Unit 7 Assignment PIW
Building Your Résumé Package
Before employers decide to meet you, they first view your application materials. Traditionally, the set of application materials is referred to as a résumé package, which includes a résumé and a cover letter. Although many employers only allow online applications, which may not require a résumé and/or cover letter, every job seeker needs to create a formal résumé and cover letter. This information is used as a foundation for information an employer will require in the application process. The creation of a quality résumé package provides a job seeker with personalized, concise, and accurate information that can be used in any job search situation.
Your résumé package needs to efficiently and effectively sell your skills and communicate how your attributes are unique compared to all other candidates vying for your target job. A résumé is a formal written profile that presents a person’s knowledge, skills, and abilities to potential employers. Your résumé is an important job search tool that should be created in advance of a job search and continually updated throughout your career. Even if you are not currently searching for a new job, a time will come when a current résumé is needed. Do not wait until that time to create or update your résumé. Continually add new job skills, accomplishments, and experiences to your résumé.
When you begin to create your résumé, you will quickly discover that there are various types of résumés and résumé formats. You may also receive conflicting advice as to how the perfect résumé should look and what it should include. The appropriate type of résumé used depends on your work experience, education, and other factors. A well-written résumé makes it easy for potential employers to quickly and easily identify your skills and qualifications that make you the right choice for the job.
This chapter will present the tools for creating a professional résumé and cover letter. As you go through the process of constructing your résumé package, make every word sell your skills and career accomplishments. Your résumé package represents you. Therefore, be honest with the information you provide and display character by not lying or embellishing the truth. There are five steps toward building a winning résumé:
Gathering Information
Creating an Information Heading and Utilizing Proper Layout
Writing a Skills Summary or Personal Profile
Inserting Skills, Accomplishments, and Experience
Reviewing the Completed Résumé
Step One: Gathering Information
The first step in building a résumé is to create a draft document with key headings. This involves collecting and merging all relevant information into one document. Begin identifying and listing the following information into an electronic document:
1. Education. List schools, degrees, certificates, credentials, GPA, licenses, and other relevant education-related information, including military experience. Include dates with each entry.
2. Skills. List all skills you possess and identified from the completed accomplishments worksheet (Activity 13.1) in Chapter 13 .
3. Employment. Starting with the most recent job, list the employer, start and end dates of employment (month and year), job title, and responsibilities.
4. Languages. List foreign languages, fluency levels, and if you can read, speak, and/or write the foreign language.
5. Honors and awards. List any honors and awards you have received at school, work, or from the community.
6. Professional/community involvement. List volunteer work and community service projects. Include any leadership role you took in these activities.
Note that when compiling information to include in your résumé, there is no personal information listed. Personal information such as birthdate, Social Security number, marital/child status, ethnicity, or religion should not be included on a résumé. It is also inappropriate to list hobbies or include photographs. There are laws that protect employees from discrimination in hiring and advancement in the workplace, and employers should not be aware of personal information unless it is relevant to the job for which you are applying. Additional information regarding this subject is presented in Chapter 15. Older job seekers should not list the date of graduation on a résumé, as it could be used for age discrimination.
Step Two: Creating an Information Heading and Utilizing Proper Layout
The second step in developing a successful résumé is to begin your electronic document. This includes listing personal contact information and identifying and arranging your information in the proper résumé layout. The top of your résumé is called the information heading. An information heading contains relevant contact information, including name, mailing address (city, state, ZIP code), contact phone, and e-mail address. Use your complete and formal name, including a middle initial if you have one. When listing your e-mail address, remove the hyperlink. If your current e-mail address is unprofessional, secure an address that is professional. Include only one contact phone number that is active with a professional voice mail message. Review the information heading for completeness, proper grammar and spelling, and accuracy. Spell out the names of streets. When using abbreviations, check for appropriate format, capitalization, and punctuation.
Once you have created your information heading, lay out your résumé. If you are at the start of your career and/or do not have extensive work experience, create a résumé using the functional résumé layout. This layout is used to emphasize relevant skills when you lack related work experience. A functional résumé focuses on skills and education. When writing a functional résumé, the first section contains the skills summary statement that you will create in step three. Immediately below the skills summary you will list relevant skills and education. Include your high school in the education section only if you have not yet graduated from college. Finally, list your work experience. Most functional résumés are only one page in length. Refer to Figure 14.1 for the functional résumé layout and Figures 14.2 and 14.3 for examples of a functional résumé with and without career-related work experience.
Those with extensive career experience should use an advanced skill set résumé layout. An advanced skill set layout best highlights, communicates, and sells specific job skills and work accomplishments. In the advanced skill set layout, the skills summary is replaced with a personal profile, which you will write in step three. Your personal profile will emphasize key skill sets. These skill sets will be used as subheadings in the professional experience heading, which will be the section listed immediately after the personal profile. When writing a personal profile, include key general skills and qualities desired by your target employer. Related work experience, specific skills, important activities, and significant accomplishments will be detailed under each respective subheading. Share major accomplishments and responsibilities from each position listed in your work history. Education and then work history are listed after professional experience. If necessary, add a second page to your résumé. Refer to Figure 14.4 for the advanced skill set résumé layout and Figure 14.5 for an example of an advanced skill set résumé.
For both résumé layouts, present employment history and education in reverse chronological order (most recent job first). When listing work history, bold the job title, not the place of employment. Only the month and year should be used when listing dates of employment. Be consistent in how dates are listed on the résumé.
Once you have determined which résumé layout is best for your current situation, in your electronic document, arrange the information gathered in step one into the correct résumé layout. Avoid résumé templates; these can be difficult to update, modify, and personalize.
Functional Résumé Layout, see Figure 14.1 on page 218
Cover Letters
A cover letter serves as an introduction to your résumé and is often the first impression a potential employer will have of you. Employers frequently use cover letters as screening tools. Even when limiting your job search to online venues, create a cover letter and use the body of the letter as the primary content of your e-mail message. Whenever possible, tailor your cover letter by including information found when researching the company and position for which you are applying.
When writing a cover letter, convey a friendly yet professional tone using complete sentences and proper grammar. The goal of a cover letter is to communicate how your key skills, experience, and accomplishments can meet the employer’s needs. A basic cover letter contains three paragraphs. The first paragraph contains the purpose of the letter, the specific position for which you are applying, and how you learned of the position. If you have a contact within your target company, share the name of this individual and refer to how that individual informed you of the open position. In one sentence, summarize why you are interested and/or qualified for the position. Finally, share why you are interested in the organization, indicating any research you have conducted on the position and/or employer.
The second paragraph refers to the attached résumé and highlights the skills and qualifications you possess that the employer is requesting for the target job. Summarize how your key skills and qualifications match the employer’s needs. Communicate what you can offer the company, not what you want from the company. Do not duplicate what is already listed on your résumé; instead, emphasize your experience and key skills.
Although it is acceptable to use the words “I” and “my” in a cover letter, be cautious to not begin most of your sentences with the word “I.” Instead, focus the attention toward the employer by placing the company first and making its needs the priority. For example:
Instead of writing, “I am proficient in the most recent version of Word.”
Write, “Your company will benefit from my proficiency in the most recent version of Word.”
The purpose of the final paragraph is to request an interview (not the job). Do not state that you look forward to the employer contacting you; instead display initiative by stating that you will follow up on your request for an interview within a week. Include your phone number and e-mail contact information, even though it is already included in your information heading. Close courteously and include an enclosure notation for your résumé.
Do not address your cover letter to a department, the company name, or “to whom it may concern.” Address the cover letter to a specific person, ideally to the person who will be making the hiring decision. This is typically the individual who directly supervises the target position. Research or call the company to identify a specific name and title, including the appropriate spelling and gender. If you still cannot secure a specific name, use a subject line instead of a salutation. Instead of “To Whom It May Concern,” write “Subject: Account Clerk Position.” Use the proper business letter format for your cover letter presented in Chapter 9. Each word and paragraph in your cover letter must have a purpose. Your goal is to communicate how your knowledge, skills, abilities, and accomplishments fill a targeted company’s needs and make the reader want to review your résumé. The cover letter setup and sample cover letter in Figure 14.6 will assist you in creating a winning cover letter.
Print the cover letter on the same paper used for your résumé. Use the same information heading you created for your résumé to create a consistent and professional visual appeal for your résumé package. Avoid common mistakes such as typographical or grammatical errors, forgetting to include a date, or forgetting to sign the cover letter. When sharing your résumé package via the Internet, utilize an electronic signature on your cover letter. As with your résumé, have someone you trust proofread your letter before you send it to a potential employer. Any error communicates a lack of attention to detail and has the potential to disqualify you from securing an interview.