How To Prepare An Effective Resume

1. Resume Essentials

Before you write, take time to do a self-assessment on paper. Outline your skills and abilities as well as your work experience and extracurricular activities. This will make it easier to prepare a thorough resume.

2. The Content of Your Resume

All your contact information should go at the top of your resume, including name, address, telephone, e-mail address, web site address.

• Avoid nicknames.
• Use a permanent address. Use your parents' address, a friend's address, or the address you plan to use after graduation.
• Use a permanent telephone number and include the area code. If you have an answering machine, record neutral greeting.
• Add your e-mail address. Many employers will find it useful. (Note: Choose an email address that sounds professional.)
• Include your website address only if the web page reflects your professional ambitions.

Objective or Summary

An objective tell potential employers the sort of work you're hoping to do.

• Be specific about the job you want. For example: To obtain an entry-level position within a financial institution requiring strong analytical and organizational skills.
• Tailor your objective to each employer you target/every job you seek.

Education

New graduates without a lot of work experience should list their educational information first. Alumni can list it after the work experience section.

• Your most recent educational information is listed first.
• Include your degree (A.S., B.S., B.A., etc) major, institution attended, minor/concentration.
• Add your grade point average (GPA) if it is higher than 3.0.
• Mention academic honors.

Work Experience

Briefly give the employer an overview of work that has taught you skills. Use action words to describe your job duties. Include your work experience in reverse chronological order - That is, put your last job first and work backward to your first, relevant job. Include:

• Title of position,
• Name of organization
• Location of work (town, state)
• Date of employment
• Describe your work responsibility with emphasis on specific skills and achievements.

Other Information

A staff member at your career services office can advise you on other information to add to your resume. You may want to add:

• Key or special skill or competencies,
• Leadership experience in volunteer organisations,
• Participation in sports.

Reference

Ask people if they are willing to serve as reference on you resume. You may note at the bottom of your resume: "Reference furnished on request."

"Opportunity is missed by most because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work." - Thomas Edison

Source from atResume.com

What Employers Want !

Employers say they are impressed by job candidates who have excellent communication skills, good grooming habits, and relevant work experience. Employers say they want trustworthy new hires who can move right in, get along with their co-workers, and get the job done without having to be babied at each step.

Top 10 Qualities Employers Seek:

1. Communication skills (verbal and written)
2. Honesty/integrity
3. Teamwork skills (works well with others)
4. Interpersonal skills (relates well to others)
5. Motivation/initiative
6. Strong work ethic
7. Analytical skills
8. Flexibility/adaptability
9. Computer skills
10. Self-confidence

New Hire Skills

1. Interpersonal
2. Teamwork
3. Verbal communication
4. Analytical
5. Computer
6. Written communication
7. Leadership

"The secret of joy in work is contained in one word - EXCELLENCE." - Pearl S. Buck

Source from atResume.com

Great Words to Describe Your Skills

Use these verbs and adjectives and really sell yourself. You only have a few minutes to show how good you really are. By using this precise vocabulary and being confident can help you make the best impression possible:

Accurate, Active, Adaptable, Adept, Broad-minded, competent, conscientious, creative, dependable, determined, diplomatic, discreet, efficient, energetic, enterprising, enthusiastic, experienced fair, firm, geniune, honest, innovative, logical, loyal, mature, methodical, motivated, objective, outgoing, personable, pleasant, positive, practical, productive, reliable, resourceful, self disciplined, sense of humor, sensitive, sincere, successful, tactful, trustworthy, ...

"Always be smarter than the people who hire you" - Lena Horne

Source from atResume.com

25 Tips For A Better CV/Resume

1. Be neat and error free. Catch all typing and grammar errors. Make sure to have someone proofread your resume, preferably someone attentive to details. Even the smallest error could land your resume in the electronic recycle bin.
   
2. State specific objectives.. Form a solid, clear objective that will help you carry a focused message throughout the resume. The objective summarizes your skills and emphasizes your strengths.
3. Why does the employer need you? Focus on highlighting accomplishments that will arouse the interest of employers who read resumes asking themselves: What can this candidate do for me? Remember that the goal is to get the interview.
4. Make a good first impression. On average, employers spend less than 30 seconds scanning each resume. Most employers are more concerned about career achievements than education. Place the most interesting and compelling facts about yourself at the beginning, such as a list of accomplishments in order of relevance.
5. Emphasize your skills. Use a skill-based resume format that is organized around the main talents you have to offer. Prioritize everything.
6. Use keywords. Include specific key words and phrases that describe your skills and experience, such as Product Launch, Income Statement, Balance Sheet, Sales, Account Management, C++, Visual Basic, Word Processing, MS Excel, Adobe Illustrator, Graphic Design, and Advertising.
7. Use buzzwords. Use industry jargon and acronyms to reflect your familiarity with the employer's business, but not to the point where it makes your resume hard to read or understand. Spell out acronyms in parentheses if they are not obvious, such as TQM (Total Quality Management).
8. Use action verbs. Portray yourself as active, accomplished, intelligent, and capable of making a contribution. Examples: Managed, Launched, Created, Directed, Established, Organized, and Supervised.
9. Avoid Personal Pronouns. Never use personal pronouns such as 'I' or 'me' in your resume. Instead of complete sentences, use short action-oriented phrases: "Coordinated and published a weekly newsletter concerning local community events."
10. Highlight key points. Although most formatting such as bold, italics and underlining is lost in an electronic resume, you may use capital letters, quotation marks, even asterisks, to emphasize important words or section titles.
11. Summarize information. While electronic resumes may exceed the traditional one to two page limit of paper resumes, in most cases, it should not exceed three pages.
12. List only recent information. The general rule of thumb is to show your work experience only for the last 10 to 15 years.
13. Quantify your experience. Numbers are a powerful tool. Instead of saying "Responsible for increasing sales in my territory," use "Increased sales in my territory 150% in 6 months. Managed 30 accounts for annual revenues of $2M."
14. Be organized, logical and concise. In addition to reviewing your experience, employers also use the resume to get a sense of whether you are organized, logical and concise.
15. Just communicate. Abandon the utilization of exorbitant, exquisite vocabulary. In other words, don't try to impress employers with the depth of your vocabulary. Use words everyone can understand.
16. Omit salary information. Never make reference to salary in your resume.
17. Avoid questionable subjects. Never make references to personal information such as race, religion, marital status, age, political party, or even personal views. In all but a few instances, it would be illegal for the employer to consider such issues. Also, avoid the use of humor and cliches in most resumes.
18. Be honest. Lying or exaggerating your abilities will always come back to haunt you. Since employers usually check into serious candidates, you will want every detail to check out.
19. Sell yourself. Do not under-emphasize your strengths and experience. Portray yourself in the best possible light. Skills that come naturally to you, others may never grasp.
20. Write your own resume. Be personal, yet professional. Create a resume that is personalized to reflect you.
21. traits. If you decide to include Personal traits, such as 'Dependable, Highly-Organized, Self-Motivated, and Responsible,' make sure they are applicable to the position desired. Will the employer consider them valuable?
22. Show consistency. To de-emphasize glaring gaps in your work history, consider using a Functional resume, which focuses on your skills and accomplishments rather than a Chronological format, which emphasizes the progression of your experience.
23. Be balanced and neat. The effective resume is balanced, neat, visually appealing and flows consistently. Clearly separate sections and emphasize section titles. Leave sufficient blank space between sections for easy reading.
24. Stick with common section headings. Use common section headings. Examples: Objective, Experience, Employment, Work History, Skills, Summary, Summary of Qualifications, Accomplishments, Strengths, Education, Professional Affiliations, Publications, Licenses and Certifications, Honors, Personal, Additional, and References.
25. Be positive. Remove any negative comments or feelings conveyed in your resume, especially when it comes to previous employment experiences. Emphasize a positive, can-do attitude.