Resume Writing and Interviewing Skills Workshop

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Welcome!!!

• Society of Hispanics in Science and Engineering
• Resume Writing and Interviewing Skills Workshop
• April 24th, 2005

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Coordinator

• Michael Jauregui
• B.S. Electrical Engineering, Cal Poly Pomona
• Communications Engineer
• Naval Surface Warfare Center, Corona
• SHSE 03-04 President, Cal Poly Pomona

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Facilitators

• Frank Gamboa
• Boeing
• Scott Barela
• Naval Surface Warfare Center, Corona
• Julian Astudillo
• SHSE 04-05 President, Cal Poly Pomona
• Andrea Astudillo
• SHSE 04-05 Secretary, Cal Poly Pomona
• Miguel Guerrero
• SHSE 04-05 Vice President, Cal Poly Pomona
• Daniel Hernandez
• SHSE 04-05 Vice President, Cal Poly Pomona

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Resume
You in one page!!!
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Goal

• Get a Job!!!
• Persuade your readers you are the best person
  for the job
• Construct a professional image of yourself and
  establish your credibility
• provide a sample of your written communication
  skills
• convince prospective employers you deserve an
  interview

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Contact Information

• Name
• Address
• Email
• Phone Number
• Website

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Sample
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Objective

• Emphasize your main qualifications and
  summarize them for readers
• Inform your readers of the position(s) you are
  seeking and your career goals
• Establish your professional identity
• Tailor to your audience

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Sample
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Education

• Schools you have attended such as universities
  and 4-year colleges, junior and community
  colleges, as well as professional and technical
  schools
• Location of schools
• Date of graduation, actual or anticipated
• Degree(s) earned
• Grade point average (GPA)

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Sample
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Research Experience

• Senior project done in a new field or
  application of existing technology in a new
  system
• Summer Fellowship done at another institution

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Sample
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Experience

• Work Experience, Professional Experience, Work
  History, Field Work, Volunteer Work
• Company or organization, location, position
  title, dates of employment or involvement,
  descriptions of responsibilities and duties
• Tailor for your audience
• Action Words

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Sample
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Courses

• Any pertinent courses that elude to your
  background, skills and knowledge

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Sample
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Skills

• Special skills and knowledge as they pertain to
  your technical ability
• Can split into hardware and software

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Sample
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Honors and Activities

• Academic awards and scholarships, organization
  memberships, leadership positions held,
  university and community service positions, date
  of award or dates of involvement in an activity
• Reflect your values and commitment
• Provide evidence that you are a well-rounded
  person
• Demonstrate that your work has been recognized
  as of a high quality by others

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Sample
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In Summary

• Main Components to a Resume
• Contact Information, Objective, Education,
  Research Experience, Experience, Courses, Skills,
  Honors and Activities
• Action Words, Grammar, Professionalism

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References

• http//owl.english.purdue.edu/workshops/hypertext/
  ResumeW/index.html
• http//owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/pw/p_skilis
  t.html

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The Interview
Putting You Best Foot Forward!!!
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5 Elements

• Poise
• Clarity
• Volume
• Information
• Organization

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Poise

• The physical aspect of your speaking, body
  language
• Consciously avoid, fidgeting, stuttering,
  foot-tapping
• Balanced, state of equilibrium
• Bad poise can make your audience sick
• Space out transitions to correlate with speech

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Clarity

• Pronunciation is key!
• Avoid unnecessarily large words
• Slow down and think
• Organize thoughts before you speak them

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Volume

• Magnitude should be proportional to the audience
• If they cant hear you their not listening!
• At an average volume level only the first five
  rows will retain 90 then drops dramatically

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Information

• Be prepared!!!
• The more you know about your subject the more
  confidence you will have
• Details, Details, Details,
• Should be pertinent to the conversation

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Organization

• Order your thoughts logically
• Repeat key points if explanation is complex
• A method should be apparent to your explanations

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First Impression

• Understand that people judge!!
• What we say, how we say it, how we dress, how we
  walk, how we eat, etc.
• Professionalism, portraying a business-like
  attitude
• Could be through a website, telephone message
  machine, or the most obvious in-person
  introduction

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First Impression

• Smile!!!
• Firm handshake
• Eye Contact
• Listen and PAY ATTENTION!
• Body Language
• Personal Appearance

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Personal Appearance

• Neat appearance
• Hair, jewelry, nails, accessories, etc.
• Clothing
• Business Attire http//www.cba.uni.edu/buscomm/
• Mens Website Example
• http//www.cba.uni.edu/buscomm/nonverbal/dressfors
  uccess/web/imen2.html
• Womens Website Example
• http//www.cba.uni.edu/buscomm/nonverbal/dressfors
  uccess/web/attireframe.html
• If your unsure watch any episode of Law and Order
• Cleanliness
• Wrinkles, stains, shine, threads, detail, etc.

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Answering Questions

• Detail, Detail, Detail
• 3 step
• What Happened? (Issue)
• How did you respond? (Action)
• What was the solution? (Result)

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Answering Questions

• Example
• Tell me about a time when you worked effectively
  under pressure.
•  Well, actually, I thrive on pressure.  However,
  there was one particular time when I was even
  feeling the pressure.  We were bidding on a huge
  government contract, about 45 million.  Our
  competitors knew about the bid way before we did
  so they had already been working on it for over a
  month.  The timeframe in which we had to deliver
  was unbelievable.  But, that is where excellent
  project planning, project management and great
  team dynamics come into play.  Everyone worked
  long, hard hours.  We kept injecting in
  incentives and fun challenges along the way. 
  We were exhausted when we turned in our bid, but
  we turned in a great bid, on-time.

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Open Ended Questions

• When asked Do you have any questions? Always
  ask and make it open ended
• Open ended means it cannot be answered with yes
  or no
• Should begin with, what, why, how, can.
• The point is to stir more discussion and energy
  in the interview
• Also shows interest and thought
• Make sure to
• Restate your interest
• Summarize your fit
• Ask about the next step

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Ending the Interview

• Before we end, I just wanted to say that Im very
  interested in this position . . . .
• and, I truly believe that I have the skills,
  experience and interest in making a positive
  contribution to XYZ Company and that XYZ Company
  is a company that I would like to work for.
• and, Im certain that with my background and
  experience in _______, _______, and ________, I
  could bring a lot to XYZ Company.
• and, I know that the skills and strengths that I
  bring and what XYZ Company has to offer make this
  a good fit.
• So, could you tell me what the next step is? 
  Will you call me, is their anything else I can
  provide you . . . ?
• Could you tell me what the next step is and when
  you expect to make a final decision?

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Interview Skills Resource

• http//www.workministry.com/resources.shtml
• 5 Step Process is a great start

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Dos and Donts

• Arrive 10 minutes early. Go alone to the
  interview.
• Greet the interviewer with a warm, confident
  "Hello" and a firm handshake.
• Be well rested.
• Dress and groom yourself with perfection.
  (Appropriate business attire, make-up,
  deodorant).
• Maintain good posture.
• Emphasize positive things about yourself.
• Be honest about your background and experience.
• Ask a few appropriate questions.
• Remain calm and alert to answer all questions.
• Thank the interviewer for his/her time.
• Send a thank you note.

• Bring a friend or relative with you.
• Arrive late.
• Use excessive perfume or make-up.
• Ask about the salary unless the interviewer
  brings it up.
• Look hesitant when asked tough questions - think
  before answering.
• "Bad mouth" a former employer or past co-workers.
  
• Appear anxious to end the interview.

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Mock Interviews
Lets use what youve learned!
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Special Thanks
Facilitators, for taking time out of their day!
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Thank You!!!