COM271 Task 1 (Supplementary)

Notes on Writing a Resume
For use with task 1

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Your Resumé

Your resumé is a personal statement, best prepared and maintained by you (rather than by an agency). The content and look are individualistic, reflecting your own sense of importance and your unique style. Resumés are also flexible documents, and you are likely to adjust and recast your resumé for strategic reasons as you use it for varying purposes and with different targets.

Importance of resumé appearance (first impressions count): The content of your resumé is vital, but the look, achieved through careful consideration of page layout, typography, white space, etc., can serve you well as you try to make a first (non-verbal) impression. We'll return to page layout later; for now I merely suggest that you pay attention to the look of your resumé by studying others as models. That is, look at qualities that make the resumé attractive, neat, and professional. Think about messages that appearance alone can convey—hip, organized, modern, classical, avant-garde. This can be conveyed through choices you make about margins, type (and the printer that produces it), indentation, balance of print on the sheet of paper, and organization (again, suggested by white space, the portions of the page that do not contain content but instead allow the reader's eye to rest, influencing the sense of degree of clutter and business). For paper copies, even the choice of paper (rag content, weight, texture, color are all yours to choose) makes a subtle statement about you.

The information in a resumé must communicate effectively, and this is its most important function. What you say must also be honest, and any misstatement or misrepresentation of credentials can be professional suicide, possibly costing you a job before you get started, or worse, later. Count on employers to check on things, including past employment, academic records, and claims of significant accomplishments. The resumé must have no errors; you can not proofread enough, and you cannot impose on your best friend too much, as you have the resumé checked for accuracy. Finally, the resumé must give clear, specific information, in a neutral tone. The resumé presents facts; you can elaborate or highlight or "sell" these in any light later, in your letter or your interview (and through statements made by your references). Length is arbitrary, but early in your career you will probably have a one or two page resumé, weighing the need to be concise (a sign of organization and the ability to set priorities) against the need to include pertinent detail.

You have a choice of two basic styles of resumé—chronological and analytical.

Chronological resumé: This style focuses on history, with each section arranged by time. Employment, for example, lists previous positions held, including dates and a brief description of what you did and the company you worked for. Usually, you will include sections for contact information, a statement of job objectives, summaries for previous education and employment, and possibly other experience relevant to your purpose. Label these sections (with the possible exception of contact information). Remember to write in an active voice throughout; make yourself visible as the agent of specific, valuable actions and the possessor of unique credentials.

• Contact information: Provide your full name, address, phone number, and email. Your name is important, so make it a bit larger and bold. Your purpose here is to make it possible for an employer to reach you during the day or evening, electronically or by mail, so make sure that you've provided the details (telephone area code? zip code? apartment number?)
• Statement of objectives: This is a concise statement of what you are seeking, if you are using your resumé to apply for a job. Make it specific and forward-looking. Tailor it to the purpose at hand.
  Note that it is ethically correct to be altering this statement to fit different situations. Your are not focused on a singular career track; you want to be able to choose among alternate paths. At the time you submit a resumé, you are seeking a particular objective. It is fine to restate this objective, and to have a set of resumés that make different claims about your objectives. This is not being deceptive or hypocritical; it is merely clarifying that you are aware that this resumé will be evaluated in the light of your desire to reach a particular goal within the organization that is considering you.
• Education: This section marks progress in formal education. State your degree(s), abbreviated, and list your major and any minors. Identify the institution (spell it out...there are many MSU's, but only one in Michigan, and outside of Fargo no one really knows about NDSU). Write the date of graduation, or anticipated graduation. Also list schools or training programs which you attended, even if you did not receive a degree or certificate from them.
• Employment: The basic employment history should point to job title, dates, company name and location, and a brief specific statement of what you did. The latter should be as specific as possible, without aggrandizement or misdirection. You washed dishes; you were not a serving media sanitary engineer. The less relevant a job is to your purpose, the less you need (and want) to say. For more relevant jobs, provide more. For example
  • Writing. Were you the author of reports, manuals, web sites, computer applications? ("If you've got it, flaunt it!" as one airline used to advertise).
  • Clients. What kind of people did you engage in your job?
  • Skills. What technical competencies did you practice?
  • Equipment. What proficiencies (especially those involving computer or, for example, biotechnical skills) did you use on the job?
  • Money and personnel. Does the amount of cash or the number of people speak positively about the degree of responsibility and trust you had?
• Other experience: You may, at your discretion and always mindful of strategic purposes (how will this help me get this job?) also include a section of additional experiences. In general, these should attest to your maturity, good nature, team spirit, leadership ability, citizenship, etc., serving to deepen your self-portrayal as a good person who is going to be great to have sitting at the now-empty desk someday. Things for you to consider include
  • Computer skills (hardware, software, operating systems, etc.)
  • Military experience (described as though it were a job)
  • Language skills (ready for that overseas assignment in Paris?)
  • Willingness to relocate (you know, that Paris that is really, really far from home?)

Examples of chronological resumes

Maria Aliberti (entomology graduate student) (note print version of this page)

Dr. Roger LeBrun (URI Professor of Entomology)

Dr. Logan's extended resumé (CV length. Note use of active voice and neutral statements of fact.)

Katrina Jane Goodsoul (student)

Analytical resumé: This style emphasizes relevant skills, talents, and accomplishments by including, in addition to the sections listed for the chronological resumé, a separate section, usually placed near the top of the resumé. The skills listed depend on your purpose, but clearly you want to highlight those attributes that are of most interest to your potential employer. These might include management and leadership roles, communication and writing abilities, teaching or instructional competencies, and, of course, a litany of specific, leading-edge, technical abilities.

When you are still a student or have not yet acquired experience through internships or summer jobs, you may also include a list of specific courses in which you have done well, again selected with consideration of how they are relevant to the task at hand (i.e., how will they impress this employer). Your employer will most probably also want to see an official transcript, which will confirm that you have coursework background and verify grades, but the resumé is your chance to highlight these as part of your initial impression building.

A Note on Electronic Resumés: Your resumé, of course, can be attached to an email and forwarded electronically, and this is common. You may also have the skills to develop an online web version of your resumé, as in the examples above (developed by Dr. Logan, by the way). Be careful in posting any personal information online, always mindful of the possibility of identify theft. I would advise that any web versions not include home address, phone, or home email. Use a work address and email (yes, I know, but I'd do this anyway); consider buying a postal box (about $50-60 for a year, with half-years available) for regular mail.