Thursday, October 18, 2007

Resume Writing Advice

If you find yourself struggling to condense your background skills and work history into a two-page Word document, there are plenty of tips to follow to perfect your resume. Resume writing isn’t a black and white process and at times, the best format to follow is one fine-tuned to fit your personality. Remember, on top of highlighting your greatest accomplishments, there are a few commonalities all resumes should have.

• Include your email address in your contact information: Many employers don’t have time to give you a ring and prefer jotting you a quick note via email.

• If you do give out an email address, make sure it’s a professional one. Nothing kills your chances of receiving a potential callback more than an email address like ‘SassyPrincess.'

• Always customize your ‘Objective’ or ‘Jobs Applying For,’ especially if this is the only field you change in the document for each position you apply for.

• Try only to include relevant employment skills. For instance, if you’re applying for a position in sales, it’s probably unnecessary to mention your summer camp counseling job you’ve held for the past three summers.

• If you want to include your experience as a camp counselor, try to weed out the skills you acquired, such as ‘Managed kids’ awards ceremony’ or something to that effect.

• Have a few people proofread your resume and do run a spell check.

• Before you go ahead and include references, be sure to check with those individuals, to be sure they even remember you and your work ethic.

• Always include a cover letter with your resume. Even if your future employer doesn’t read it, it shows you made the extra effort.

• Bullet important information and bold each resume header. When we read, we tend to skim, and so does your dream job’s HR recruiter. Make it easy for them to glance over your important information!

Last but not least, it’s vital to keep your resume to a readable length. No one wants to peruse a novel when they’re wading through a thousand-some resumes. StarReviews cites resume writing services such as Resume Edge pair you with a professional resume writer, who edits your resume to better your chances of snagging an interview. Presenting your experience and skills professionally is key in making your job hunt a success.

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