What is a Résumé?

The Résumé is an important tool to market an individual’s experiences, skill set, achievements and potential to prospective employers. It is a professional written document that communicates your academic and professional qualifications, work experiences, and skills related to the type of position you’re are seeking. The idea is to grab focus at the right keywords and content to produce maximum effect.

What is a Curriculum Vitae (CV)?

A CV is a type of resume most commonly used to apply for research or faculty positions in an academic setting.

A CV is typically longer in length and provides more detail than a resume. In addition to the basics that you would include on a resume, it is common to include publications, presentations, research and teaching experiences, grants, fellowships, and awards.

CONSIDERATIONS FOR WRITING A RÉSUMÉ :

 Create a positive impression by tailoring your résumé to each position and employer.

 Determine experiences and skills needed for the job.

 Choose a résumé style that highlights your background.

Now, to get started:-

1) Make a list of experiences you’ve had: Education and training, jobs, internships, research, projects, volunteer work, leadership, student organizations, etc.

2) Think about what you contributed, what skills you used and developed, and your significant achievements.

3) Begin to craft your resume by organizing these experiences into sections as given below.

SECTIONS TO INCLUDE: THE BASICS”

 CONTACT INFORMATION: Name, phone, email address, and one present or permanent address

 OBJECTIVE: A brief statement that indicates what type of position you are seeking. It may also include key skills you bring to the position, which type of industry you want to work in, and/or what company you want to work for. Including objective statement is optional. Make sure it is well written and enhances your resume in case it’s included.

 EDUCATION: List degrees in reverse chronological order. Include school/college name, University/Board name, location, percentage or CGPA, and graduation date.

 SKILLS: List of tangible skills gained through experiences as it pertains to the job, including technical, technological programming, laboratory skills, and operating systems knowledge.

 SOFT SKILLS: include your communication, leadership, interpersonal skills or any other soft skills. Try to incorporate them in your Work Experience and Activities Sections.

 WORK EXPERIENCE: Summer internships, publications, presentations and research. For each experience (paid or volunteer) include your title, organization name and location, and dates of employment. Then create a bulleted skills statement, following this formula: Action Verb + Details + Result (when applicable).

 PROJECTS: Describe individual or group work you have done to demonstrate your ability to apply learning to real-life problems.

OTHER SECTIONS YOU CAN INCLUDE

 ACHIEVEMENTS AND HONORS: Scholarships or notable scholastic awards or any other achievements.

 ACTIVITIES: Include involvements with student organizations, volunteer experience, and professional associations. Include the organization name, dates of participation, and possibly a bulleted statement to explain a leadership role or accomplishment.

 AREA OF INTEREST: Mention about your areas of interests and domains or job profiles that you’re seeking or more interested in. What all to keep in mind while drafting your Résumé?

 Yes, you need a cover letter even when you are emailing your resume, posting it to a job board, or sending it electronically. A cover letter is the best place to introduce yourself, identify your goals, and briefly describe why you are a good fit for the position. A well-written cover letter is a sales tool that will ensure your resume will be read.

 Avoid using ready-made resume templates, such as those from Microsoft or other resumegenerating programs. Hiring managers will spot them quickly, and will assume you either lack creativity or don’t care enough about the position you are applying for to go the extra mile.

 Resumes that arrive unconventionally, are on colored or perfumed paper, or have many different fonts in an effort to make them stick out in the crowd will likely go unread. Employers will assume that if you need to resort to these tactics, you probably don’t have the qualifications for the job. Be simple and sober in your presentation. Don’t beautify your résumé.

 Your resume must be grammatically perfect with no spelling errors. Most positions today require good communication and writing skills, and if your resume is riddled with errors, you’ll be immediately judged as someone who doesn’t possess these basic skills. Make use of a dictionary and be sure to have your document carefully proofread.

 Your resume should clearly state what you do, what you are good at, and what you have accomplished. It should mention only relevant information in context to the job profiles you’re aiming at.

 Mention the important information in the beginning that you want the hiring staff to definitely read as they don’t have much time to full-read your résumé.

 The goal should be to document everything you’ve done, without being verbose. One page should suffice for entry-level workers and those with a few years of work experience. If you have more than six or seven years of experience, two pages is appropriate. Don’t make it too long or too short.

 Hiring managers have piles of resumes to get through, and most of them are unwilling to read your resume to full length no matter how qualified the candidate is. Avoid lengthy sentences or paragraphs, and use bullets instead. Write short sentences and be to the point. Avoid personal pronouns (I, my, we) and complete sentences to describe your experiences. Start your statements with action verbs.

 Employers don’t care what duties were assigned to you in your past jobs. All they are really concerned about is what you have done, and what you can do for them. Focus on your accomplishments, rather than your duties. Use statistics and numbers. Show how you solved problems. Avoid use of words like “duties” or “responsibilities.”

 Don’t include unnecessary details that could be controversial or untrue. Be 100% honest, accurate and factual. Avoid abbreviations.

 References are often used as a way to end a resume, but it’s completely unnecessary. Of course you have references! Otherwise, you have no business applying for this job!

 Personal information, such as marital status, age, height, weight, etc. should not be included.

 Don’t include reasons why you left any employment or a detailed work history. Rather, include your most related experiences or those where you demonstrated a high level of skill. It is suggested to tailor your resume to the job description. FORMATTING TIPS FOR YOUR RESUME

 Use easy-to-read font styles, such as Times New Roman, Arial, or Garamond between 10-12 point in size.

 Clear and consistent formatting creates an easily readable document.

 Start bullet points with action verbs.

 Include a well-written cover letter along with the resume.

 Describe and quantify experiences as much as possible.  Include key words from the job description.

 Place the most important information at the top of the document.

 Limit to one page at the entry or at the master’s level and two pages at the doctoral level or If you have more than six or seven years of work experience.

 Use grayscale color format. Don’t make it colorful or include any graphics. FINALIZING YOUR RÉSUMÉ

 Read closely for spelling and grammar mistakes. Avoid slang and excessive jargon.

 Proof-read your resume at least twice or thrice before finalizing.

 Contact a trustworthy and experienced person for a résumé review!

Design is important, but it is suggested that you place your focus on the content of your resume. If you want to create a truly disruptive resume, include clear, quantifiable achievements.

Let the power of your accomplishments set you apart.

WISHING YOU ALL THE BEST!