Work Experience as an
alternative to Professional Experience.

Remember to list your work experiences in reverse chronological order and only list
experience that is relevant to the job you are applying for. For each company create
a heading including the companys name, city & state, your title, and the dates of
employment (month and year). If you are still currently working at a company, you
can simply write month, year-Present for the employment dates.

IV. Education
Having a solid education section helps to display the foundation of your knowledge
and expertise. Depending on your professional experience, you may want to
consider switching the order of the professional experience and education sections.
For instance, college or high school students that lack seasoned professional
experience benefit from emphasizing their education by placing it before the
professional experience section. In addition, if you possess a wealth of professional
experience then it is appropriate to keep this section short and sweet.

Here are the main points to include in your education section:
The names of your university, community college, or technical school (Dont
include high school unless you did not attend college)
Location of the schools (city, state)
Date of graduation (month, year)
Degree(s)
GPA (only include if your GPA is above 3.0, round up to the first decimal place
and use this format: GPA: 3.5/4.0)

V. Additional Sections

By now youve already added the nuts and bolts to your resume. Below are a few
sections you may want to consider adding to help strengthen it.

The certifications section is the most important of the other sections you can
include, but adding a certifications or licenses section is largely dependent on your
industry. For example, the nursing field has strict licensing requirements while the
customer service sector does not.

If your industry requires certifications the hiring manager will be intent on finding
them in your application. Make sure to thoroughly research your industry to find
any relevant certifications or licenses you may have missed.

Publications
Adding a publications section is pertinent for graduate students who have published
articles that are relevant to the job they are applying to. List your articles in reverse
chronological order by publishing date. Choose the referencing style that is
appropriate to your discipline. It also acceptable to add works that has yet to be
published. You may label these as Works in Progress or Submitted for
Publication. Here is an example of how a publications section should be formatted.

Awards/Honors/Activities
This section adds another layer of customization to your resume by providing
evidence of your abilities. Adding relevant awards and activities helps you stand out
from your competition. If this section becomes too lengthy, feel free to break them
up into smaller sections. Here are some items to consider adding:
Grants
Academic Honors
Scholarships
Volunteer positions
Professional Affiliations

Technical Skills
Some careers, such as those in the IT or Engineering fields, require specialized
knowledge and hands-on skills. Within the IT industry, a software managers
responsibilities will differ from company to company. A technical skills section is
helpful in showcasing your knowledge of specific systems.

To prevent this section from taking up too much space, try breaking up this section
into categories and list your skills within each. For example:
Software: Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite, Visio, and Oracle
Programming Languages: Excel at HTML, C++, and Python

Additional Skills
Including an additional skills section may be worth considering. An additional skills
section is a short and concise list of skills relevant to your industry. This section is
similar a technical skills, but is often used for industries that do not specifically
require advanced skills. Check out the yellow-highlighted additional skills section in
the image to your right.

Even if you have already added skills to your career objective or qualifications
summary, it never hurts to add more abilities. For instance, someone like an IT
manager who works with a wide array of programs and techniques will in turn have
a wide range of skills to fill both a qualifications summary and additional skills
section.

Step 3: How to Style your Resume

Whew! So the hard part is over. You have all your content typed up and you are
feeling confident about getting that interview. And now, for the finishing touches.
its time to give it some personality.

I. Number of Pages

This is the most argued point of resume writing. Some professionals vigorously
discourage applicants from going over one page, while others argue that in some
instances it is acceptable. The bottom line is this: if you have information that is
highly relevant to the position you are applying for then go ahead and add an extra
page. However, if you are just adding fluff for the sake of adding pages, then your
resume will suffer.

II. Font and Sizing Dos and Donts

Font style and size is largely dependent on your preference. You can never be sure
what the hiring manager prefers so you have to go with gut. However there are
some Dos and Donts when it comes to choosing your font and sizes.

Dos
Choose easy-to-read fonts
Use the same font throughout
Change sizes in descending order for your name, headers, and bullet points
Choose a font that fits with the text sizes youve chosen

Donts
Dont choose small sizes to fit everything on one page
Dont pick wacky fonts (please don't use Wing Dings!)
Dont have one uniform text size throughout
Dont go below 9pt
Dont spend too much time on choosing a font

For sizing, many resumes follow a 24, 12, 10 format:

This means that the name is 24pt, the body headers are 12pt, and the bullet points
are 10pt.

If the hiring manager needs to put on their glasses just to make out your experience,
then your application will be on one-way trip to the trashcan.

When choosing your font, the choice will come down to a Serif style or a Sans
Serif style. The major difference is that Serif fonts have small lines on the ends of
their letters, while the Sans Serif does not. Again, the choice is based on your
preference of what you think will be the easiest for a potential employer to read.
Its worth noting whether your resume is a paper version or an electronic version.
For a paper version its better to use Serif fonts, while electronic versions look
better in Sans Serif fonts. Below are some popular font choices.

Serif Font Examples:
Times New Roman
Georgia
Bookman Old Style
Century

San Serif Font Examples:

Arial
Helvetica
Century Gothic
Calibri

III. Lines
Lines are great to use to help break up the resume and allow potential employers to
better process the information. Line breaks commonly begin after the career
objective or qualifications summary. From there, they are used to break each
subsequent section. How you divide it is up to you, but just dont go page break
crazy for every bit of information. Too many page breaks will ruin its readability.

IV. Margins
Margins are the first thing a potential employer will notice about your resume, so
its important that they are appropriately set. One-inch margins are the safe bet for
applicants that lack experience. If you have a wealth of experience that you are
trying to fit to one page then it is acceptable to reduce to the margins. Be cautious
when reducing the margins. If they are too small, your pages will look overcrowded.
To be safe it is recommended not to go below .5.


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