beyond the basics resume tips

Beyond The Basics

Resume Tips

Table of ContentsIts a Crowded Market

Part 1 | Types of Resumes

Part 2 | Keyword Resumes (An Introduction)

Part 3 | Recent Graduates Resume Tips

Final Thoughts

Take Away Checklist

Tell Us What You Think

Contact Us

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2 | Beyond The Basics Resume Tips everydayinterviewtips.com

Make the first impression with your resume. Employers do not get to see your smiling face or fancy outfit. They do not

get to feel your firm handshake or listen to your confident voice. Employers see nothing but a piece of paper with your

name at the top in large, bold letters followed by a number of words indicating your viability for the job. Without that

piece of paper, most companies would not know you exist.

Introduction


There is more to learn about resumes than the stuff you find on most job tip websites.

Its a Crowded Market

Did you know there is more than one type of resume?

Did you know that hiring managers now use computer programs to search through resumes?

Did you know there are specific resume tips for graduates that can help them win over an employer?

The Internet is filled with basic tips and tricks for creating a great resume. You can find information on formatting,

action verbs, and other generic resume tips that are important for getting your resume noticed. There is a wealth of

information available online and in books that can assist you in generating an effective resume.

Yet many of these books only cover the basics. For example, these books often recommend the importance of

keeping your resume under a page, and also writing an effective objective statement. However, these are common

resume tactics that they teach in college. There are several additional resume tips that may be beneficial for recent

graduates. For example:

In this guide, we will show you some of the additional resume tips available, and hopefully provide you with

useful information that will help you find a job.


Types of Resumes1

Chronological ResumeMost of you have created a resume in the past. Chances are it was designed like so:

Objective Statement

Education

Work History

Skills/Awards, Volunteer, etc.

Some people switch education and work history, and others will not have a skills or volunteer experience section on

their resume, but in general your resume is going to keep to that format. Work history also has a set structure. The

most recent job is listed at the top (along with services performed), followed by previously held positions at other

companies.

This type of resume is called a Chronological Resume. Chronological resumes have your work history listed

counter-chronologically by company. This means listing the most recent work history at the top. Most employers are

used to receiving chronological resumes from their applicants.


Skill Based ResumeChronological resumes are not your only option. There is another type of

resume called a Skill Based Resume. Skill based resumes do not focus on

dates or jobs. Skill based resumes focus on skills. The main difference between

a Skill Based and Chronological Resume is in the work history section. A typical

work history looks like so:

It may not be that useful

yet, but a skill based

resume may be the best

way to find a job as you

expand your work

history.

Work Experience

2008-2010 StudyCorp,Inc. Tacoma,Wa

Study-Crop,Inc is company that Supplies in depth Personality research Statistics to market research companies across the country. While at Study-Crop,I

Performed daily research tasks including daily data checks sa needed.

Research Associate

2003-2006 tacoma Grocery Company Tacoma.WA

This job required a strong attention to details and organization, the ability to multitask,and a personal Responsibility to both the employer and the

customer.This job greatly increased my conversational and interpersonal skills as well as my work ethic and motivation. Location in the center of a major

urban area, I had experience with members of every social class, and the interpersonal skills Ive refined will become invaluable in my future career as a

research associate.

Cashier

The information is listed pretty straight forward. The first position is your most recent job. The second position is your

next most recent joband so on.

Skill based resumes take an entirely different approach. Chronological resumes show when you held the job, but skill

based resumes only worry about the skills you have. Below is a sample of the work history portion of a skill based

resume:


Successfully ran 20 research studies with varying age, gender and

socio-economic classes.

Coordinated with leading research in the field.

Provided weekly summaries to executives.

Skills

Research Management

Single-handedly led research staff of five.

Central responsibilities for research completion.

Worked on deadline with multi-lingual research staff.

Leadership

Proficient in endnote, Salesforce,Survey Monkey and SPSS.

Knowledgeable of Microsoft,office,PowerPoint,Excel,Access and

Technology

Published three professional research papers.

Managed multi-country research cooperation.

Identified five new variables for future research.

Named Tacomas Next Generation research leader in Sea Tac Magazine.

Earned Company $450.000 in extra revenue during the 2009 fiscal year.

Microsoft office Project.

Achievements

Research Assistant -2009-2010 Assistant Research Associate-2008-2009

Employment HistoryStudyCorp, LCC-tacoma, Washington -2008-2010

In a chronological resume, you would list the office manager job

first. All of the important information about what you

accomplished as a Research Assistant at StudyCorp is pushed

lower down on the page, which gives the visual impression that

you worked at the job a long time ago.

On a skill based resume, the skills you have learned are lumped

together and it does not matter if you worked at the job last

month or twenty years ago. For example, if you led a research

staff of 5 in 1991 at a different company, it would still appear on

top on a skill based resume.

The most important

difference to note is that

none of the skills or

a c h i e v e m e n t s i s

associated with the job

at StudyCorp. Lets say

you held another job

a f t e r w o r k i n g a t

StudyCorp as an office

manager at a local

doctors office.


Skill based resumes are

designed to be

deceiving, but that

deception is often more

accurate than the truth.

Benefits of a Skill Based Resume

Weaknesses of a Skill Based Resume

The primary benefit of skill based resumes is that it takes away the when and

focuses on the what. If you know how to use Microsoft OneNote, it does not matter

if you learnt how to use it at your current job or back in college. If you have

management experience, it does not matter if you were a manager at your last job or

at a job you had 5 years ago. Skill based resumes also allow you to cut down the

number of jobs on your resume while focusing instead on your achievements and

experiences that are relevant to the employer. They are also useful for people

making a career change. They allow you to highlight the similarities between the

jobs rather than the differences.

Skill based resumes are not generally designed for recent graduates. They are used

most often by people who:

Switch careers

Have held a lot of jobs in the past

Have a long period of time without employment

Accomplished a lot at jobs from the distant past

Nevertheless, skill based resumes are useful to know. If your work history does not

look impressive in a chronological format, see if it might look better in a skill based

format. If you worked and also did an internship during college, you may find that a

skill based resume allows you to show off your achievements in a much better way

than a chronological resume.


Millions of people across the globe are looking for work. At the same time, the internet allows employers to reach an

enormous number of job seekers. This means that every job posted may receive as many as one hundred

applications or more.

This incredible volume of applications has caused hiring managers to turn to new ways of reviewing resumes.

Reviewing 100 or more resumes by hand is simply not possible, especially in larger businesses with large scale hiring

needs. Employers have turned to resume database systems to speed up the process.

Resume databases work like any database. Once the employer receives the resume, they import the information into

the database, where it becomes a part of a larger set of resume data. When the employer is ready to search for

candidates, they will enter search terms into the computerized search program and all of the resumes that contain

those search terms will come up in the search results. The employer will then print out those resumes for review, and

call the applicants in for an interview.

How Do They Work?

Keyword Resumes (Introduction) 2

Keywords: Words or phrases of interest to the searcher. A single keyword can be more than one word.


Keyword Optimizing Your Resume

How to Keyword Optimize

It is a good idea to keyword optimize your resume. Most resumes do not have many

keywords. Traditional resumes tend to use facts and figures (increased efficiency

by 50%), or use a number of verbs (Coordinated, Achieved, etc.). Employers do

not search for verbs. Employers search for nouns. They will search for words like

HTML and Lead Generation. They will search for nouns that are useful for the

position.

It is useful to note that keywords help improve your resume even if it is not placed in

one of these computerized search programs. If an employer is looking for someone

who has Project Management experience, for example, project management terms

in your resume will help your resume stand out.

Keyword optimization is an art form. You need to strike the delicate balance

between maintaining a resume that highlights your strengths while containing

nouns and keywords that help your resume show up in a search.

To find useful keywords, you should first review the job posting. Knowledge

requirements usually indicate useful keywords. You should also review similar jobs

posted on other websites. Chances are you will find additional keywords that were

not listed on the available job description.

As you are writing your resume, keep these keywords in mind. Incorporate them into

your resume where you can. There is no need to overdo it, but it will improve your

chances of showing up in a keyword search and piquing the interest of the people

that view your resume.

Look at other job

descriptions for keyword

inspiration.


Recent Graduates Resume Tips3

Parts 1 and 2 are resume tips that may not affect your resumes now, but are likely to play a greater role in the future.

Recent graduates need to change their resumes now in order to find employment. Here are some tips for recent

graduates on how to properly create a resume that helps you stand out in todays tough economy.

Your education is a tremendous benefit. Throughout your college years you generated documents, participated in

Research and internships, learned advanced concepts in the field and more. Your work history may be lacking, but

your educational history is both fresh and relevant.

Consider expanding your education section as though it were a work history section. If you were a marketing major,

did you learn to create marketing documents? Which types? If you studied communications, did you work with online

media? What did you do? Did you take any advanced classes that will give you an edge in the job? What were those

classes?

These are all pieces of information that are relevant to the job. If you programmed a database in an informatics class

and you are applying for a job as a database programmer, you should mention it in your resume. If you are applying for

a job in economics and took a few graduate level economics classes as electives, you should mention those too. Your

education is extremely relevant and you should milk it for all its worth.

Tips for Graduates

1. Focus on education


Listing every summer job youve ever had is not going to help your chances.


2. GPA/TER etc.. is Optional

3. Keep Work History Short

4. Bring Your Resume with You to the Interview

Graduates have a tendency to want to share their GPA with employers. Employers do not really care what your GPA

was unless it is exceptional. If you received a 3.8+ as your cumulative grade, or 3.8+ in the classes in your major, that is

worth mentioning. If you received a 3.3, that may be a great accomplishment, but it will not help you win the position.

Leave GPA out unless it is truly something worth mentioning.

Many graduates worked several odd jobs during college to pay for clothes, books, tuition, alcohol and other

expenses. It is tempting to put them all on the resume to show employers that you have a long work history despite

your young age. Dont get too carried away. If you worked part time for a pizza delivery service, and you are applying

to a job as a financial accountant, they probably do not care about whether or not you were able to deliver the pizza in

30 minutes or less.It is useful to show employers that you have held a job before. If pizza delivery service was your only job, it may be

useful to put it on your resume. However, if you worked in pizza delivery and held a part time job as a paid intern for a

financial accountant, leave the pizza job off of your resume. Removes the extra words your resume. However, if you

worked in pizza delivery and held a part time job as a paid intern for a financial accountant, leave the pizza job off of

your resume.

One final tip for graduates is to bring along several printed versions of your resume with you to the interview.

Employers like to see a young person take initiative. Bringing your resume to the interview is a sign of professionalism.

Employers appreciate recent graduates who act professional and it will be easier for you to discuss your resume with

the employers without inconveniencing them.

You can change your world by changing your words... Joel Osteen

Overall Graduate Tips

Final Thoughts

Your resume is not going to be much different than a seasoned worker. You should emphasize your education to

make up for anything left out of your work history. You should only put relevant/important jobs as part of your work

history (though try to put at least one job, If you had one). You should bring your resume to the interview and only

mention GPA if it is truly impressive.

You spent roughly four years of your life earning a degree designed to help you find employment in todays tough job

market. Yet there is still more work to be done. You need to get yourself noticed. You need to have a resume that

draws peoples attention. You need to tailor your resume for the job you are applying for.

When you create your resume, it is important to remember that there are different types of resumes available;

keywords are important, and there are specific tips for graduates that can help your resume impress employers.

Follow these tips and you will find yourself taking your first steps towards your new career.


Take Away ChecklistOne final thing - it is a good idea to go through the checklist below and see what you can remember. If you can

remember the details without going back through this document, good job! You are already a step ahead of other

candidates.


Check to see if you would benefit from a skill based resume.

Check for keywords when you write your resume.

Check the job description of the open position.

Check related job descriptions for additional keywords.

Write your resume and add keywords when applicable.

Expand your education section if your work history is not very relevant to the job.

Omit odd jobs and GPA unless applicable.

Bring multiple printed versions of your resume to the interview.

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beyond the basics resume tips

Documents

type of resume

effective resume

great resume

generic resume tips

specific resume tips

common resume tactics

basic tips

resumechronological