Building Your Resume from the Ground Up

Building Your Resume

from the Ground Up

Building Your Resume from the Ground Up

David McMahon ’69Associate Director

Experiential Education


from the Ground Up

"I would have started looking for jobs earlier.“

"I would have actually networked.” "I would have taken on a job or an

internship in addition to my course load."

"I would have gotten more involved in career-relevant extracurricular activities."

"I would have applied to more jobs."

The 10 Worst Mistakes of First-Time Job Hunters

Kelly Eggers, Career Advice, Oct 11, 2011


from the Ground Up

"I would have focused more on becoming 'professional.'"

"I would have done more to figure out what my career goals were."

"I would have gone to the career center." "I would have kept better track of my

achievements." "I would have focused more on

developing relevant skills."

The 10 Worst Mistakes of First-Time Job Hunters

Kelly Eggers, Career Advice, Oct 11, 2011


from the Ground Up

The First Question

“Why Should I walk away from my Customer

to Interview You?”


from the Ground Up

Purpose of a Resume

A Marketing Tool:

To convince an employerTo call youFor an interview

You’ve got 10 seconds!!!


from the Ground Up

Steps to Building a Resume

Laying the foundation. Building the resume. Polishing the resume.


from the Ground Up

How Employers “Grade” TAMU Students


from the Ground Up

Laying the Foundation

Assess Yourself on Paper/Computer

What are your Objectives? Kind of job you are looking for and

when you are available What have you accomplished?

Skills, Abilities, Work Experience, and Extracurricular Activities/Leadership


from the Ground Up

What Makes a Good Employee?? 1. Integrity- Ability to work with people- Responsibility- Judgment- Motivation to succeed- Work ethic- Intelligence- Creativity/enthusiasm- Communications skills10. Technical competence



from the Ground Up


What Resume Format is most appropriate? Chronological

Organized by date in reverse date order Most commonly used type and more

acceptable by employers Functional

Grouped by status areas Useful for employment gaps Less acceptable by employers

Combination Chronological/functional types combined


from the Ground Up

Building the Resume

Tell the Employer……

The Mostest, The Fastest


from the Ground Up

Building the Resume Personal Data Section

Objective

Education Section

Work Experience

Activities and Honors

Do Not List References


from the Ground Up

Personal Data Section ExamplesExample #1

Ima T. Aggie1234 High St. 4321 West WayCollege Station, TX 77840 Kingsland, TX 78639(979) xxx-xxxx [email protected] (325) xxx-xxxx

Example #2Ima T. Aggie

1234 High St.College Station, TX 77840

Home: (979) xxx-xxxx Cell : (979) xxx-xxxx

[email protected]

Building the Resume


from the Ground Up

Personal Data Section ExamplesExample #3

Ima T. Aggie1234 High St. (979) xxx-

xxxxCollege Station, TX 77840 [email protected]

Example #4Ima T. Aggie

1234 High St., College Station, TX 77840 [email protected] (979) xxx-xxxx

Building the Resume


from the Ground Up

Building the Resume Objective

Type of Job - CO-OP, Intern, Full-time? Specific Ideas, Not Vague and Fluffy Operations, Business, Sales, Design, R&D,

Consulting? CO-OPs and Interns – start date

Education University, Location, Graduation Date, Degree in Major, Minors, Certificates, Major GPR, Overall GPR Senior Design project, Study Abroad, Graduate

Research, Related Coursework % Paid by Work


from the Ground Up

Building the Resume Work Experience

Job Title, Company Name, Location, Dates of employment Job Description – Statements (not sentences) Using action words and showing results Be Positive, Be Concise, Be Persuasive

Activities Student/Professional organizations Leadership positions

Skills Computer software/systems, foreign languages Security clearance


from the Ground Up

Honors Scholarships,Dean’s List, etc.

Work Authorization References

Do not list on resume Bring separate page to interview

Building the Resume


from the Ground Up

Building the Resume

•Present most marketable information first

•Use brief, descriptive phrases

•No personal pronouns

•Use action verbs to describe experiences and accomplishments

•Be Positive

•Be Truthful

•You Have the Right to Remain Silent


from the Ground Up

Polishing the Resume Be Concise Show results Top Heavy Reader Friendly


from the Ground Up

Polishing the Resume Avoiding common mistakes

Broad generalization statements Spelling and grammatical errors Formatting, fonts, length, paper quality Translate “Aggie speak” to business English

Don’t overdue it Can’t explain every statement Too long

No picture Don’t include references


from the Ground Up

Polishing the Resume

Use white or off-white paper (checkout resume paper at area copy centers, i.e. Kinkos, Copy Corner, or Graphics Center on campus)

Use 8 ½ x11-inch paperUse a font size of 10 to 14 pointsBlack ink onlyDo not fold or staple your resumeIf you must mail your resume, put it in a

large envelope


from the Ground Up

Polishing the ResumeApplicant Tracking Systems

Use keywords or phrases directly from the job description

Include full keywords and abbreviated formats

Use non-decorative typefacesChoose one typeface and stick to itAvoid italics, script, and underlined wordsNo horizontal or vertical lines, graphics, or

shadingMost scan text and Word formats

Some cannot read Word 2007, PDFs, or PowerPoints


from the Ground Up

Polishing the Resume

Resume Critique and Advice

Career Center Advisor

Academic Advisor

Mentor

Roommate

Employer


from the Ground Up

Employer CommentsWhen I evaluate a candidate, there are a couple of key questions I'd like to get answers to as much as possible:1. The degree of relevancy between candidate's overall profile (candidate's GPA, class projects, external project experience, major/minor, curriculum, extra curriculum) and the job position2. The candidate's short term and long term career goal3. The candidate's personality, capability, potential and willingness to accomplish his/her career goal (past experience can demonstrate that)

Spring 2011


from the Ground Up

Employer Comments1. Stick to 1 page. We had several students give us 2 (and in one case 3) page resumes. After 8 years in the industry, I can still highlight all necessary and pertinent information on my resume in a single page.2. Clearly state GPR. Several students played games with the GPR by giving us only their in-major GPR because the overall was significantly lower. Another presented only the last 2 years because the first two years were very bad. Some gave no GPR. It does not reflect well on students to manipulate their resumes in this fashion before we even interview them. Employers who went to A&M can very easily review an A&M transcript and see who is playing games. Spring 2011


from the Ground Up

Employer Comments Several of the students had not updated

their "Job Objective" knowing that the interview that our company conducted was for a sales position. Examples were: A manufacturing career; Plant flow organization.

One person did not spell check their resume.

Another, the formatting was off and not consistent.

Fall 2011


from the Ground Up

Employer Comments Most of the problems related to a lack of

preparation shown by students. Most had little knowledge of our company and the opportunity they were interviewing for.

I also had several who had not shaved or were not dressed professionally.

Two students did not show up for the interview.

Fall 2011


from the Ground Up

Polishing the ResumeDid You

Tell the Employer

The Mostest, The Fastest

??????


from the Ground Up

In Conclusion….

Laying the foundation… Building the resume… Polishing your resume…

Congratulations! You Did It!

Building Your Resume from the Ground Up

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