R ESUME W ORKSHOP Resumes, Cover Letters & References Jeremiah 29:11

F IRST T HINGS F IRST What do I enjoy doing? What “keeps me going”? What are my key interests? What skills and abilities do I use the most? What are my key accomplishments? What is my unique selling point?

W HAT IS A RESUME ? Your first meeting with an employer Advertisement Marketing tool Calling card Qualifications brief NOT an autobiography or a curriculum vitae Why? The 7-10 second statistic!

H OW DO YOU USE A RESUME ? To obtain an interview To articulate unique skills, quantifiable outcomes and your value proposition To track your job history, education, training events, achievements and awards/honors—the facts To articulate and remind you what you are “ selling ” To narrow your job focus

T HE R ESUME W RITING P ROCESS An “everything” resume or the Master Resume All the experiences, skills, activities and accomplishments that help define YOU A history from which to pick and choose what to include in your “target” resumes The “specific” resume or the Targeted Resume Research the employer, i.e., product or service, culture, values, mission, history Study the job description Highlight your strengths AND weaknesses Keywords: nouns and verbs Demonstrate by “telling your story”

Q UESTIONS FOR PREPARATION * How well do I know the organization for which I’d like to work? Why are they “in business”? Why do I want to apply for this job ? Why is it a good fit for me? What makes a great employee for this organization? How do I know this? How can I best demonstrate that I’m a good fit ? * Adapted from JT O’Donnell, Founder & CEO of Careerealism.Com

R ESUME F ORMAT Chronological Reverse chronological order (2013-Present, 2012, 2011, 2010) New grads generally list education first, otherwise it typically follows work history Include internships, volunteer work and other experiences Skills and accomplishments of each (metrics?) Advantages and disadvantages Most common and familiar Employment gaps emphasized Skills not as easily highlighted

R ESUME F ORMAT Functional Organized by skill sets and accomplishments Cluster style by set, i.e., clerical, administration, customer service, management Advantages and disadvantages Used by career changers and those with little work experience Employment gaps are not as noticeable Can raise “red flags”

R ESUME F ORMAT Combination Uses features of both Presents skills and experiences as themes Positions and companies are still organized in reverse chronological order Match skills and achievements to job requirements, i.e., Profile Summary, Skill Highlights, Achievement Highlights Advantages and disadvantages Versatile Impactful More effort

A PPEARANCE Visual impact! Good use of “white” space (3-5 foot test) Even margins ( inches) Font size (10-12) Font choice ( Times New Roman, Arial, Calibri, Tahoma, Verdanna ) Format needs consistency: indentations, bullets, hyphens, commas, dashes, bold, capital letters, underlining (do not use when scannable resumes are requested) Length (1-2 pages; Dick Johnson Resume, Page 2) Check and double check!

C ONTENT Accurate & honest Professional & phone message Keywords, specific nouns & action verbs Use a thesaurus & avoid abbreviations Include GPA or Major GPA (3.0 or above) Avoid unnecessary repetition Quantify, i.e., Managed a team of 5

A DDITIONAL T HOUGHTS References (3-5 on a separate sheet) Career portfolio (keep adding to it) LinkedIn (Join Alumni LinkedIn Group) Think like an employer! Network, network, network

W HAT IS A COVER LETTER ? Explains why you are applying Convinces the employer to read your resume Makes connections Draws employer’s attention to specific qualifications Provides a sample of your written communication Establishes your credibility Identifies the “next step”

C OVER L ETTER T IPS Address the letter to an individual, not a company Keep the letter to one page or less and only 3-5 paragraphs Customize for each application Stress the positive Use language consistent with the job description Appeal to company culture, values and goals

S TRATEGIES FOR F UTURE S UCCESS Know your strengths and weaknesses Practice communicating your strengths in both written and verbal form Elevator speeches JIST cards, i.e., mini-resume card Research the marketplace for jobs and job titles: O*Net

R ESOURCES MyJudson/Student Success Center/Career Center Alumni Jobs Board Recruiters in Lower Commons, Elgin Campus Illinois Small College Placement Association Fall Interview Day and Spring CareerFest