The Art of the Resume

1Art of the Resume - ENGL 427

Maximizing your first impression.

The Art of the Resume

Tracey SonntagENGL 427

Design-intensive editing project 3

Art of the Resume - ENGL 427 2

Purposes of the Resume

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Creativity—with a CaveatDon’t ever present

false informationThat doesn’t mean

you can’t be a little creative in how you present your information

Find ways to relate your experience to the job title in question


Hottest Transferable Skills Budget Management

Managing how funds are distributed Keeping control of the budget

Supervising Having contact with work of others Scheduling staff Delegating tasks Understanding other person’s viewpoint

Coping with Deadline Pressure Functioning and producing good work on someone

else’s schedule, even when hurried Negotiating / Arbitrating

Dealing openly and effectively with people in ambiguous situations

Resolving differences between groups or individuals

Making demands on behalf of one constituency to those in positions of power


Hottest Transferable Skills cont. Speaking

Taking a leadership role in an organization Motivating people Getting ideas across

Writing Putting pen to paper in various ways

Organizing / Managing / Coordinating Taking charge of an event Bringing together people, resources, events

Interviewing Acquiring information from other people Helping a person feel comfortable even though

you’re asking difficult questions Teaching / Instructing

Explaining things to other people Teaching ideas or methods


Relate skills and experience to jobLet reader scan for important pointsOrganize from most important to least

importantArrange attractivelyEdit thoroughly to remove and correct

errorsUse parallel form

Resume Principles


What does the resume get you?

JOB

INTERVIEW


Resume Examples

Education – most

relevant

Coursework as

experience

Paid employment

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format


Resume Examples

Move dates

Small type

font

Odd chunk of white space

Organization-focused

objective

Consider 2-column

‘Experience’ section to

solve layout issue


Resume ExamplesRandom capitalization

Mix of personal & professional

qualities

Dates get the

focus – lead with

job title

Irrelevant info crowding out achievements

No need to specify “paid”


Resume Examples

Create a 2-column list of

skills

Use bulleted lists rather than

paragraph form

“Superior

company?”

Lead with degree; bulleted

list of skills

Parallel form, leading with action verbs!


Resume Examples

Inconsistent formatting

Leading with job titles

Use a bulleting scheme

Specify without being overly

wordy


Where creativity mattersRelate your

educational and volunteer experience to the job title

Use emphasis and bulleting to draw attention to strengths


Resume ExamplesUse professional email

account – not “[email protected]

om”

Looks empty; too sparseLead with most

recent position

Add subheading “Writing Projects”

and list to add experience

Use indenting to separate detail from

heading


Resume ExamplesShowcase your

contribution to the organization, not what you hope to gain from

it!

Too deeply indented, leaves chunk of white

space

Showcase your contribution to the

organization, not what you hope to gain from

it!

Spell out abbreviations

Move Skills and Abilities up, Volunteer

work down Inconsistent formatting; if you must

use tables, don’t use cell borders

Inconsistent formatting – why is ‘Objective’ section different?


Evolution of a Resume

Doesn’t present accurate picture of

candidateFirst Draft

•Moved activities into work experience

•More consistent format

Second

Draft

•More visually attractive•Simplified “Experience” sectionThird Draft


Evolution of a Resume – Final Product

Consistent Layout

Relevant activities presented

Subheadings under “Skills”

Balanced white space, easy to scan and read


Military serviceCreative fieldsNo employmentTwo-page

resumeReferences

Handling Special Issues


Military Service is Relevant


Creative Field = Creative Resume


No Employment History


Two-page Resume•Second page ½ empty!

•Weave Awards into appropriate areas, tighten Contact Info and Experience to fit all relevant and necessary info on one page.

•Be prepared to move Language section up when applying for jobs that mention bilingual preference.


References•Dispute over inclusion of the phrase “References available upon request”

•Be sure to ask for and receive approval from your references BEFORE you provide their contact information

•Explain the reference’s relationship to you

Documents

The Art of the Resume