Writing Resumes that will get you seen! 1 Last class: We learned how to research employers and determine what we like about them and why we want to work with them We assessed our skills and experience to see how we would “fit” with the companies of our choice 2 Know what you are selling before you go out trying to sell it! Demonstrate what you can do for the employer NOT what the employer can do for you! 3 Demonstrates the value you provided for your past employers in a quantified way Describes the expertise you have developed throughout your career that relates to your future employer's needs Demonstrates transferrable skills 4 A great resume communicates a compelling reason for the prospective employer to need and want your services and is written to their needs. 5 By now you know your skills and experience You have learned how to research employers and determine what they are like and what they look for Using these details you can now write an effective, targeted resume 6 It’s not what you know, it’s what you have done with what you know!!! Demonstrate where you have applied your knowledge and skills to directly benefit and impact your previous employers 7 TELL IT : Simply states facts SELL IT : Promotes, advertises, draws attention to it, adds impact and value Don’t be generic – Answer Who, What, Why, Where, When, How, How often, for whom? Use numbers, timeframes, percentages, dollar amounts wherever you can Don’t be afraid to “over explain” 9 times out of 10 what feels like over explaining is actually giving enough information, whereas the latter will not be enough 8 Increased revenue by 15% in 3 months by learning and applying upselling techniques and teaching them to 4 of my fellow coworkers Created 3 mobile apps in 6 months that were downloaded over 500,000 times collectively resulting in more business via referrals for the company Presented alternative supplier options for organically made condiments to my manager and helped us save 10K a year because of the change Notice how each sentence starts with an “Action Verb” 9 Organized according to time in reverse chronological order Most recent education and experience first Focuses on dates and job experiences Most widely used type of resume – preferred by employers 1 0 Written to pass the ATS: Keyword matches, no use of tables, pictures, columns, excessive bolding or icons or symbols Correct tenses: If currently working in the position use present tense, if no longer there use past tense Attract immediate attention in 6 – 10 seconds 1 – 2 pages in length DO NOT use complete sentences and lengthy paragraphs Quantify, Quantify, Quantify! 1 1 Your résumé should include the following information: Contact Information Name, phone number, email address (professionalsounding), mailing address. (NOT IN A HEADDER) Skills and Certifications Licenses, certifications, second languages, and other assets. Include the date of completion. List any skills that are relevant to the position you’re applying for. Keep the descriptions short and accurate.: Type/Keyboard 65 words per minute. Budgeting and data-entry skills, using Microsoft Excel.” 1 2 Your résumé should include the following information: Education Listed chronologically beginning with the most recent. In-progress is okay to mention. Education should include: What your program title was, your school name, the location and 3-5 bullets of what you learned and your graduation date for each school listed. Work Experience Employment should be displayed to include: What your job title was, Who you did the work for, the location and 3-5 bullets of what you did and your start and end dates for each job listed. 1 3 Volunteer Experience Volunteer Experience has great value and gives another opportunity to showcase some skills. Volunteer Work should be displayed the same as employment. What your job title was, Who you did the work for, the location and 2-3 bullets of what you did for each job listed. Awards and where you got them Here you can list any relevant awards you’ve received, along with the date. Give the full title of the award, along with the name of the award committee. This section is optional. 1 4 Interests Need to be relevant to the position you are applying to List personal interests and career ambitions. This section is optional, and should only be included if you feel it’s appropriate to the application. It can demonstrate enthusiasm and passion for a field beyond the job in question. If you do include this, keep it simple and brief. 1 5 The word "resume" do not label your resume “Resume.” The date you wrote the resume Any personal data beyond your contact information. Remove +1 from your phone number – no birthdays and marital statuses Photographs Avoid graphics because they confuse ATS Physical characteristics, height, weight, etc. Grammar school or high school 1 6 GPA’s. If an employer wants to know a GPA or %, they will request a school transcript Personal pronouns: “I”, “my” etc Statements about your health Long descriptions Acronyms | Spelling and grammatical errors Exaggerations or mistruths | Anything negative about you or an employer 1 7 JANE DOE 1400 London Road, Sarnia, ON N7S 6K4 519-542-7771 jdoe@hotmail.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/janedoe/ Jonathan B. Doe 1400 London Road, Sarnia, ON N7S 6K4 519-542-7771 jbdoe@hotmail.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/Jonathandoe/ Notice how all LinkedIn URL’s are PERSONALIZED 1 8 The version below is NOT ATS friendly: JANE DOE 519-542-7771 1400 London Road, Sarnia, ON N7S 6K4 jdoe@hotmail.com 1 9 Skills and Qualifications go in the SAME section and are put at the top of the resume right after your contact info and job title – company name applying to Take your lead from the posting. If you have those skills and qualifications mention them on your resume and add the direct context to how you have them 2 0 Program Name Lambton College in Toronto, Toronto ON 2020 - May 2022 Add end month to demonstrate to employers that they can hire you immediately out of Co-op. Courses: • Add relevant courses based on employer need 2 1 The ‘formula’ for writing a strong accomplishment statement is: STAR Situation Task Action Result THE PROBLEM + what you did = THE RESULT. 2 2 What are accomplishments? An ‘accomplishment’ is a significant action you took in the past which resolved a problem, made things run more smoothly, overcame an obstacle, or in some other way helped you and your team reach your goal. Your résumé contains ‘accomplishment statements.’ These statements elaborate on your work experience by showing what you have achieved, how you have applied your skills, and what kind of spirit you can bring to a workplace. 2 3 What are accomplishments? Employers are looking to hire people who make things happen Accomplishment statements show them you’re one of those people 2 4 • • • • • • • • • Job Title Proper Company Name City, Province Dates Relevant job descriptions Highlight transferable skills Use action verbs at the beginning of every sentence Use accomplishment statements Do not use “Responsible for” and do not overuse the same words 2 5 Work Experience: Most recent FIRST Include both Canadian and International experience All work experience is relevant, you have transferable skills This includes volunteer experience 2 6 An Applicant Tracking System ATS is a software application that enables the electronic handling of recruitment needs. An ATS can be implemented or accessed online on an enterprise or small business level, depending on the needs of the company and there is also free and open source ATS software available. 2 7 They filter applications automatically based on given criteria such as keywords, skills, former employers, years of experience and schools attended. This has caused many to adapt resume optimization techniques similar to those used in search engine optimization when creating and formatting their résumé 2 8 1. Use standard resume headings • There are several different acceptable ways to phrase headings within your resume (for example, “Professional Summary”, “Career Summary,” “Work Experience” and “Work History”). Whatever titles you decide to use, be sure to stick to these standard headings in order to keep your resume clean, professional and ready for ATS. 2. Choose the correct resume format • Many qualified resumes have been rejected because their format was not optimized for an ATS. There are three main resume formats: chronological, functional and hybrid. While chronological is the most popular, it might not be the right fit for you. 3. Do not use headers and footers • Headers and footers are best left untouched , if you use a Header for your contact information it will not be visible to the employer due to Applicant Tracking Systems: ATS 4. Echo resume keywords exactly Resume keywords are the skills and qualifications in the original job description that should be included in a resume 5. Left alignment and conservative typeface From: https://www.jobscan.co/blog/best-fonts-resume-ats-recruiter/ Good typefaces to use: Garamond, Calibri, Cambria, Georgia, Helvetica, Times New Roman, Arial, Palatino, Tahoma, Verdana 6. Write out all acronyms To avoid misunderstandings, always spell out the acronym first before including the acronym (if necessary): Companies and Associations: International Business Machines (IBM); American Cancer Society (ACS) Products: Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) Brands: Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing (3M) Years: 2015-2016 (never 2015-’16 or ’15-‘16) 3 0 3 1 3 2 3 3 Use https://cultivatedculture.com/resume-scanner/ 3 4 Due Class 7 Search for a posting from one of the employers you have identified you want to work for Start breaking down how you are a fit for the role/how you qualify Be prepared to tailor your cover letter/resume to this post and submit this post with your assignment Due in Class 7 Cover Letter Resume 10% 20% 30% of your Final Grade Next week Class 4 the topic is Cover Letters 3 5 OnLine Work Class 3 Due Class 4: Submit to Turnitin Read the following articles: “How to Sell Yourself in an Interview” https://biginterview.com/blog/2015/02/how-to-sell-yourself-in-aninterview.html “Tell Me About Yourself” https://biginterview.com/blog/2011/09/tell-me-about-yourself.html Answer the following questions as if you are interviewing for a co-op position: Tell us what you did to prepare for the interview? Tell us about yourself? Due Class 4: Submit to Turnitin
