Job Club Journal

Day 6 –  Resumes resumed…..

Resume writing continues . . . DON’T DO ANYTHING TO HELP THE EMPLOYER ELIMINATE YOU – Put yourself in the employer’s shoes and see how your qualifications stack up.

If an employer sends you an email message, that’s how the company will communicate.  Check your email every couple of days, and remember that you have a week to reply.  So don’t panic – and Don’t  use ALL CAPS in an email – it means you’re screaming!  You need to have a typeset resume (one that looks really nice) and a plain text or ‘scanable’ resume.   (Class will talk more about this.)

If there is professional jargon that applies to the position you held and the position you’re seeking, use that jargon in a separate resume to the person who will be your supervisor, if you have this information; otherwise, stick to plain English.  Many of us use “References on Request” as the last line.  It’s better to use a psychological line, such as:  “PROFESSIONAL, RELIABLE, AWARDS FOR PERFECT ATTENDANCE”

Follow up:

Some resumes have a ‘Summary’ section:  use this to indicate what you can do for the employer.  For people in this class a chronological format is not a good option; a targeted ‘functional’ resume works better.  DON’T TALK ABOUT AGE, OR PUT DATES ON YOUR RESUME – IF YOU CONCENTRATE ON WHAT YOU CAN DO, THE EMPLOYER WILL NOT THINK ABOUT YOUR AGE!

Your cover letter should complement your Resume.  If you are changing careers, explain in this letter how previous work experience and/or education relates to what you want to do.

Obviously, this is not the only day the class will talk about resumes, but all this was so we could do the next homework assignment.   For Wednesday (two days from now) we each need to have drafts of our Resume, a cover letter, and a letter of introduction.  Don pointed out that communication between class members and himself takes places through the use of a box on a side table to put our materials in for him, and individual folders, with our names, for material to come back to each individual.