Resume Writing Tips for Fresher’s
Some people write their resume as if the purpose of the document was to land them in a job. As a result they end up with a really long and boring piece that makes them look like desperate job hunters. The objective of your job hunting is to land you in an interview, and the interview will land you in the job (hopefully!).
Your resume is generally your first introduction to an employer. It should be written with great care and consideration. Resume writing is no easy endeavor. Even for an individual who is relatively competent and involved in numerous written projects and pursuits, writing it can take a considerable amount of time and effort.
Resume should be written with your career goal in mind. Your resume is your marketing brochure, showcasing those skills, achievements, and qualifications that relate to the type of position(s) you are pursuing. It should include specific descriptions that give the reader a solid picture of your accomplishments and capabilities. Remember, your resume is not a summary of your entire history; it is a promotional piece that is targeted toward its reader.
Before you start working with job hunting documents
- Research the company you are planning to work for…
- Research the position you are planning to apply…
- Research yourself…
♦ Purpose of the Resume ♦
From the Employer’s Perspective:-
- The resume is a screening tool to rule out applicants who do not meet the qualifications and skills required or present themselves professionally in writing.
- Resumes which clearly articulate the candidate’s qualifications, skills and accomplishments may be considered further.
- Appearance of the resume and the content are equally important in today’s job market.
- The resume is used as a marketing tool to sell your skills and qualifications to potential employers.
From the Candidate’s Perspective:-
- The resume is a creative, personal statement of your education and experiences of your past, as well as your career direction for the future.
- It should highlight your unique qualifications and skills.
- It should not be a long biography of everything you have ever done; rather it should summarize and show the relevant accomplishments and skills which match the company’s current hiring needs.
- Its summarization about the skills you developed as a result of your education.
Key Word Density:
Keywords are the nouns or short phrases that describe your skills and education that might be used to find your resume in a keyword search of a resume database. They are the essential knowledge, abilities, and skills required to do your job. Develop your own list of keywords and place them strategically in your resume.
Action words:
The words that you use to describe your accomplishments, activities and other categories , they should convey skills that you have developed through your education process and what you have, to offer an employer. To do this, you need to use strong action verbs and self-descriptive words.
♦ Things to be considered while writing a resume ♦
The first step to land in your dream job is to create an outstanding resume. With the job market being tough now a days, it is of utmost importance that you must be able to prepare the best document and stand out. Here are few things that should be considered while developing your resume.
1) Your resume and its content needs to be professional :
The appearance of the resume should speak greatly about the person writing it, hence it should be visually appealing. It should mark an impression to the reader, that you are a mature and respectable individual, who will an asset to their company.
2) Your resume and you should stand out:
There is nothing wrong in using a regular template but finding an uncommon one and making it your own is always better idea. Play with fonts, boarders, spacing, little color etc to make it visually appealing. While concentrating on developing a eye catchy design, make sure you include all pertinent information like educational credentials, achievements, professional development skills etc
3) Check with grammar and spellings.
4) Proof read your document once, twice or thrice:
- Having someone else read your documents is another way to catch mistakes
5) Make sure all contact information is on your document:
- At the top of document page write down your name as you would like to appear.
- write down your home address, phone numbers and email address too.
6) Incorporate borders, shadings and a little color:
- Use a solid border around your document.Do keep it mind the look has to be still professional.
- Use background shading to draw attention to important areas. Make sure shading is light enough to print off properly.
7) Remember consistency should be maintained.
8) A good outline
- Contact information
- Job title you are applying for
- Introduction
- Objective
- Areas of expertise
- Educational credentials
- Any additional information
9) Immediately after your contact information should be the job title you are applying for.
10) Introduction/Qualification Summary/Career Objective:
- This section comes after your job title
- This section shouldn’t be long
11) Areas of expertise section:
- Include Key Skills.
- Technical Skills.
- Competencies needed to perform the job you are applying for.
12) Educational Credential Section.
13) Accomplishments section.
14) Professional development section:
- Workshops, Seminars and Training’s attended
- Certifications if any.
- Related Courses
15) Include your name on the left and Email id and phone number on the right in the header section if document gets extended to second page.
16) As you begin to complete your resume, we recommend you to hand it over to other people and ask them where their eyes go first, second, third and forth? Then ask yourself if these items are what you want your employer to read about you first. Are these the ones that sell you strongly? Do they convey your passion?
17) Prepare list of references
♦ Tips to Write an Effective Career Objective Statement ♦
Company’s frequently receive so many resumes that they discard most of them without reading them all the way through. Just as many readers put down a book if the story doesn’t grab their attention on the very first page, many employers and supervisors set aside resumes that don’t stand out from the crowd on first glance. The career objective statement at the top of your resume can make the difference between getting an interview and getting nowhere.
The purpose of an objective statement is to let the employer know what position or type of job you are applying for, and your qualifications for that position. This section should be written in compliance with what the employer is looking for. It is always present in the beginning of resume immediately after the contact details of the applicant .It sets the direction of your resume; therefore, the rest of the resume will need to include information which supports the objective.
Career objective statement should have the following characteristics:
- Focused
- Specific
- Personal
- Committed
- Action-oriented
List of things to keep in mind while writing a career objective statement:
- Keep your career objective statement short – three lines at the most
- Avoid using a generic objective statement
- Who you are ( consider educational qualification and skills)
- What you are looking for ( type of work you wish to do )
- Goals for your future
- What you have to offer the employer ( have a detailed look for keywords contained in the job advertisement)
♦ Resume Check List ♦
Overall appearance…
- Makes an immediately favorable impression
- Is inviting to read
- Is easy to read
- Looks professional
Contact information…
- Is clearly presented at the top.
- Includes address information; permanent and temporary.
- Includes telephone number(s) where you can be reached.
Objective…
- Includes type and level of position sought
- Includes type and size of organization sought
- Emphasizes strongest qualifications and skills pertinent to desired job
Organization…
- Highlights strongest qualifications or credentials
- Use headings to help establish common ground with employer
Content…
- Demonstrates ability to do the job and speaks to employer’s needs
- Supports and substantiates objective
- Stresses transferable professional skills, accomplishments, and results
- contains only that personal data relevant to your objective e.g., language skills, computer skills
Education section includes…
- Most recent degree or program in which you are enrolled; date of graduation or anticipated date
- List of other degrees or relevant higher education, training certificate programs, licenses, or short courses
- Name and location of university, college, or training institution
- Major, minor, and/or area(s) of concentration or interest
- Relevant coursework, skills, or knowledge acquired through research or projects
- GPA, honors, and awards
Language…
- Is expressed in succinct manner
- Uses action verbs to begin phrases
- Has short action-oriented phrases instead of complete sentences
- Is free from grammatical, spelling, and punctuation errors
- Is in active rather than passive voice
Layout and space utilization…
- Is crisp and clean
- Separates sections and incorporates enough blank space for easy reading
- Centers text with adequate margins
Highlighting and emphasis…
- Uses bold type, underlining, different type styles and sizes, to emphasize key words
- Does not use highlighting and emphasis too frequently
Printing and production…
- Paper is high quality; heavy weight bond
- Paper is off-white, ivory, light tan, light gray or other conservative and conventional color
- Reproduction is clear, clean and professional
- Print is letter quality, never photocopied
- Using all the information you have so far, you are close to writing a best resume ….
