WRITING RESUMES THAT GET NOTICED!!

Transcription

1 WRITING RESUMES THAT GET NOTICED!! A good resume is your ticket to landing you an interview for that job you really want. But what do potential employers want to see? Knowing what information is important enough to include and what details should be omitted can be a difficult task. Including too many details may turn-off the hiring committee but not enough detail may be selling yourself short. Determining the right level of detail is a delicate balancing act but one that must be undertaken with care. The following list, highlights some tips for writing a resume that will help land you a job interview. It has been adapted from: 1. ENGINEER YOUR RESUME A clean, symmetrical format that highlights your key accomplishments and strengths is essential. A resume must be a marketing tool that SELLS you to a potential employer. A one-size-fits-all template will not achieve that for you. In general, recruiters spend less than 30 seconds initially scanning each resume in the pile looking for those that stand out. While you want to exhibit all your skills and experience as an engineer, it s important to remember that this is a resume, not a biography. Too much information may confuse or overwhelm the reader. You want to make navigating your resume as easy and natural as possible for prospective employers. 2. KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE Not only is this the number one golden rule of marketing and writing, it is the most important thing to keep in mind when creating your resume. Do an online search to find out as much information as possible on the company and company culture. Try to determine who is likely to be reading your resume. Read the company's press releases, reviews of their products or services, and any other information to determine how the company officially presents itself. Talk to current or former employees, if possible. Then make sure that your resume contains the action words matching the action words of the job description. Any experience you have that relates to the job you re applying for should be brought to the forefront of your resume. Resume building tools and templates can be useful, but use with caution! No two people are the same. No two resumes should be either. When working from a template, it s easy to fall into the trap of making your information and accomplishments fit into the template s framework. This may not be the best approach to highlight your key features.

2 If you choose to include an objective, it is crucial it is that your objective matches the specifics of the position. Maybe consider ditching the objective altogether and go with an opening qualifications summary instead. This is a great way to catch the reader s attention right away with a few sentences that highlight your most marketable credentials 3. TALK ACCOMPLISHMENTS So you controlled an ROV on your previous job with an underwater exploration team? That s really great and all, but so did a dozen other student engineers applying for this same position. What did you actually accomplish in each of your previous jobs or experiences? Provide specific details explaining how you are a better candidate than the rest by providing examples of tasks you completed on the job, software you have mastered, techniques you have learned, etc. Do Your Homework! Find out information about the company and whomever is doing the hiring. Then tailor your resume to highlight your skills and experiences that match the job description and company profile. 4. USE BULLET POINTS Hiring managers and recruiters love bullet points. When there is a stack of 100 resumes sitting on the desk, the last thing a recruiter wants to do is sort through paragraphs of information. You want your resume to be very scan-friendly, and the best way to do this is by using bullet points. Each bullet point should start with an action word* and these words should correlate with the words in the job description. *See the appendix of suitable action verbs. 5. ADD A PROJECT LIST Unless you are brand new to the field of engineering, you likely have a number of key projects you will want to showcase on your resume. These projects should be listed by employer or client - along with a short description of what you did. If you have room, go ahead and add this list to your resume. However, if your projects are overflowing onto an unnecessary second or third page, it s best to create a project list sheet that is separate from your resume.

3 6. BE EXACT Exactness is imperative in the field of engineering, so it should be no surprise that your engineering resume should follow suit. If you say on your resume that you are very detail-oriented, but the word oriented is spelled wrong, your resume will quickly end up in the discard pile. Employers expect your resume to be an example of your best work. Therefore spelling and grammatical errors often result in your elimination from further consideration. 7. BE HONEST It is very important that you tell the truth. Don t embellish what you have done but also do not undervalue your experiences and accomplishments. If the information presented in a resume is inaccurate or inconsistent with other information obtained in interview process, you will most likely be eliminated from further consideration. 8. KEEP IT CURRENT! A resume should be kept current and updated at least once a semester. If you are in the first couple years of your program, your resume should typically include all significant post-secondary accomplishments and some of your major high school accomplishments, especially volunteer experience. Employers are primarily interested in your most recent experience relevant to engineering. As your resume lengthens, drop older and less relevant pieces. 9. SAVE YOUR RESUME IN.PDF FORMAT WITH YOUR NAME IN THE FILE NAME Not only will a PDF look the same no matter what computer it s viewed on or printed from, it can be read on any platform. These days, most commonly used word-processing files don t suffer the same compatibility problems (ie. Mac vs. PC) that came up in the past, however PDF files are your best bet if you have any doubt about crossplatform compatibility. Also, be sure to include your full name in the file name. Don t just call your file Resume. Employers may receive many resumes; make it easy for them to find yours by including your full name in the file name. DO NOT, under any circumstances, make an error on your resume! Proofread it 10 times, have others proofread it for you, and then proofread it twice more! Now is NOT the time for modesty Employers want to hire the best and brightest. Do not sell yourself short. Your resume and letter should give the impression that you are a confident and skilled individual. Frequently update your resume to include all relevant accomplishments.

4 WHAT TO INCLUDE? Your resume should be uniquely your own. Beyond your name and contact information, there are several key headings that employers usually expect to see. OBJECTIVE STATEMENT OR PROFILE* You will often see objective statements on many sample resumes. Even though they are not required, objective statements can provide a means for you to immediately grab the attention of a prospective employer. A resume objective is a short, targeted statement that clearly outlines your career direction while simultaneously positioning you as someone who fits what the employer is looking for exactly. Your objective should be tailored to fit the job you re applying for by making use of specific phrases directly related to the job description or company profile. Alternatively, many people replace the objective statement with a profile or qualification highlights section that draws attention to the specific skills and qualities you possess that make you an ideal candidate for the job. Remember that early in your career or while you are a student, the objective statement or profile may not be particularly relevant as your work experience and skill set may not be developed or focused enough to make adding an objective statement useful. EDUCATION Name and location of institution, dates of attendance, type of degree, area of study, and special awards. You may include GPA information if important to the specific position and it s good! Consider the following headings in your resume: Name/Address Objective, Profile or Summary* Education Work Experience Additional Training Skills Interests** References WORK EXPERIENCE Name and location of company, dates of employment, major accomplishments on the job, major responsibilities and skills acquired. Include paid and volunteer positions. Your resume does not and often should not include every job you have ever had. Recruiters do not want to know about the summer that you worked as a life guard in junior high unless you are applying to work at the local pool or YMCA.

5 ADDITIONAL TRAINING OR WORKSHOPS If you've attended specialized training courses, seminars or workshops, be sure to list these as well, depending upon relevancy. SKILLS Things you can actually do! Avoid stating generalized skills - better to let an employer know you have leadership skills from reading your work or training history rather than stating that you have "leadership skills. For example, list software you may know well, systems you may understand, communications or leadership experience you have acquired through work or volunteer experiences, etc. INTERESTS** Should you include an interests or hobbies section? While other parts of your resume tell the story of your qualifications, the interests section reveals a little about your personality. As such you should be choosy about what you include here, if at all. So before you go ahead and include a list of every extracurricular activity you ve ever done in an attempt to make yourself look well-rounded, ask yourself whether your passion for online gaming, dog fighting, skydiving, or gambling should be revealed before a potential employer even meets you. Having said this, there are many transferrable skills which may be expressed by your interests and be applicable to your application. It really depends on the position you are applying for. For example, if you enjoy boating and are studying to become an ocean/naval engineer then it might be wise to include this. For an engineering or mechanical position, you might omit your interest in sports and instead mention that you have an interest in restoring cars. Or maybe you are an avid golfer and the company runs an important charitable golf tournament every year. Overall, be sure to find out anything you can about company culture and policies in the context of your own personal interests when deciding what to include. Some recruiters like the extra detail that an interests section provides while others prefer that your resume is kept strictly professional. Either way, the interests section will not likely make or break your chances of getting an interview. Don t take this section too seriously however be mindful that what you like to do in your spare time says a lot about your personality so chose what you want to reveal right now wisely. Top 6 soft skills that employers are looking for in an engineer Communication skills Problem solving skills Teamwork skills Planning and organizing ability Integrity Enthusiasm The interests section of your resume is like a small window into your personality. If you do decide to include it, make sure you are truthful and what you include reinforces your fit for the job.

6 REFERENCES It is not imperative that your list reference appears on your resume unless the application or ad specifically requests references to be included. The goal is to get an interview and most employers will not check references until after you've been interviewed. However, once you get the job interview you should take a list of references with you. FINAL CONSIDERATIONS Do not include personal information such as your age, marital status, gender, or religion. This information should be irrelevant to a potential employer. WHAT SHOULD MY RESUME LOOK LIKE? SAMPLE ENGINEERING RESUMES Your resume content and organization should change and evolve as you progress through your program and complete work terms and major course projects. For example, when applying for work terms early in the program, i.e. WT1, you will likely want to include some high school accomplishments. However these should disappear once you have replaced these experiences with more relevant university and work related accomplishments. Remember, a resume is not an autobiography! And it is a work in progress. The following link shows various resume examples that highlight the changes in resume content at varying points in an individual s career. The following are a few resumes from that page. Note that each resume has been chosen to show how different strengths and accomplishments can be highlighted at different stages in an individual s career. As mentioned before, now is the time to sell your best features and not be too modest when stating your accomplishments.

7 Example 1: Weak resume that was improved with the addition of a second GPA and the use of academic projects to highlight skills. Notice the most recent GPA is included, in addition to cumulative GPA to highlight the improvement. High school job experience is still relevant as student does not have any professional experience to include. Include any academic project experience gained until you have actual job project experience to include.

8 Example 2: First year student. High school GPA and activities are included that will be removed when more relevant accomplishments are established through university course work and job experience. Be sure to include all contact information, especially if it may change at any time during the interview process. High school GPA/accomplishments included as student is in first semester of university. This will be omitted once first year overall GPA is available. High school job experiences will gradually be replaced with more relevant engineering related work experience.

9 Example 3: Two work terms completed and detailed outcomes/experiences described. Student also has included important communication skills experience and other relevant education. Include any other education that showcases your skills. Include specific details of accomplishments on the job. Demonstrate any communications skills experience. Including a list of all relevant skills is very important. Include any leadership skills. Employers look for these.

10 Example 4: Includes leadership activities, other relevant work experience, and gives detailed job descriptions/outcomes. Includes specific details of accomplishment on the job. She includes an additional work experience section, as her extensive farm experience is very relevant to the position but is best put into a separate category.