Effective Resumes and Cover Letters

1. Effective Resumes and Cover Letters Presented by Renee Burrell Career Counselor

2. Overview of Resumes • Resume Purpose and Function • Resume Components • Resume Content • Resume Formats • Resume Do’s and Don’ts

3. Resume Purpose and Function • Summary of relevant experience, education, and skills • Utilized for a variety of reasons, but typically to apply for a job • An opportunity to interest an employer, introduce yourself, and get an interview • Marketing tool tailored to each position

4. Resume Components (required) • 3 sections must be included: • Contact Information • Education • Experience

5. Resume Components (optional) • Several optional sections can be included • Most popular for college graduates: • Objective • Study Abroad • Volunteer Experience • Extracurricular Activities • Skills

6. Contact Information • Name, address, phone number, and email • Can use local and permanent address • Make sure voicemail and email are professional • Can include LinkedIn profile, Twitter, Blog if appropriate • Located at top of resume

7. Education • Include degree, degree awarding institution, and expected graduation date • Include GPA if over 3.5 • Can include study abroad experience, special coursework, thesis and honors and awards • Do not include high school, community college is optional

8. Experience • Include job title, name of company, location, dates of employment, description of responsibilities & results produced • Doesn’t have to be paid experience • Unpaid internships, volunteer experience, class projects, student organization work • Include information that supports job objective – be specific

9. Experience cont’d • Use accomplishment statements to describe experience: P.A.R. (Problem-Action-Result) • Did you: • Achieve same results with fewer resources? • Improve a task, function or process? • Initiate a new undertaking? • Surpass accepted standards?

10. Accomplishment Statements • Emphasize accomplishments related to target job • Action verb + Object + Context+ Results Produced • Quantify whenever possible • Ex: “Improved service efficiency and customer satisfaction by 20% by streamlining responses to customer requests” • Ex: “Managed $3,500 budget for Associated Students group for 2010-2011 academic year, resulting in 20% increase in events offered to students.”

11. Objective • Concise and specific • Include position and organization • Can mention a few qualifications • Not necessary if job objective is obvious • Locate under contact information above education • Ex: To obtain a network consulting internship with AT&T, utilizing my programming skills, Internet experience, and creative talent.

12. Skills • Most common skills listed Computer and Languages • Languages : Specify language and degree of fluency (Fluent, Conversational or Basic) • Computer: Name both hardware and software and skill level (Proficient, Intermediate or Basic) • Skill section located at bottom of resumes

13. Summary of Qualifications Content • Typically a list of qualifications describing training, years of relevant experience, and projects developed related to objective • Best used for someone with at least 5 years Professional Experience • Located at top to draw immediate attention to relevant skills

14. Resume Formats • 3 Types of formats • Chronological • Functional • Hybrid • Chose a format that best highlights relevant qualifications for position

15. Chronological • Lists experience in reverse chronological order: most recent position to least recent • Highlights accomplishments within each position • Works best when experience related to objective • Not recommended for individuals with employment gaps or lack of experience • Recruiters/employers often prefer this format

16. Functional • Experienced grouped under skill headings • Accomplishments are listed in order of relevance rather than chronological • Draws attention to accomplishments rather than job titles • Good choice for career changers or gaps in employment history • Work history is listed at the bottom

17. Hybrid • Combination of Chronological and Functional format • Experience described in reverse chronological order under Skill Heading groups (Teaching, Counseling) • Works well if there are themes to experience • Employers can easily identify relevant skill sets

18. Resume Do’s • Use active verbs to describe accomplishments (initiated, coordinated) • Target your resume to each position • Use BOLD, underline,italics and bullet points to highlight areas to emphasize • Limit your resume to one page if a new grad or if limited experience • Proofread, Proofread, Proofread! – check for grammar or spelling mistakes

19. Resume Don’ts • Don’t include personal information (social security number, marital status, citizenship, etc.) • Don’t include hobbies (unless relevant), political, or religious affiliations • Don’t include references (use a separate page) • Don’t include salary history • Don’t use a difficult to read font style and size • Don’t make margins too small. Skinny jeans are in, but skinny margins are NOT!

20. Cover Letter Overview • Purpose and Function • Content • Format

21. Purpose and Function • Supplement and clarify your resume • Demonstrate how your experience fits the specific job description – Target! Target! Target! • Exhibit your enthusiasm and knowledge of the company

22. Content • 3-4 Paragraphs with the following: • Opening Paragraph: include position, how you heard about opening, and summary of interest in company and how you make a good fit • Middle Paragraph(s): Describe 2-3 of most relevant accomplishments. (use examples) • Final Paragraph: Reiterate your interest, thank them for consideration, request an interview, and include contact information

23. Middle Paragraph To ensure you have highlighted most relevant qualifications in the middle paragraph(s) create a list like this first: Company Needs • 2 + years agency and/or Corporate PR experience • B.A. in Public Relations or Communications • Strong research and writing skills • Relevant media knowledge My Qualifications • Over 2 years PR agency experience with Graham and Associates and Wunderman San Francisco • B.A., Communications May 2010 • Researched and composed 25+ press releases and 6 byline articles per year • Created and maintained highly successful media relationships (print, web, radio, TV): Fast Company, Red Herring, MIT, Technology Review, NPR, KGO, KFOG, Yahoo.com

24. Format • 1 page in Business Correspondence format • Contact information at top • Date of letter • Employer name, title and mailing address • Salutation Line w/Dear Mr., Ms., Dr.,_________ or Dear Hiring Manager or Members of the Selection Committee • Your signature at the bottom or typed name if electronic correspondence

25. Cover Letter Don’ts • Repeat verbatim the information in your resume. • Hint that you are interested in virtually any job with that organization. • Give a summary of your life, values, goals, etc. longer than 50 words. • Describe, what the company can do for you • Overuse the pronoun “I”. • Explain why you left your last job or want to leave your present one. • Use a form letter and just change the company name.

26. References • On a separate piece of paper type the names, addresses, phone number, and email address of your references. • DO NOT include this page with your resume- you will provide this when employers request it. • It is also a good idea to give your references a current copy of your resume. • Always obtain permission from potential references before giving out their names