Business Communication Seminar

IPE 4208

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Writing an Effective Resume

Md. Mamunur Rahman

Lecturer

Dept. of Mechanical & Production Engineering

Ahsanullah University of Science & Technology

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Road Map

• Supporting Documentation

• Role of the Resume

• Types of Resumes

• Resume Formats

• Resume Sections

• Miscellaneous Tips

• Sample Resumes

• On-line Resources

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Supporting Documentation – Cover Letter • Why do I need to write a cover letter?

• Use the cover letter to focus attention on elements of your background that are particularly relevant to the company

• Letter acts as your verbal introduction to the employer

• Send it to a person, not a place

• Avoid “To Whom It May Concern,”

• Worst case “Dear Recruiter:”

• First sentence should tell why you are writing

• “I am writing in regard to your posting listed on BD JOBS”

• “Referring to the advertisement on The Daily Star”

• “As you may recall, I spoke with you briefly at …”

• If unsolicited, indicate why you are interested in the company 4

Supporting Documentation – Cover Letter • Highlight your skills

• Use two to three paragraphs to give in-depth description of your selling points

• Close with a promise of action

• Nice if you can say “I would welcome an interview at your earliest convenience for better assessment. Thank you for your time and kind consideration. For further information, I will be available at my given mailing address and contact number”

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Tips…for Writing Cover Letters

• Be sure to address the letter, by name and title, to the person who could hire you. When it’s impossible to learn their name, use a title such as Dear Hiring Professional – today we don’t use…To Whom It May Concern or Dear Sir or Madam.

• Express your enthusiasm and interest in the job and in the company.

• Set yourself apart from the crowd – identify one thing that makes you unique, such as a specific talent for getting along with everyone or something that goes beyond the basic qualifications of the job.

• Be specific about what position you are applying for and what skills and experience you have that relate to the position. 7

Tips…for Writing Cover Letters

• Keep it brief – one page – but powerful!

• It should not be a “template” letter. You should write a separate cover letter for each position you have applied to.

• The letter should make the employer want to read your resume.

• Always have someone proofread your letter before sending. Letters should be typed unless the employer asks for a handwritten letter. Keep copies of your cover letters as a way of tracking where you have applied.

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What is a Resume?

• A marketing tool

• Your first tool for building a career

• The first impression a prospective employer has of you

• A selling tool that allows you to highlight to an employer how you can contribute to the company

• Request for an interview

• Purpose of the resume is to get you an interview

• Must capture the reader’s interest and attention

• Must convince the employer that you have the ability to fill their position

• Your “big picture”

• A snapshot of what you believe are your most important experiences and qualifications

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Types of Resumes

• A Paper/PDF Resume

• A printed resume for use at job fairs, conferences, …

• Should be clean, concise, professional, and pleasing to the eye

• Use bullets, bolding, and indentation

• Take this resume with you on job interviews

• An Electronic Resume

• A plain text resume for on-line submission

• Typically must conform to employer specifications

• Use left-justified and space indented formatting

• If desired, use “+”, “*”, and “0” to represent bullets

• An HTML Resume

• Typically includes links to homepage, images, personal social networking profiles and so on

• Avoid this type of resume 10

Resume Formats - Chronological

• Highlight your work experience in reverse chronological order

• Be sure to not leave gaps

• The most widely used format for working professionals

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Resume Formats - Functional

• Highlight specific skills for which the market has high demand

• Seldom used by new graduates

• Frequently used to change jobs or careers

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Resume Formats - Combinational

• Highlight specific work experience

• Highlight marketable skills

• Use reverse chronological order

• The best resume style for most college students

I would prefer bullets 13

The Silver Bullet • What Is Your “Story”?

• Do you want to emphasize internship experience?

• Do you want to emphasize work experience?

• Do you want to emphasize course work?

• Do you want to emphasize project experience?

• Do you want to emphasize research experience?

• Do you want to emphasize personal traits?

• What is unique or interesting about your college/university experience?

• My Recommendation

• If you have an interesting internship – emphasize it

• Most graduates have interesting project experience

• Demonstrate leadership, communication, cultural awareness

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Standard Resume Sections • Header

• Objective

• Education

• Work Experience

• Projects

• Relevant Courses/ trainings

• Honors/Activities

• Skills

• References

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The Header Section • The first line should be your name

• Larger than the largest font used in body

• Avoid using decorative fonts

• Don’t use black or gray shaded backgrounds

• Exclude titles Mr., Mrs., Ms., …

• Include contact address • Permanent address

• Current address

• Include your email address • Don’t use bigboy@hotmail.com, cuteangel@yahoo.com

• Include your phone number

• Attach your photo • Attach a passport size decent photo of professional look with

your CV at the top most right corner 16

The Objective Section

• Considered optional but strongly suggested to include it

• Make statement clear, concise, and to the point • Bad: “I want to get a job”

• Weak: “To attain an internship in the manufacturing industry.”

• Good: “To attain an internship in the manufacturing industry working with fast moving consumer goods (FMCG).”

• Avoid being overly specific to single company • “To attain a position at Unilever working on …”

• Objectives from the company’s perspective is preferable • “To attain a position in an FMCG company where knowledge of

industrial and manufacturing engineering will add value to the overall development process of the company through TPM and lean manufacturing philosophy.”

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The Honors/Activities Section

• Should only contain honors and awards earned during your time in college

• You can include academic or extracurricular items

• Include a brief description if not self-evident from title

• “Award given to top performer on the capstone exam”

• Don’t include hobbies or activities not related to the job or your story

• Good to include leadership positions in IPE-related organizations

• Good to list membership in IPE-related organizations

• Don’t include volunteer work unless there is a direct and positive link with the job or your story

This section should scream “I am a leader”

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The Work Experience Section

• Dedicated to most recent and relevant employment

• Format • Employer and location on the first line

• Don’t need name of supervisor, complete address, or contact information

• Position and time-span on the second line

• Avoids time gaps

• Each position should have at least two bullets • Explain role and contributions

• Don’t emphasize duties but rather emphasize outcomes

• Increased efficiency of … by 20%”

• “Improved user navigation experience on …” Employers want

problem solvers 19

The Relevant Courses Section

• The keyword is relevant courses

• Don’t include Foundations of Engineering

• Focus on courses those are either unique or would normally be considered elective or related to the job description you are applying for

• Employers will assume you have had the rest

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The Skills Section

• This is where you emphasize your technical skills

• Programming Languages • Put in order of familiarity

• Packages • Auto CAD, Solid Works, Matlab, Abacus, Master Cam, MS

Excel

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The Projects Section

• Used correctly, this section can set you apart from other new graduates

• Most new grads don’t get the opportunity to use this section

• Show any lengthy, impressive, or relevant projects to which you have made real contribution

• Each project should have at least two bullets (focus on outcomes)

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Supporting Documentation – References • Use academic/professional references only

• Pick individuals that think highly of you

• Pick individuals that are familiar with your work

• For fresh graduates its better to use academic references

• Always ask your references before using their names

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Tips on Delivery of Your Resume • Posting Online

• Be precautious about deadline

• Use PDF if allowed

• Proofread carefully after conversion

• If they ask about salary be rational

• Emailing your resume • Attach resume as a PDF document (or Word document)

• Test before deploy

• Send to at least two friends, ask them whether they received the email in good format.

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Miscellaneous Tips (1)

• Use action words in your descriptions

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Miscellaneous Tips (2)

• Act like a professional

• Avoid cutesy or inappropriate graphics, images, formats, …

• One page only

• As a fresh graduate your CV shouldn’t cross one page

• Stick to the truth

• Don’t sprinkle buzzwords in that you really don’t understand

• Focus on achievements and results

• Laundry lists of duties are not impressive

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On-Line Resources www.collegerecruiter.com

www.developercareers.com

www.writinglettersandresumes.com

www.professional-resumes.com

www.1stresumes.com

www.a1resumes.net

www.10minuteresume.com

www.crsresume.com

www.resumeservice.com

Free

Not

Free 27