CAREER  PLANNING    

   130  SISSON  HALL  

267-­‐2344  

Office  Hours  Monday  –  Friday  8:30  am  –  4:30  pm  

MEG BAIN Interim Director

BONNIE MARSH-GODREAU Secretary

www.potsdam.edu/career

E-mail: career@potsdam.edu

PowerPoint  Objectives    

¤ Explain the purpose of a resume

¤ Describe how to write a Targeted Resume

¤ Provide detailed instructions for writing each

section of the resume

¤ Help you create a rough draft resume

¤ Increase your awareness of Career Planning

resources and services

 

 The  Resume  Purpose  ¤ Targeted Marketing Tool – promotes YOU

¤  Summarizes how your skills, experiences and

abilities can contribute to the organization

¤  Serves as a screening tool in the application process

¤  Provides structure for the interview

¤  Justifies hiring you

Career  Decision  Making:  Essential  to  Writing  a  Resume    

To write the most effective (targeted) resume,

you need to decide on a career field.

Research:

¤ The career field you would like to pursue

¤ What qualifications and credentials you need to attain

¤ Where the jobs are geographically and who is hiring

¤ Employers

¤ Position descriptions

Career Planning can help you with this process!

Research  Tools  

¤  Participate in informational interviews and networking opportunities. ¤  Resources to Guide you:

FOCUS: Online self-assessment. Contact Career Planning for a username and password (267-2344)

Occupational Outlook Handbook : www.bls/gov.ooh

ONET: www.onetonline.org/

Zoom Info: www.zoominfo.com/s/ (search on “Find Contacts” at top of page)

SKILLS  EMPLOYERS  WANT:  

Formatting  • Contact information

at top

• Most relevantinformation first

• Section headingseasy to read

• Balance of whitespace and text

• Use of bullets fordescriptions

• Good use of bold,italics, font styleand size

Sections  of  a  Resume  

¤   Contact Information

¤  Career Objective Statement

¤  Education/Training

¤  Experience

¤  Skills

Contact  Information  Section  ¤  Name

¤  Address (can include campus and home)

¤  Phone Number

¤  Email Address

¤  Website (if you have one)

¤  Social Network Affiliations (if you have them)

Samples:  Contact  Information  JANIS JENKINS 123 Pearl Street

Rockville, Maryland 12345 Home: (301) 555-1111 Cell: (301) 444-2222

Janis.Jenkins@email.com

Alena M. Miller 1500 Milden Way • Fairly, NY 10000 • (700) 100-2000 • miller95@potsdam.edu

The  Objective  Section  

EXAMPLES

1. Account Executive Trainee at (employer name).

2. Obtain (position title) at (employer name) where I can contribute my ________

skills, and ___________ experience.

3. Seeking (position title) for (employer name) utilizing my _________ ,

________ , and _________ skills.

The skills and experiences you write in your objective should be those the employer

is looking for. They are typically stated in a position description.

Your  Objective  should  be  written  in  one  of  the  following  ways:  

1. What  position/field  you  are  applying  for  and  the  name  of  the  employer.2. What  position/field  you  are  applying  for,  the  name  of  the  employer  and  the  skillsyou  bring  to  the  employer.

Tips  for  Writing  Objectives  

Hints For Writing Career Objectives:

¤ List the exact job as listed in the job announcement and company's name.

¤ Keep your objective short, simple and to the point. Do not make the employer guess what job you are applying for.

¤ Don't use vague statements such as "seeking a challenging position with a

large company with potential for growth and advancement."

More Examples of Objective Statements:

¤ "Electronics Technician position with Lockheed Martin"

¤ "Seeking a position as a Customer Service Representative with Viatech Inc."

¤ "Biomedical Equipment Repair Technician"

¤ "Front Line Investigator with a security or law enforcement agency."

Education/Training  Section  ¤  Include all degrees awarded beyond high school, highest to lowest.

¤  List colleges/universities and locations from which you earned a degree.

¤  Write your expected graduation date, e.g. Expected Graduation May/2017

¤  List special honors you achieved such as: Cum Laude, Competitive Scholarships,

GPA (if it is greater than 3.0, less than 3.0 doesn‘t market you well).

¤  Include certifications, licenses and course work relevant to the job/field you are

applying for. (ex: NYS Initial Certification Childhood Education Grades 1-6).

Example  of  Education    and  Training    

M.S.T., SUNY Potsdam, Potsdam, NY, Anticipated: May 2017 Major: Childhood Education

B.A., SUNY Potsdam, Potsdam, NY (May 2012)Major: HistoryHonors: President’s List (3 semesters), Cum Laude

Other College Attended: Jefferson Community College (SUNY), Sept. 2010-Dec. 2010

Experience  Section  (s)  

§  Experience: Part-time, Full-time, Summer

§ Military

§ Internships

§ Course Work/Class Projects

§ Presentations

§ Creative Works

§ Research

§ Published Work

§ Equipment/software proficiency

§ Volunteer Experiences

§ Sports Teams

§ Leadership Roles

§ Student Organizations

§ Workshops and Professional Development

§ Memberships in Professional Organizations

Include the following types of experiences in this section. Experiences that are most relevant to the job you are applying for should be written first.

Experience    Section  (s)  continued

Sample description of how your experience can be formatted and expressed for clarity and effective communication:

Position Title, Employer, City, State (Dates) §  Coordinated and led group activities…§ Mentored new members …§ Served as a liaison for …§ Improved moral by encouraging, leading, and planning effectively …§ Enforced SUNY Potsdam policies and regulations …§ Worked successfully with group leaders …

The skills and experiences sought in the position description will guide you in determining which of

your experiences to comment on. Notice how each bullet begins with a past tense action verb.

Experience    Section  (s)  continuedSample description of how your related course work can

be formatted and expressed:

Human Nutrition (HLTH 3333), SUNY Potsdam, Potsdam, NY Spring 2012

• Worked in a team environment to analyze recipes for nutritional value• Assessed proportions of fats, proteins, and carbohydrate for the

purpose of identifying an appropriate diet

The skills and experiences sought in the position description will guide you in determining which

of your courses to comment on.

Writing  Effective  Bullets  

Answer the following questions when writing your bullets: What did I do? (duty) Who was the population? (clientele) How did I do it? (skill used) Why did I do it? (purpose) What was the outcome? (results)

Sample Bullet Wrote an application, using Java programming language, to assist internet navigation, for the general public, and sold 200 downloads.

Writing  Descriptions  (continued):    Step  1    

Be specific. Provide examples. Some topics may include:

¤  A task you performed alone.

¤ A project you worked on as a team member /team

leader.

¤ A challenge you overcame.

¤ A problem you solved.

¤ A goal you set.

Step  2  Identify the ACTION you performed in your example.

¤  “Planned, organized and directed a four-day training exercise…”

¤  “Collaborated with other student affairs departments to implement education, social, and community programs”

¤  “Assisted in the recruitment process and helped recruit 4 team members in Fall 2012”

Step  3  Include positive and measurable results.

¤ …resulting in more effective communication between members

¤ Increased group membership by 30 %

¤ Achieved 96% response rate in surveys utilizing new method of retrieval

¤ Taught a class of 20 second grade students

Descriptions  of  Experience    Accomplished    Adapted    

Activated      Analyzed    

Changed    Coordinated  

Compiled      Created  

Completed      Defined    

Advertised      Devised    

Educated      Designed    

 Established    Arranged  

 Executed      Edited  

Assisted      Illustrated  

Established        Implemented

Evaluated        Coached  

Interviewed      Facilitated    

 Investigated    Conducted    

Maintained    Marketed    

 Generated    Modified    

Coordinated    Delegated    

 Guided    Negotiated    

Obtained    Identified    

Organized    Directed    

 Explained        Informed  

Publicized    Managed  

Prepared      Programmed  

 Promoted    Revised  

Surveyed    Wrote    

Supervised    Transmitted    

SKILLS  SECTION  

Related Skills:

Leadership : President, Psychology Club, SUNY Potsdam (Spring 2013) OR Captain, Men’s Soccer Team…

Computer: Proficient with Microsoft Office Suite, Adobe Photoshop, SMARTBoard Technology, Social Media Networking: Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest

Public Speaking: Provided Informational and Persuasive speeches to colleagues via courses such as COMM 101 and COMM 250

Summary  Comments  

¨   No  one  way  to  write  a  resume  

¨   Consider  the  purpose  of  your  resume  

¨   Select  section  headings  relevant  for  you  

¨   Use  bullets  to  describe  your  accomplishments  and  skills  

¨   Support  bullets  with  examples  

¨   Start  each  bullet  with  a  past-­‐tense  action  verb  

¨       No  need  to  write  References  on  resume  (but  you    must  have  them)  

¨   Utilize  resume  checklist  from  Career  Planning  website  to  review  your  resume.  

What  Not  To  Include  on  Resume  

¤ Marital Status

¤ Age, Height, Weight (unless asked for – performance

based jobs)

¤ Race

¤ Salary

¤ Photograph (unless asked for- performance based jobs)

¤ Religious or Political Affiliations

Next  Step…    

Resources for Resume Critique at Career Planning:

Contact Career Planning for an appointment.

Email: career@potsdam.edu

Phone: (315) 267-2344

CAREER  PLANNING        130 SISSON  HALL  

267-­‐2344  

Office  Hours  Monday  –  Friday  8:30  am  –  4:30  pm  

www.potsdam.edu/career

Email: career@potsdam.edu