Professor Schmidt's Home Page               Resume Home Page

RESUME OUTLINE HELP

OBJECTIVE                                     Must Have     

·         Specific to position desired

·         Short and simple (1 sentence)

·         Use key words and language found in job advertisement

Example:

For a general retail position: To gain an understanding of how to provide good customer service and to obtain knowledge of the day-to-day operations of (industry/type of service).

If some goals are in motion: Responsible high school student with a genuine love for animals seeking part-time employment with a veterinary hospital to better understand animals and their owners in preparation for veterinary school.

Recent College Grads:

1) Recent political science honors graduate and former member of university student senate seeking a position requiring intuitive research capabilities and constructive policy formulation. Hands-on floor experience on Capitol Hill and in Senator Tom Harkin’s (D-IA) office; responsible for organizing Take Back the Night campus rally.

2) Campus newspaper editor and journalism major seeking to join the Kansas City Star’s editorial team to expand experience through a metro/community beat and feature writing

Career Track Professionals:

1) Seasoned marketing professional intent on raising awareness of Kroger’s capabilities and increasing visibility within the community.

2) Shift foreman and quality and safety control specialist in agricultural manufacturing desires to implement cost control measures and technological advancements through a plant manager position

PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY                  Optional        

·         Use if you have specific accomplishments that you desire to show off

·         Use if your skills/experiences are minimal and you can best sell yourself by summarizing your skills

EDUCATION                                               Must Have     

·         List in a format that draws attention to your degree (not your school, year, etc) unless your specifically desire to do so

·         If you have not graduated list your graduation date as- Expected graduation May 2010

·         Do not list credits from an institution unless you obtained or are on track to obtain a degree from that institution

·         List any honors given or activities participated in…..otherwise list in activities section

·         Only list GPA if 3.0 or higher

Example:

Georgia Southern University, Doctorate in Education (EdD);

Expected Graduation Date: Dec 2010

BS Computer Science and Mathematics, Minor-Chemistry, Brenau University;

Graduation Date: May 1997; GPA: 3.7

Ø       Alumni Board of Directors

Ø       Phi Beta Sigma - Academic Honor Society

Ø       Omicron Delta Kappa - Leadership Honor Society, Vice President

Ø       Alpha Lambda Delta – Academic Honor Society, Vice President

Ø       High Honors in Liberal Studies

WORK EXPERIENCE                   Must Have

·         List most recent job first

·         Use ACTION VERBS as the FIRST word of each bullet

o       http://www.quintcareers.com/action_skills.html list verbs by job category

·         Use bullet points under each position – not paragraphs

·         List in a way that draws attention to your strengths and away from your weaknesses

o       Years worked, cities worked in, positions held, companies worked for

o       Be vague with weaknesses but DO NOT LIE

·         Use #’s to quantify responsibilities whenever possible

o       Supervised 20 employees, balanced mgr’s fund in excess of $1M, recouped 15K

·         If all you did was greet customers say – Greeted customers with a smile

Example:

Walt Disney World Company        Orlando, FL

Financial Services Department – Internship; June 1995 – Jan 1996

 Rotational Leadership Development Program

 Responsible for issuance and receipt of all Walt Disney World Co. funds: In excess of $10M daily

 Vault teller: Responsible for vault balance; dealt directly with Deposit Operations and Brinks

SKILLS- Computer/Language        Must Have – unless you do not have any to speak of

• Use bullet points and depict level of ability
• Be specific with software knowledge
  • Proficient in:   MS Word, MS Excel
  • Experience in: PageMaker, MS Powerpoint
  • Ability to learn most software programs within days

Example:

ACTIVITIES/AWARDS                 Optional

• List group name, year inducted, office held
• Be sure that the type of club/activity is obvious to the reviewer

REFERENCES                                Optional

• Do not list unless the job requisition requested them in advance
• You only want to bother your references for a REAL job opportunity
• Keep a running list (separate them by Personal, Professional, Educational)

REMEMBER

• CREATE THE ENTIRE RESUME IN AN EASY-TO-READ FORMAT.
• A RESUME REVIEWER SHOULD BE ABLE TO SCAN AND QUICKLY COMPREHEND AT LEAST 5 IMPORTANT THINGS ABOUT YOU
• INTENTIONALLY FORMAT ‘WHITE SPACE’ INTO YOUR RESUME SO THE REVIEWER CAN EASILY MAKE NOTES
• DO NOT USE SCRIPTIVE OR TINY FONTS
• DO NOT HAVE MORE THAN 1-2 PAGES UNLESS YOU WORK EXPERIENCE IS SUBSTANTIAL AND DEMANDS THE SPACE
• Be sure you put your name and contact information on the resume
• If you are entrusted with cash or large accounts – it is a big deal, be specific

Professor Schmidt's Home Page