Lesson 3 Professional Experience v3 … · appear on your resume; don’t jump from listing month...
Transcript of Lesson 3 Professional Experience v3 … · appear on your resume; don’t jump from listing month...
Lesson#1:OverallResumeFormat 1
Lesson#3:
ProfessionalExperience
WRITEYOURWAYTOA
BETTERRESUME
Lesson3ProfessionalExperience
WriteYourWaytoaBetterResumeLesson#3:ProfessionalExperience i ©SchofieldStrategies,LLC
Write Your Way to a Better Resume
Copyright © Schofield Strategies, LLC. All rights reserved.
Disclaimer: The information presented within this training series represents the view of the author as of the date of publication. While every attempt has been made to verify the information provided in this series, the author does not assume any responsibility for errors, inaccuracies, or omissions. If advice concerning legal or related matters is needed, the services of a fully qualified professional should be sought. This training is not intended for use as a source of legal or accounting advice. This training is for your own personal use only. You may not rent, loan, forward, transfer, reprint, resell, distribute, reproduce, or otherwise share this training product by any means whatsoever.
The resume tips contained in this training series are geared towards resumes within the civilian sector only; although federal resumes have similar elements, this training series is not a guide for federal resumes.
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Lesson#3:
ProfessionalExperience
Inthepast,mostresumesstartedoffwiththisprofessionalexperiencesection,butasyoulearnedinthepreviouslesson,yourresumewillhaveagreaterimpactifyoustartoffbyprovidingapotentialemployerwithan
overview/snapshotofwhoyouareandwhatmakesyoustandout.
Nowthatyou’vemasteredthat,let’smoveontoyourprofessionalexperiencesection.
LET’SGETSTARTED:PROFESSIONALEXPERIENCE Includeemployer’snameandlocation(cityandstate).
Includeyourtitle(s)anddatesofemploymentineachposition(fordates,youcaneitherlist
monthandyearorjustyear).
Ensureanypromotionwithinacompanyisclearlydisplayed–onewayforyoutostandoutistoshowprogressateachcompanyyou’vereceivedajobpromotion.
Beconsistentwithlistingdates!IfyouchoosetouseMarch2010–May2013foroneposition,ensureyoulist
monthsinalldatesthatappearonyourresume;don’tjumpfromlistingmonthandyeartolisting
justyear.
Avoidplacingdatesonthelefthandsideofyour
resumewhereahiringmanager’seyesaremoredrawnto.
Nowthatyourresumeisofftoagreatstart,it’stimeto
workonaddingyourprofessionalexperience.
This section of the training serieswillmost likely include the bulk of your information(unless your career path has led you to have spentmore time on your education andtrainingthanonon‐the‐jobexperience).
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ProfessionalExperience
ANOTEABOUTRELEVANTEXPERIENCE:
Forexample:ifyoupreviouslywereaVeterinarianTechnician,but
youwentbacktoschooltoearnanAccountingdegreetochangecareers,thenyoushouldfocusmoreontheskills,qualifications,andaccomplishmentsthatarerelevanttotheaccountingindustry.
Includeyourrelevantprofessionalexperienceduringthepast10years(maximumof15yearsforexecutive‐levelresumes).
Coveranyemploymentgapsasbestaspossible–includerelevantvolunteertimeifpossible.
ACCOMPLISHMENTSTATEMENTBULLETS:
Asimplewaytowriteoutaccomplishmentbulletsaretothinkaboutthemasresults‐oriented:
(situation–>action–>results).
Starteachaccomplishmentbulletwithastrongactionverb.
Usequantifiablemeasurementstoreallyhighlightaccomplishments.
Writeaccomplishmentbulletsasconciselyaspossible;keepeachaccomplishmentbulletaroundonetothreelineslongifpossible.
Listthreetosixaccomplishmentbulletsonaverageforeachposition.
Prioritizeaccomplishmentbulletswithineachpositioninorderofimportance.
Currentpositionsshouldbewritteninpresenttensewhilepreviouspositionsshouldbe
writteninpasttense.Note:ifyouhavecompletedaprojectwithyourcurrentposition,youmayusepasttenseforthataccomplishmentbullet.
Seenextpageforexamplesofaccomplishmentstatements.
There is a big difference between professional experience andrelevant experience. Avoid including anything and everything
you’ve accomplished during your entire professional career.Instead,ensurethatallexperienceyouincludeonyourresumeisactuallyrelevanttothejobtowhichyouareapplying.
Ensureyourprofessionalexperienceincludesaccomplishmentbulletsforeachpositioninsteadofjustalaundrylistofjobresponsibilities/duties.
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Lesson#3:
ProfessionalExperience
SAMPLEACCOMPLISHMENTSTATEMENTBULLETS:
Belowareafewexamplesof“before”and“after”statements.Youwillseethe“after”statementsreallyshowoffanapplicant:
Before:
Responsibleforrecruitingandoverseeingvolunteers.
After:
Managedrecruitmentandretentionforvolunteerprogramconsistingof30‐40volunteers,
generating3,200+volunteerhours;increasedvolunteerparticipationby150%withinoneyear.
Before:
Dutiesincludedworkingwithyouthinfosterprograms.
After:
Conductedconfidentialone‐on‐onesessionswithyouthages8‐15,balancingcaseloadofupto35participantsonamonthlybasis.
Before:
Wasreceptionistformedicaloffice.
After:
Servedasinitialpointofcontactbyprovidingoverallcoordinationofdailymedicaloperations,includingcheckingin50–75patientseachday,organizingpatientrecords,answeringphonecalls,andschedulingappointments.
Before:
Overseeairplanemaintenancepersonnel.
After:
Direct55+personnelperformingscheduledandunscheduledmaintenanceproductionon15+aircraftencompassing8type/model/seriesoperatingacross2hangarfacilities.
Remember that thegoalofaccomplishmentstatements is tomakeyou stand out from others who may be applying to the same
position. Use strong action verbs and quantifiablemeasurementswhenyoucantoreallyshowoffyourresults.
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ProfessionalExperience
ADDINGBUSINESSOWNERSHIP,FREELANCE,ANDVOLUNTEEREXPERIENCE:
Asabusinessownerorafreelancer,youhavedevelopedavarietyofskillsthatcanbetranslatedtoanewposition.Thinkaboutallofthetasksyou
performonaregularbasiswithyourbusinessand/orfreelancingandthenframethemintoaccomplishmentstatements.
Forexample,ifyouareaphotographerbutareapplyingtoabusinessdevelopmenttypeofposition,hereareseveralaccomplishmentstatementsyoucanuseonyourresume:
Manageddailyoperationsofphotographybusiness.
Increasedsalesby140%withinfirstyear
ofbusiness.
Developedmarketingcollateral,includingWordpresswebsiteandtrifoldbrochure.
TRANSLATINGMILITARYEXPERIENCE:
Ifyouareaveteranoratransitioningmemberofthemilitaryandarecreatingacivilianresume,youshouldfollowthesametechniquesmentionedthroughoutthistraining.Focusonyour
skillsandrelevantexperiencewithinthemilitaryandworkoncreatingaccomplishmentstatementsthatarerelevanttothetypeofcivilianpositiontowhichyouareapplying.
Spelloutallmilitaryacronyms.Civiliansarenotawarewhatmostmilitaryacronymsmean.
“De‐militarize”titlessothattheycloselymatchsimilartitlesinthecivilianworld.Forexample,somethinglikeLineDivisionOfficercanbetranslatedtoManagerinmostcases.
Thinkaboutwhattrainings,certifications,andawardsyouwillincludeonyourcivilianresume.Onlyplacerelevantinformationonyourcivilianresume.
Incorporate business ownership, freelancing, and volunteerexperienceintoyourresumeas longas itisrelevanttothe job in
whichyouareapplying.
Ifyouareatransitioningveteran,focusontheskillsgainedduringyourmilitaryexperiencethatcantranslatetothespecifictypeofcivilianjobtowhichyouareapplyingto.
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SAMPLERESUME:PROFESSIONALEXPERIENCESECTION
Include relevant experience from the past 10 (max 15) years.
Write accomplishment statement bullets to show measurable results.
Ensure consistent formatting throughout. Notice all bolding, italicizing, and indentation is consistent.
Start off each accomplishment statement bullet with a strong action verb.
Prioritize bullets in order of relevancy and size of accomplishment.
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LESSON3ACTIONPLAN:
Usingyourresumetemplate,startenteringinyourprofessional
experiencesection.Typeinthenameofyouremployer,location,
dates,yourjobtitle(s),anddatesofpromotions,ifapplicable.
Remembertobeconsistentwithlistingdates.Ifyouchoosetouse
March2010–May2013foroneposition,ensureyoulistmonthsinall
datesthatappearonyourresume;don’tjumpfromlistingmonthand
yeartolistingjustyear.
Ensureallformattingisconsistent.Youcanchangetheformattingonyourtemplatetouseitalics,
bold,allcapitalization,orsmallcapitalization;youcanalsochangethefontandfontsize…the
overallgoalistobeconsistentwhilemakingyourexperiencestandout.
Onceyou’vegotallofyouremploymentinformationentered,startbuildingoutyourbulleted
accomplishmentstatements.Todothis,thinkaboutthreetofiveofyourmajoraccomplishments
whileineachpositionandwritethemdown.Then,gothrougheachaccomplishmentandadd
details(suchasnumbersorstatistics,ifpossible).
Re‐readeachbulletandaskyourselfifitanswerswho,what,andhow.Ifnot,gobackandenter
inadditionaldetails.Remember,youwantahiringmanagertoreadthroughyourprofessional
accomplishmentsandseewhatseparatesyoufromanyotherapplicant!
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ProfessionalExperience
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