Job Searching 101: Writing Your Resume and Cover Letter

January 5, 2008

Presenter: Donna Brice, Director

What We Will Cover in This Workshop

What Goes into a Resume Resume Templates Resume Dos & Don’ts

Cover Letters: Don’t Send Your Resume Without One

Cover Letter Templates Cover Letter Dos & Don’ts

Ways to Apply for a Job

Phone or Fax your resume and cover letter Deliver a hard copy of your resume and cover

letter in person Email your resume and cover letter Post your resume and cover letter online Create an employment blog about yourself

and direct prospective employers to it

What Goes into a Resume

Contact Information Objective (optional) Career Highlights / Qualifications (optional) Experience Education Honors or Citations, Publications (if any) Membership in Professional Organizations Military Service References Upon Request

Parts of the Resume

Contact Information: Legal name – The name on your driver’s

license Legal street address, city, state and zip code Phone # with area code, home and cell Email address

Objective (optional) The purpose of the objective is to describe

specifically the position you want by job title, function, and/or industry

Parts of the Resume

Career Highlights / Qualifications (optional) It highlights your key achievements, skills,

traits, and experience relevant to the position Experience

The experience section of your resume includes your work history. List the companies you worked for, dates of employment, the positions you held and a bulleted list of responsibilities and achievements

Parts of the Resume

Education In the education section, list in reverse

chronological order colleges, technical schools or high School(s) you attended, the degrees you attained, and any special awards and honors you earned.

Membership in Professional Organizations If you belong to a professional organization,

include it. It shows dedication to learning and keeping current in your career.

Parts of the Resume

Military Service If this is your only work experience, put it

under that section. References upon request

You do not need to include your work/personal reference when you submit your resume.

The employer will ask for your references. References should be on a separate sheet of

paper. Do not make it a part of your resume.

Resume Templates

See Handouts:

Chronological High school student with part time work history Entry level with work history and no college College graduate with some work experience Professional with advanced degrees and education Returning to work with past work experience Job Specific Resumes

Resume Do’s & Don’ts

DO: Do choose a font style appropriate for the job –

Conservative – Times New Roman or Arial, Artistic – be careful that your font is legible.

Do use 1 inch margins on all sides, indented bullet points will show hierarchy.

Do use bold and italics to emphasize important information, do not over use.

Do print your resume on white or off white paper printed in black ink.

Do use action verbs when writing about job responsibilities. (see handout)

Do proof read your resume.

Resume Do’s & Don’ts

Don’t: Don’t squeeze too much on one page, font

size shouldn’t be smaller than 11pt. Try to keep your resume one to two pages long and no longer.

Don’t use personal pronouns (I, me, my). Don’t include your salary history or reasons for

leaving previous jobs. Don’t include a picture of yourself. Don’t lie on your resume. They will eventually

find out.

Cover Letters: Never Send a Resume Without One

What is the purpose of a Cover Letter:

It serves as an introduction. Your cover letter is your chance to let

potential employers know who you are and what you can do for the company.

A cover letter does not contain the same information that is on your resume, it is used to support your resume.

Cover Letter Templates

The format of a cover letter is basically the same as a typical letter.

See Handouts: In response to an ad (3 examples) After a phone conversation Company that has not advertised a job New College Graduate (2 examples) Referred by a mutual friend With employee salary requirements Follow up to a cover letter

Cover Letter Do’s & Don’ts

Do: Do include your full address and the address

of the company. Do use a colon not a comma after the

greeting. Do use the person’s name or title; ex. Dear

Mr. Smith or Dear Human Resource Manager.

Do check your spelling!

Cover Letter Do’s & Don’ts

Don’t: Don’t use “To Whom it May Concern,” find out the

name of the person who is receiving the application. Don’t hand write the cover letter. Type it. Don’t tell them your life story. Keep each paragraph

brief and to the point. Use action verbs to describe yourself.

Don’t miss the opportunity to stand out by not including a cover letter. It can make or break you chance at an interview.