RESUME GUIDELINES eWORKSHOP

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RESUME GUIDELINES eWORKSHOP

• Career Services
• Magnolia Court
• [phone]
• www.apu.edu/careerservices

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Functions of a Resume

• It is a summary of most your most relevant
  experiences and qualifications
• It makes your first impression to an employer
• It is a reference for an employer who is
  interviewing you
• It is NOT a comprehensive work history document

What is a resume?
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TYPES OF RESUME FORMATS

• Chronological
• arranged in reverse chronological order
• preferred by most employers and considered most
  credible (accomplishments are listed with
  positions)
• Functional
• arranged by skills or abilities (no dates are
  listed)
• good for career changers or students with no
  experience
• Combination
• provides the credibility of chronological, while
  allowing outstanding skills to be emphasized

What kinds of resumes are there?
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Keep in mind that an employer will only spend
about 20-30 seconds looking over your resume.
What can you do to make your resume stand out
from the rest?

Read on for help on how to format your resume in
order to make the most impact
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How long should my resume be?

• As a rule, the resume of a person with less than
  five years full-time work experience should be

Only One Page Long!!
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The Basic Elements of a Resume

• Heading (name, contact information)
• Objective (optional)
• Education
• Experience (or Related Experience)
• Summary of skills (optional)
• Related activities and interests (optional)
• References (separate page only)

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Using Proper Resume Language

• Use strong action verbs
• Omit pronouns (do not use I or my)
• Avoid abbreviations
• Do not write complete sentences (there should be
  no periods at the end)
• Use short, concise statements to highlight your
  accomplishments in each job

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STYLE

• Use white space to your advantage it
  shouldnt look too cluttered
• Use high-quality resume paper
• Be consistent in layout and composition (dont
  change formats, colors, etc.)
• Bullet points work well

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Formatting

• Choose conservative and standard fonts, ink, and
  formats (Arial, Times New Roman, Palatino, etc.)
• Margins can be as small as .5 and as large as
  1. This includes the header and footer.
• Font size can be 10-12 point if necessary (your
  name should be the largest thing on the page)

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What NOT to include

• Salary information
• Abbreviations
• Jargon or industry slang
• Photographs
• Health/Physical description
• Exaggerations
• Misspellings, mistakes, inconsistent formats

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REFERENCES

• Should be on a separate sheet of paper from the
  resume
• Copy the same heading from your resume
• Give 3-5 references
• List strongest reference first
• Ask and inform your references
• Give references a copy of your resume
• Include Name, Title, Organization, Address,
  Business Phone and Email

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SENDING YOUR RESUME

• Always include a cover letter
• Use matching resume paper for cover letter,
  resume and references
• Do not fold
• Do not staple or paper clip
• Make sure your heading is on every page

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EMAILING YOUR RESUME

• Attach as a MS Word document
• Include cover letter in body of the email
• Follow up with a hard copy in US mail
• Use professional email address

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Some Helpful References
CONTACT US!!www.apu.edu/careerservices(626)815
-2103Located in Magnolia Court (on the way to
Starbucks!)

• The Ultimate Job Hunters Guidebook (Green
  Martel)
• Resumes that Knock em Dead (Yate)