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Resume
Your resume plays an important role in selling yourself to a a prospective employer, which may lead to an interview and then a job offer.
Resumes need to be targeted to each employment opportunity you are applying to. Do not make the BIG mistake, as so many do, of thinking that a 'generic' resume will do.
The following is taken from Best Resumes for College Students and New Grads:
The primary purpose of the resume is to enable employers to determine whether or not you are appropriate for the position(s) they have available.
To be effective your resume must do the following:
- capture attention in the first few seconds
- target the job requirements/qualifications and company
- to demonstrate suitability
- establish credibility - a reason for the reader to believe you can do what you say
- inspire the reader to want to know more - offer you an interview
Complete with a tailored cover letter to highlight relevant information from the resume that shows you are the ideal candidate for the position. It's best to use a simple and easy to read font such as Times or Arial, with a font size of point 11 or 12.
A portfolio includes more that just a resume and cover letter. It can include writing samples, short abstract pieces or work, excerpts and brief explanations of projects, which reflect your knowledge, skills and interest in your chosen field.
Cover letters say something important about you as a professional and as a prospective employee. Your letters are marketing tools, they should be well written and should address the needs of the employer.
Here is another perspective on Resume from Workopolis.com
What you need to know before you start composing your Resumé...
Effective commercials always target a specific audience to generate sales. What good would it do to market a convertible to people over sixty, when all they really want is a safe, reliable car for taking their grandchildren to the park? The same is true of Resumés: You can't expect an employer to hire a bricklayer when he or she really needs a computer programmer.
You must give some thought to the audience of your Resumé. Usually, the person reading the Resumés is the person who will be doing the hiring. This is the person who is responsible for the bottom line productivity of the organization you hope to be a part of. And, this is someone who cares deeply about the quality of the work that will be done. This is also the person to whom you should target your Resumé.
Put yourself in their shoes: What would they want to know about a prospective employee? What would get them interested in and even excited about meeting you?
The first thing you need to do is get clear what an employer is looking for and what you have to offer him or her.
Finding out what employers want... If you're seeking a job in some field you know well, you probably already know what would make someone a superior candidate. But, if you aren't sure, you can gather clues from want ads and people presently employed in that field. You could even contact an employer and ask him or her what would make someone an ideal candidate for the position. This information is vital for writing a Resumé that markets you to prospective employers. You can use it to tailor your skills and abilities to match the requirements of the position you're seeking.
Figuring out what you have to offer... If you're like most people, this is the hardest part about writing a Resumé. It's often difficult to see connections between the things you have done and the things an employer is looking for. You have knowledge and experience of all sorts, but an employer wants to see your qualifications . They want to learn about your marketable skills and characteristics, which means you need to learn how to brag...
(copied from workopoliscampus.com - Resource Centre: Columns, Tips, Archives)
