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Each resume contains required elements. Most of
your time should be spent completing these parts. Browse the
sections below to learn more.
Career Objective
A well-developed career
objective helps you determine your next
career move. Your objective and summary statement set a tone for
the rest of your resume. Try to keep them short.
Your objective is your employment goal. You should develop an
objective even if you choose not to include it in your resume.
Write the rest of your resume with this focused objective in mind.
Remove any statement that does not reflect your objective.
Employers may look at your resume before your cover letter. A
well-written career objective catches an employer's interest and
channels this attention to the details of your resume.
The career objective
summarizes your expectations for pursuing your
desired career. These expectations should include what an employer
should expect from you as well as target skills that you can bring
to the company. Some objective statements refer to specific
positions within the hiring organization. Consider broadening the
statement to include other potential opportunities available.
A good objective may improve your chances of winning an
interview. Avoid vague descriptions, as they are meaningless to
employers.
A good objective mentions a specific job category, such as
"office position" rather than "data entry clerk." Being too
specific may eliminate you from possible openings within a
company. You may also mention an industry, such as "the
communication industry" tailored to that of your potential
employer. You may want to highlight some of your specific skills
that are of interest to the hiring party. Focus on what you have
to offer a potential employer, not on what they can do for you.
Example Career Objective: To
obtain an entry-level office position where my word-processing
computer skills and attention to detail may be fully utilized.
Summary Statement
Write a summary statement
to show why you are the ideal candidate for
your desired job. The summary statement highlights your past
accomplishments and emphasizes the professional characteristics
that make you stand out.
You only have one chance to make a good first impression. Use
action verbs and keywords to wow the reader.
The summary is optional. You can use it instead of or in
addition to a career objective. Develop a career summary even if
you choose not to include it in your resume. As with the career
objective, this process will provide you focus as you develop the
rest of your resume. The details of your resume should reflect
your summary.
Highlight yourself ... a summary statement may include:
Your job title or position.
Your areas of expertise.
Your skills.
Your best professional qualities.
A short career objective.
Before you begin to write a summary statement, do some
research. What is your potential employer looking for in a job
candidate? What special qualities and talents will you bring to
the position? Why are you the perfect candidate for the job?
Contact Information
Your contact information serves two purposes. It tells the
employer who you are and how to contact you for additional
information or to set up an interview.
Contact information should make it easy for a prospective
employer to contact you directly or leave a message to which you
can respond the same day. Only provide information you are ready
and willing for potential employers to use. Make yourself
available for their calls, and check your answering machine (or
voice mail) and e-mail on a regular basis!
Stand out! Let employers notice and
remember your name by using a
larger font, all CAPITAL letters, and/or
a bold-faced
font. Use your full first and last name. Your middle name or
initial is optional. Do not use nicknames.
Be sure to include your full address. Except for your state,
spell out all abbreviations.
Supply a phone number where you can be reached at all times. If
you prefer, you can include a day and home phone number, a
cellular phone number, and/or a pager number. Always include the
area code. If you include multiple numbers, provide a descriptive
title for each (e.g., Phone, Cell, Fax).
Provide an e-mail address that you can access from both home
and work, if possible. Keep in mind that employer provided e-mail
accounts may be monitored. You may prefer to use a personal e-mail
account for contact purposes. Make sure the e-mail address you
provide sounds professional.
If you provide information on a web page, update your page on a
regular basis. Make sure employers cannot access personal parts of
your web site. Only provide information you are willing to share
with employers.
Education
Depending on the type of job you seek, this section may be even
more important than your work history. Accuracy with starting and
ending dates, degree titles, and school contact information is
crucial.
List your educational levels attained, starting with your most
recent. If you have taken college classes but are not pursuing a
degree, list any classes pertinent to the position you are
seeking. Include your high school or General Equivalency Diploma (GED)
information if applicable.
Education Examples
Name of School. City, State. Degree, Major/Minor/Concentration.
Date received.
General Educational Development Diploma, Name of School, City,
State. Date received.
A potential employer may thoroughly research your educational
background based on the information you provide. You may be asked
to provide your college GPA (Grade Point Average) and GPA for your
major field of study. Make sure you have this information with you
during an interview, whether you provide it within your resume or
not. A general practice is to list your GPA if 3.0 or higher.
Occupational Licensure
Occupational licensure is important in many fields,
particularly technical and health industries.
Licensure requirements apply to specific occupations, many
dealing with public health and safety. They are regulated by the
states or Federal government.
Licensure requirements vary by state. If a license is required
by your state, unlicensed practice of an occupation is a criminal
offense.
Depending upon the type of license, you may need to renew your
credentials on an annual or semi-annual basis. If your license has
lapsed, you may leave it out of your resume. You may also indicate
the beginning and ending time period (month and year) you were
actively licensed.
If you are licensed to practice in multiple states, be sure to
list each state. Although it is not required to include a copy of
your license with your resume, be prepared to show the original to
a prospective employer.
Occupational Certification
Certifications are available in many fields of work. They are
an independent verification of expertise. Although many are
familiar with computer and technical certifications, a wide range
exists. Certifications address occupations from interior design to
automotive sales.
This optional feature reflects
your interest in staying current in your field of expertise.
Prospective employers can see that you have fulfilled the steps to
complete your certification. Many times, that requires passing a
series of standardized tests. Your certification may speak for
your work abilities in a particular field. Avoid certifications
that are conferred simply by paying a fee.
Certifications
MCP + Internet (Microsoft Certified Internet Professional)
CCNA (Cisco Certified Network Associate). ISP Dial, and
Routing & Switching
CompTIA A+ (CompTIA Certified Computer Technician)
CMP (Certified Meeting Planner)
Once completed, you may need to renew your certification. If
your certification has expired, leave it out of your resume. You
may choose to indicate the beginning and ending time period you
were certified instead. Be prepared to provide your potential
employer with information on the vendor or organization providing
your certification.
When including your certification on your resume, make sure to
spell out any acronyms.
Work Experience
Your work history reveals prior dates of employment and
positions held withprevious employers. It gives prospective
employers a quick view of your employment patterns and career
progression.
When providing your work history, be accurate with starting and
ending dates, job titles, and employer contact information. If you
have gaps in your employment history, be prepared to explain them
during an interview. A large gap in your work history can also be
addressed in your cover letter. You should include volunteer
activities and unpaid internships, although paid work experience
should take precedence.
If you are a college student seeking first-time employment,
list any work experience you may have. This work may include
volunteering and internships during college, high school, and
summer breaks. This will let employers know you have had exposure
to a structured work environment.
Work Experience
Friendly Markets - Pittsburgh, PA 9/8/1998 - present
Sales Representative
ACME Corporation - Burbank, CA 4/23/1991 - 7/16/1998
Product Tester
Result Statements
An effective way to highlight your accomplishments is by using
results statements. Result statements explain what situation you
faced at work, what action you took, and the resulting outcome.
Think about your successes or the problems you have solved. Be
specific. The statement "works well under pressure" is general and
does not tell the prospective employer much. Instead, give an
example where you performed well under pressure. If your result is
that you "completed the project under budget," be sure to state
how much under budget.
The goal of these statements is to show an employer you have a
proven track record of providing results. You can use results
statements to both paid and unpaid employment.
Do not provide contact information for those current or
previous employers you do not want contacted by your potential
employer. If applicable, contact the personnel department of your
current employer to inform them they may be contacted for purposes
of verifying your employment. You should assume a potential
employer will thoroughly research your work history based on the
information you provide.
Skills
Employers review skill sets when considering job applicants. A
worker with the ability to step into a position with minimal
training often gets the job when time and training budgets are
tight.
Describing your skills can sometimes be difficult. For
assistance, visit the Skills Profiler. It will help you build a
list of your current capabilities to use in your resume.
You can also view videos of different types of skills and
abilities to gather ideas to use in your resume. List the skills
you possess that are relevant to the position you are seeking.
They should be ranked by importance to the potential position. If
you are new to the workforce, or making a career transition, your
list of relevant skills may be brief. If you lack related skills,
you can emphasize the "soft" skills you possess (such as
organization and communication).
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