SWE’s Career Fair Prep

1. SWE’s Career Fair Prep Resume Do’s and Don’ts

2. Schedule • January 30th, 2013 • 7:00-7:10 Sign in and Snacks7:10-7:20 Brief Introduction on Resume7:20-7:50 Alumni Panel and Q&A7:50-8:00 Open Questions8:00-8:30 Peer Review and Group Discussion

3. Brief Resume Introduction • Format and Examples • Action Words • Checklist • careers.usc.edu • Viterbi Career Services

4. Resume sections • Heading • Your name and contact information • Objective/Profile • Specific and positive statement of the type of opportunity you are seeking and its fit to your skill-set • Education • List of your education background (degrees, institution, date or expected date of graduation) • Relevant coursework • Skills • List of technical skills according to skill type (programming languages, lab equipment, etc.) • List of language fluency

5. Resume sections • Academic Projects • Highlighted list of academic project experience as relevant to the available opportunity • Work Experience • Summarized list of tasks and projects completed during a work opportunity • Focus on leadership, results and achievements • Affiliations/Leadership • Activities or organizational participation outside of the classroom that demonstrate transferable skills • Interests • Relevant activities that are unique and interesting

6. Header • Includes Name, Address, Phone Number and Email Tommy Trojan 555 Omaha Lane, Apt. B Los Angeles, CA 90089 213-740-1111 ttrojan@usc.edu Jane Bovard 3650 McClintock Ave 213-555-5555 Los Angeles, CA 90089 sharaz@hotmail.com

7. Objective • What types of positions are you seeking? Seeking a challenging position at a growth-oriented organization. Seeking a summer internship in technical support to apply my interpersonal skills and two years professional experience in customer service.

8. education • MS in Electrical Engineering GPA: 3.2 • University of Southern California Expected 5/2014 • Los Angeles, CA • BS in Electrical Engineering GPA: 3.5 • University of Southern California Expected 5/2012 • Los Angeles, CA • Relevant Coursework: • Mixed-Signal Integrated Circuit Design Linear Control Systems • Optical Fiber Communications Systems Principles of Radar

9. skills • Highlight tools and languages unique to your skill set • Technical Skills • Programming Languages, Software Applications, Lab Equipment • Language Proficiency (verbal)

10. Work experience & Academic projects • Office Assistant Sept 2011 – Present • USC Engineering Student Affairs • Data Entry • General Office Tasks Ozone Flight Sampler Fall 2011 Team Leader Collaborated with a team on the thermal design of reciprocating engine and rocket propulsions Optimized properties in order to reach upper stratosphere

11. Activities • What organizations and activities utilize your time? • Professional engineering organizations a must! • Campus & community involvement • Stress leadership roles in organized activities • Interests should be UNIQUE & INTERESTING

12. Action Words • Drive/Motivation/Results • accelerated, accomplished, achieved, attained, augmented, completed, compounded, contributed • Teaching/Counseling/Helping • coordinated, corrected, defined, demonstrated, designated, developed, directed, educated, elaborated, elicited, enabled, evaluated • Technical • Engineered, enhanced, enriched, excelled, exercised, exhibited, fabricated, familiarized, finalized, formed • Management/Leadership • accounted for, administered, analyzed, centralized, certified, chaired, changed, commissioned, committed, concluded • Organizational/Time Management • integrated, monitored, operated, organized, prepared, prioritized, processed, recorded • Quantitative/Research • investigated, involved, issued, judged, justified, led, licensed, linked, minimized, modified, organized

13. Checklist • My resume is clear, concise and makes a positive • impression in 30 seconds or less. • There are no spelling, grammar or punctuation errors. • My resume is one page. • My resume presents skills and accomplishments that • match employer requirements. • My resume accurately summarizes my qualifications. • Statements of job accomplishments on my resume start • with action verbs. • My resume is organized, easy to read and has a balance • between content and white space. • The type font is Times New Roman, Arial, Century, • Helvetica or Verdana. • The type size on my resume is 11 or 12 point and is • never smaller than 10 point.

14. Alumni Panel • Devon Shay (Signal Hill Petroleum) • Leslie Koehn (CAST Management Consultants) • Rachelle Radpour (The Boeing Company) • Melissa Allen (The Boeing Company)

15. What are the must HAVEs on a resume?

16. What are the must NOT have’s on a resume?

17. What is something good to have on a resume specifically for your industry?

18. What are the key words employers or the online filter systems are looking for?

19. Other than attending the career fair, what are other ways to find an internship?

20. What should I do if I don’t get a summer internship?

21. Peer Review