Resumes

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Resumes Cover Letters

• Internship Career Services CenterNorth
  Carolina Wesleyan College

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Whats the purpose?

• A cover letters purpose is to get your resume
  read.
• A résumé's purpose is to get you an interview.

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Resumes
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What is a resume?

• Your personal commercial
• Should present you and your skills in the best
  light
• First impression!! (and maybe your only one)
• Should be to the point
• Should be targeted

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How to start

• Review your personal information and experience.
• Start with a blank piece of paper, not a
  template, and list each item that has relevance.
• Go for volume here and focus on details and
  specifics. You will condense this information
  later.

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Resume Basics

• One page (unless you are far into your career)
• Free of mistakes and typos
• Clean and crisp format with items listed in order
  of relevance
• Consistency in alignment and emphasis (bold,
  italics, capitals, underline, punctuation, font)
• Action verbs
• Bullets
• Conservative, fine paper
• Conservative fonts and graphics

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Formatting

• Chronological
• Lists employment history in chronological order
  (most recent first)
• Recommended if you have relevant experience
• Functional
• Lists skills rather than specific jobs held, no
  dates
• Not recommended
• Combination
• Lists skills in categories as well as employment
  history
• Recommended if you do not have relevant
  experience but do have many transferable skills
  or if you have had many similar jobs

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What makes up a resume?

• Header
• Objective (optional)
• Education
• Experience
• Special Skills
• College/Community/Personal Involvement
• Interests and Activities
• ? A resume is a highly personal document so you
  may or may not choose to use all of these
  categories. You may even need to add some unique
  categories of your own.

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Other Possible Sections

• Military Experience
• Honors and Awards
• Professional Affiliations
• Computer/Technical Skills
• Community Involvement/Service
• Executive Summary/Profile
• Languages
• Activities/Interests

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Header

• Includes contact information
• Name
• Address (current permanent)
• Phone (Is your voicemail appropriate?)
• Email (something basic like jwarren_at_hotmail.com
  not msthang_at_aol.com or even preacherdaughter_at_juno.
  com)
• Examples

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Objective

• State the position you are seeking.
• This can be specific to mention a specific job
  title or general, mentioning the the type of
  position you are seeking but not with a company
  name.
• Can be eliminated if the resume is full but MUST
  be in mind when creating the resume.
• Use wording like To obtain or simply say
  Internship in.

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Examples of Objectives

• An Assistant Programmer position with Computech
  Consulting.
• Specific must change for every company
• A laboratory position using strong research and
  observation skills.
• General can be sent to multiple employers
• An internship in the management field that will
  allow me to utilize and expand on my skills in
  organization and communication.
• General can be sent to multiple employers
• A position which will allow me to use my
  education and experience to contribute to your
  companys mission.
• Poor (much too broad)

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Education

• Most recent degree first
• Educational institution location
• Major/minor/concentration
• Use correct wording!!! (Bachelor of Arts NOT
  Bachelors of Arts)
• Date degree granted (or anticipated)
• GPA
• Can list cumulative and major
• Do not list if it is not 3.0 or better
• Study abroad and academic honors

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Education (continued)

• Relevant Coursework
• Add if you dont have much experience
• High school information not needed
• Can include military training if relevant
• Examples

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Experience

• Relevant experience listed in reverse
  chronological order (most recent 1st)
• Can list paid or non-paid experiences
• Full or part-time work
• Volunteer work
• Internships
• Include your title, employer name and location
  (city, state), dates, and duties
• Focus on functions you performed, skills you
  gained, and any accomplishments
• Use numbers and figures when possible

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Experience (continued)

• Action verbs
• Bulleted list of most important points
• Past tense for former positions
• Quantify whenever possible

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Experience (continued)

• How can these be worded more effectively?
• Responsible for staff
• Hired, trained, and supervised a staff of 14
  computer operators
• Duties included writing and editing
• Designed, wrote, and edited promotional materials
  including brochures and instruction manuals
• Examples

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Special Skills

• This is the place to list special skills you have
  that were not mentioned in your employment
  history.
• Languages you speak/write
• Computer skills
• Laboratory skills
• Other special skills and/or licenses
• You may decide to divide these categories into
  their own sections

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Involvement

• List involvement you have had outside of the
  workplace that is relevant to your field. This
  can include college and/or community
  organizations.
• Name of organization
• Role you played (offices held, accomplishments,
  etc.)
• Dates of involvement
• Description of organization (if its not clear)

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What not to include

• Personal information
• References
• False or embellished information

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Preparation

• Prepare your resume in a word processing program
  without using a template or wizard. These tools
  may appear convenient but they are difficult to
  work with when you need to tailor your resume to
  your needs.
• Review your resume to determine whether the
  format is clear and consistent.
• Proofread and ask others familiar with your field
  to look over it. The ICSC offers this service!

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Preparation (continued)

• Make any final changes based on feedback from
  others to ensure your resume is error free.
  Errors on your resume will give the impression to
  employers that you make errors in all of your
  work.
• Keep your resume up to date and make adjustments
  as needed when applying for varying positions.
• Save an electronic file of all versions you
  create.

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Final Touches

• Print your resume on fine paper (24lb. cotton
  bond paper) in a neutral color (pure white,
  cream, ecru, beige, grey). Be sure to use a good
  printer to avoid smears.
• Use same paper for cover letter.
• Include abbreviated heading on all pages of
  resume (or add a footer).
• Add page numbers if more than one page.
• Never staple or fold use large envelopes

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References

• Never include these on the resume
• References available upon request is not
  needed on the resume
• Place references on separate page with all
  contact information listed
• List about 4-5 varied individuals who you are
  CERTAIN will provide glowing references
• Example

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ICSC Resume Review

• Email completed resumes cover letters to
  jwarren_at_ncwc.edu or use the Review Center
  option in Optimal Resume.
• Include a mention of the type of work you are
  hoping to obtain.

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Cover Letters
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Cover Letter Essentials

• Professional, personable, and direct
• MUST be relevant to the position desired
• Address to a specific person
• NEVER to whom it may concern
• Include your contact information
• Write a unique letter for every position
• Try to mention skills listed in the job
  announcement and match them to your skills
• Limit to one page

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Break-Down

• Introduction Paragraph how you found the
  position (any name that referred you)
• Middle Paragraph highlight your skills and how
  these match the position (can use a chart)
• Closing Paragraph thank the reader for their
  time and indicate how and when you will follow up
  
• Salutation sincerely or other appropriate
  choice followed by your signature and typed name
• Example