1. Resume = This is My Story!

2. Resume Overview and Fundamentals 1. A resume is an aid in marketing/selling yourself (a 1-2 page autobiography). 2. Are obvious “errors” to avoid, yet no single correct way to put together. 3. Need to pay attention to details. 4. Resumes get you interviews.

3. General QUESTIONS Your Resume Should Answer Who are you? What do you know? What have you done? What can you do? What do you want to do?

4. Typical Resume Content (Top to Bottom) Name Address & Phone Numbers Personal/Career Objective (optional) Education Relevant Coursework (optional) Work Experience Activities & Honors References

5. Common Questions About Resumes 1. What is my GPA in my major? 2. Should I put my GPA on my resume? 3. Should I list references? 4. Should I list all previous jobs?

6. Resume Objective Statements Can help to clarify your career goals if not consistent with the rest of your resume, including previous work experience. Need to be specific and clear. May want to have different resumes with different goal statements. Can also include some of your qualifications. ‘Good’ examples Obtain a position as a Farm Manager where my college course work in Ag Business, Farm Management, and my personal farming and dairying experience would be valuable. To obtain a challenging career in Agricultural Sales, utilizing my communication skills and ability to work with people.

7. Specific Resume Suggestions 1. Use largest font for name. 2. Bold printing – don’t do too much or too little; bold headings, names of universities, names of companies; don’t bold locations and dates. 3. Get things aligned, balanced, blocked format. 4. Objective statement needed if work experiences not indicative of career interests; be specific. 5. References needed with at least one academic one. 6. List Univ. activities; if don’t have any, get some. 7. Use outline format, past tense verbs to describe specific job duties/activities; highlight with bullets, diamonds, asterisks, etc. 8. Use standard format to describe education; make sure area of emphasis is technically correct. 9. Underlining; prefer bold printing for emphasis. 10. Shading for emphasis may look good; check to see how it copies and faxes.

8. Specific Resume Suggestions 11. Use large envelope to mail to avoid folding. 12. If two pages, don’t have to staple, but make sure name and address information is on 2 nd page. 13. Do NOT send/mail without cover letter. 14. Do NOT include personal, unrelated information. 15. Avoid ALL errors (factual, spelling, grammatical). 16. Avoid ‘inflated’ or misleading information. 17. Provide specific information instead of general or ‘fluff’. 18. Do NOT include vague statements. 19. Should demonstrate good organizational and communication skills. 20. Be original, yet NOT too different.

9. EDUCATION University, Town, State Degree, Date Major Minor, Area of Emphasis GPA Self Financed College Expenses

10. Work Experience Company, Title, Location, Dates Duties/Activities Use action verbs (past tense) Omit ‘I’ Include farm background

11. References List (not ‘available on request’) Number (3 to 4) Types (academic, work) Names (include titles – Mr., Mrs., Dr., Ms.) Positions Addresses, Phone Numbers (omit home) Block List

12. Most Common Resume Mistakes 1. Errors (factual, spelling, grammatical) 2. Inflated or misleading info 3. Written in 1 st person (“I”) 4. Irrelevant or vague info 5. No ‘action’ words 6. Too repetitive 7. Not simple, bold, professional Source: CareerBuilder.com (’04)