• Focuses on aspects of your background most relevant to your current job objective
• Addresses the employers needs and how he/she will benefit by hiring you
• Is a marketing tool; a way to spark an employer’s curiosity and interest in you
• Gets your foot in the door – Increases your likelihood of getting a job interview

How Do I Begin?
The resume is an important, primary tool of a job search that should receive a significant amount of your time and attention, and may take several drafts to prepare competently. The best resumes are often written by people who have a focused career objective, and can effectively communicate to employers, the qualifications that demonstrate their suitability for that objective. It is important that you are aware of what skills, education, and personal qualities are needed for jobs that interest you, so you can decide if these requirements match your own abilities and needs. Many people will develop more than one resume, each targeting different types of employment opportunities.

Which resume format should I use?
There are 3 main resume styles. Choose the one most effective in presenting your qualifications:

Chronological - Most traditional style and most preferred by employers
Best for those with an impressive work history in their field of interest
Effective for people staying within the same field or climbing the career ladder
Useful for new college graduates
Focuses on employment history and education
Experience and education are listed in reverse chronological order

Functional - Viewed skeptically by some employers preferring a more traditional approach
Best for those who have limited work experience in their field of interest
Appropriate for career changers or frequent job changers
Effective for people returning to the work force with employment gaps
Emphasizes skills developed through academic/volunteer/work experiences
Downplays unrelated work experience, stressing transferable job skills
Clusters one's education, experience, and activities into skill categories

Combination - An increasingly popular choice, preferred over the functional format
Effective for people with widely varied experiences
Suitable when experiences are limited or not clearly related to job objective
Used by new college grads with relevant leadership/internship positions
Combines the elements of the chronological and functional resume types
Highlights marketable skills by summarizing strengths at the beginning
Places vital experiences in reverse chronology, after qualifications summary

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RESUME WRITING OUTLINE

What are the parts of a resume?
There is no one perfect way to write a resume. The focus of your resume will determine what contents to include and how to arrange the topic headings.  The following resume outline represents a summary of typical resume topics and contents. Click on individual topic headings to view more detailed instructions and examples of how you can present this information in a highly effective way.

• Present/Campus Address (if applicable): Institution, Street, City, State, Zip Code, Area Code and Phone #
• Permanent Address: Street, City, State, Zip Code, Area Code & Phone #
• May include e-mail address, fax number, or web site address (if it's professional and relevant to your objective)

The objective should be current, concise, focused on your career goals, and directed to as targeted an audience as possible. If desired, you can name a specific job title and employer you wish to target.

EDUCATION: (Don’t include high school)

• Degree, institution name & location (city, state), graduation date or date expected (month, year)
• Major, Minor (and concentration if appropriate), Cumulative GPA or GPA in major (optional) –  list if 3.0 or >
• Academic awards/honors/scholarships – Note if based on academic performance or faculty nomination
• Relevant current certifications/licenses (list dates) or program endorsements by professional associations
• All teaching certifications (include states, grade levels, subject, and special areas certified in)
• Relevant coursework outside of your major or unique to your major program
• Percentage of educational expenses personally financed, if significant (traditional age students only)
• Consider a section heading called "Educational Highlights" or "Special Projects" 

• May include related full-time and part-time work, volunteer, campus/community activities, and internships
• List experiences in reverse chronological order within related categories
• Record title held, name of organization, location (city, state, and country if not USA), and dates of employment or participation.
• Begin statements with action skill words, using telegram rather than narrative writing style 
• List major duties only - Highlight skills and knowledge most relevant to your objective 
• Use the SIR approach to portray chief accomplishments, achievements, and results 

• List significant memberships and leadership roles, including offices held (note if elected or appointed)
• Include title (if appropriate), name of organization/team/club, awards or honors, and dates involved
• Describe major responsibilities, achievements, and results 

• Computer Skills – Software applications, languages, hardware, operating systems, & Internet experience
• Foreign Language Skills – Level of speaking, reading, & writing fluency (basic, intermediate, proficient)
• Technical or Laboratory Skills – List those relevant to the particular job sought

OTHER CATEGORY OPTIONS

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Resume Writing Detailed Guide

Your name and contact information should be clearly visible at the top of the resume. Also, your name and the page number should be placed at the top of any additional resume pages.

Back to the Outline of Resume Parts

Your objective is like the thesis statement of a term paper. It establishes your viewpoint regarding your career direction and goals. When formulating your objective, consider these points:

The objective can be broken into three parts:
What I want to do - describes the type of work you desire and can be as general as "a sales position", or as specific as " a management position in retail operations at a major telecommunications company".
What I can do - illustrates the things you can do for a company or your job performance strengths, such as "organize and plan meetings " or "install and maintain software".
How I'll be an asset - states the results that you'll achieve for the employer, such as "improve productivity" or "ensure good customer relations".

Examples of job objectives that combine these three parts might be:

• A position in management accounting, requiring skills in financial planning, analysis, and systems operations, where I can contribute to the profitable growth of an organization.

• A graphic design position where I can utilize my related education and skills to meet client needs.

• A paralegal position at McNeil and Associates, where proven knowledge of real estate law and practice is needed to meet law firm objectives.

You may choose to state your objective, using one or a combination of these parts. However, most employers prefer to see that you have focused career goals and targeted interests. Avoid using vague statements like, "A challenging position in a growing company", as this indicates a lack of career direction and focuses on what you're hoping the company will do for you. Remember, employers are more interested in what you can do for them.

If you state an objective on your resume, be sure it’s current and concise. If you’re considering more broad or diverse job options, you may decide to omit the job objective statement. As an alternative, you may discuss your career interests in the accompanying cover letter or prepare more than one resume using different objectives.

Regardless of your approach, initially preparing a statement of objective will help simplify the writing of your resume. Everything on the remainder of your resume should support your objective. When deciding whether or not to include various topics or background information, ask yourself, "Does this information support my objective statement?" and, "Have I prioritized my qualifications, placing those most relevant to my objective first?"

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EDUCATION

Place your education in the first section of the resume, if it is related to your objective and has been obtained within the last few years. As your work experience increases, place education in a subsequent section. List in reverse chronological order, all college, university, and professional school data. Refer to the RESUME OUTLINE for recommended content.

Consider using a section called "Educational Highlights" or "Special Projects" to describe any relevant research studies or projects developed through coursework. Examples:
Guidance Services: Designed model career development program for eighth graders, utilizing state comprehensive guidance and counseling guidelines to assess and explore student career interests.
Environmental Biology: Conducted extensive research on solid waste management; interviewed state, city, and county representatives; analyzed political elements inherent in environmental decision making; presented findings to class of 50 in a lecture and open debate format.

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Use this section to showcase responsibilities, abilities, transferable skills, and accomplishments that qualify you for the job. Possible sources of relevant experiences to consider including are: 

• Full-time, part-time, and summer jobs

• Internships and Co-ops

• Volunteer work

• Student teaching, practicum, and field work experience

• Research and teaching assistantships

• Study/work/travel abroad

• Student/community organizations - active participation & leadership roles

List experiences in reverse chronological order within categories. You can use different headings to group related experiences together. Doing so, will allow you to prioritize your most relevant skills, by putting them in categories closer to the top of the resume, so they're read first. Examples:

• EXPERIENCE
• PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
• WORK HISTORY
• RELATED EXPERIENCE
• VOLUNTEER EXPERIENCE or LEADERSHIP ACTIVITIES
• STUDENT TEACHING, INTERNSHIP, or CO-OPERATIVE EXPERIENCE
• (career field) EXPERIENCE (i.e. BUSINESS EXPERIENCE, COUNSELING EXPERIENCE)

TIPS FOR PREPARING YOUR EXPERIENCE SECTION: (refer also to RESUME OUTLINE)

1. Include a brief summary of your major job/volunteer responsibilities

2. Use well known buzz words and industry jargon related to your career field

3. Highlight accomplishments that illustrate your expertise, strengths, and contributions, which are most relevant to your objective. Ask yourself, "What challenges did I face?" and "What solutions did I find?" Use the following SIR formula approach:
   S = the situation or challenge you faced
   I = your input to resolve the situation or contribute to the organization
   R = the quantitative or qualitative results which measure your achievements
   For example, if you were an employer sorting through resumes, would you prefer to interview the candidate who merely listed duties? –
   ~ Conducted both individual and group counseling; Assisted with eating disorders program"  
   Or would you select the applicant who qualified his/her abilities with specifics and proven results? -- -SIR approach -
   ~ Conducted individual counseling of dual disorder (chemical dependency and mental illness) clients; Developed and implemented the center’s first Domestic Violence Men’s Group, enhancing abuser’s anger management and communication skills; Revised eating disorder program to include prevention and education for patients’ family and friends, increasing support group awareness and producing a 30% decrease in reported annual cases.

You and your competition may have similar work and/or educational backgrounds. Emphasizing your unique successes and strengths will allow your resume to stand out above the rest.

Back to the Outline of Resume Parts

QUALIFICATIONS SUMMARY / SKILLS PROFILE - Used to condense an extensive work history or highlight transferable skills, using brief keyword phrases to emphasize important qualifications.
PRESENTATIONS / PUBLICATIONS / RESEARCH - List titles, dates, and biographical info WORKSHOPS & CONFERENCES ATTENDED - List dates, location, & title of relevant workshops

• Make your resume concise (1-2 pages preferred), neat, well spaced, and visually appealing

• Use consistent grammar structures and verb tenses (previous jobs/past tense, current jobs/present tense)

• When describing relevant experience, avoid the use of personal pronouns like "I" .

• Proofread your resume for spelling, punctuation, and grammar errors that employers will view negatively

• Let one of our career center counselors, faculty, or career field expert, critique your completed resume

                                                                          
CAREER DEVELOPMENT CENTER RESOURCES (available on loan)

Videos & handouts on Resume Preparation                     The New Perfect Resume, 1996
Videos & handouts on Electronic Resume Writing            101 Grade A Resumes for Teachers, 1998
Conquer Resume Objections, 1994                                  Resumes in Cyberspace, 1997