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Resume
Tips
The
Art Of Resume Writing
 A
resume has to be compact in style and organised in presentation;
It is not an autobiography. Therefore, it is important to identify
relevant details from the heap of information. Academic qualification,
professional experience and current job description are of primary
importance.
Resume
has to be simple and lucid in appearance. Avoid high-sounding
and formal language. Do not fill it with ins and outs of work
life. Give a chronological pattern in case of a continuous career.
Go as per skill-sets, if otherwise.
Here
are a few pointers to drafting a resume:
Name
and address: Write the first and the last names without indicating
marital status. The contact address must have residence telephone,
fax and e-mail and not office numbers. Specify if somebody else's
facilities are being used.
Work
experience: List the assignments beginning with the latest.
The challenges faced must reveal your forte. Divide the experience
in each organisation in to tenures and list the accomplishments
in a way that brings out the managerial expertise picked up by
you while on the job.
Education:
Give the academic qualifications especially if you are from prestigious
institutions and have had an exemplary academic record. Briefly
mention scholarships and medals. This is at the junior level.
At the senior level, give the details of professional qualifications
attained.
Personal
information: This is optional. Do not go over board on hobbies.
This gives an impression that personal interests supersede the
professional ones.
Additional
information: Details that might be relevant to employment
objectives but do not fit in any category are to be given in this.
Focus
on the following :
•
Depth and range of work experience
• Variety of projects undertaken
• Proven skills
• Type of companies worked for
• Current job profile
Strictly
avoid :
•
Reasons for leaving the current job -you can talk about it in
the interview only when asked.
• False information on the resume,
you are likely to get caught.
• Personal beliefs on communal
and political, racial and gender issues.
• Present and expected salary
details
• Spelling and grammar mistakes
• Verbose style
Program
Your Resume
The
good old paper resume is a trustworthy ally in any job search
process. You can check its contents over and over again to ensure
that everything is all right. You are certain that it will reach
the employer with the same contents.
With
electronic resumes, however, you cannot be so certain, for they
are quite unpredictable. For all you know, they may end up on
the employer's system as a tangled web of pictures, graphics,
and undecipherable characters. You are blissfully unaware of what
has happened, and are pleased with your neatly formatted work
of art.
What
can you do to minimise such mishaps? Just minimise the beautification.
Those of you who have spent a lot of time in doing exactly this,
worry not! You can use this formatting for the paper version.
The beautified resume can be sent as a word attachment to employers
who accept them in such a form. However, when pasting into your
e-mail or into a form on the company's website, formatting is
out!
Some
Tips on Formatting :
•
Don't use tabs, as they don't appear properly on e-mail. Your
resume ends up looking scrambled and the alignment disappears.
• Left alignment is perhaps
the best and simple solution to your formatting problems. Your
resume appears professional and neat.
• There is no need to use special
fonts or font size. Irrespective of how you format your file,
the font is likely to be the same for all of the text. The reason
is that text font is generally determined by the employer's e-mail
reader.
How
do you differentiate different sections in your file? You can
use capital letters or hard returns ("enter" key on
your keyboard). Capitals are easily translated in e-mail, while
hard returns provide spacing between paragraphs. You can use capitals
to indicate the titles and sub-headings.
"Pop"
Up
A
multitude of companies advertise openings on the net. The jobseeker
may feel that there are several companies, which accept resumes
by e-mail. In reality, however, the response rate for such applications
is dismal.
You
can however, beat the system to some extent by using the right
keywords. With the right arsenal of keywords, your resume can
pop up on the employer's screen. How does this happen? Most of
the job sites allow employer to search for resumes based on their
requirements. Based on the search word used, a list of resumes
is displayed, as in any other search process. For your resume
to appear in such a list, it must contain the keyword used.
Keywords
are the common words, which may be used by an employer to search
for resumes. How do you identify the keywords? The best answer
would be the advertisement. Include as many words from the advertisement
in your resume as you can, blending them meaningfully with the
body of the resume.
More importantly, be honest to yourself. Do not include terms
and words, which are not true to you! With the right combination
of keywords, you may just grab the employer's attention. So, just
go ahead and put in the magical word!
A Résumé that Talks Turkey
Whenever
you see good potential opportunities what do you do? Incorporate
subtle changes to your existing resumé and send it to the
employer? Its time we got out of the conventional way of writing
a resumé. A brief, concise resumé that is not contradictory
is what is needed. A resumé reflects what you have accomplished
so far. Make your resumé in accordance with the job profile
you are applying for. Companies invest quite an amount in recruiting
people and would expect a detailed resumé profiling all
that they are looking for.
It
is not very interesting to go through a four-page resumé
no matter how many achievements you have to your credit. Nobody
will tolerate a CV more than three pages long!
Tips
for an effective resume
• 'Resumé or 'Curriculum
Vitae' nicely centred at the top of the first page. (What else
can it be!)
• Do not begin any statement
with the word 'I'
• Avoid using bright, eye-catching
paper - red, pink, yellow, or green or a quaint font to print
your resumé. It does not look attractive!
• Do not tape or staple the
resumé to the inside of the envelope so that it won't `fall
out.' It can be very irritating!
• Ensure the inclusion of address
and telephone number on your resumé, and in case of a change
of address do mention so but not by writing on the resumé
or on the back of the envelope.
• A clear, descriptive resumé
puts you across as a good communicator. Be specific in what you
need to tell to your potential employer.
• A resumé is not just
a document of credentials, it is the most powerful channel between
you and your potential employer.
• It should tell him everything
that you want him to know about you without making it sound dull.
• A resumé should cover
everything about yourself that is relevant to the job on offer
and just touch upon your skills in other areas.
As
a professional you will be responsible for strategic decisions
and activities, and it is imperative that your resume reflects
this. Ensure that your resumé has the readability factor
and is information packed.
Congratulations,
you've just been offered the job!
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