Resumes and Cover Letters Cynthia Favre Career Center 2003

The Basics n Resumes n Cover Letters n Career Center Help –Drop off and returned by campus mail –Quick Questions: Mon - Fri, 2:00 - 3:30 –Appointments –Samples

Resumes - General n There is no one right way n Persuasion paper not a laundry list n Effective Resumes –Show pattern of interest and experience –Make clear connection between qualifications and opportunity –Readable and professional in presentation

Get Started n Experience Memory Jogger (page 4) –Paid or unpaid? –Does high school count? n Skills and Qualities –Demonstrated or gained Make a list of 150 Positive Skills and Qualities –Victory log Peak Experiences n Patterns

Name Current AddressPermanent Address PhonePhone OBJECTIVE/CAREER INTERESTS Specific objectives: “Elementary Teacher,” “Public Accountant,” “Consumer Product Sales Representative” or, indicate career interests: “Finance, Banking, Sales”; “Writing, Research, Publishing, and Editing”; “Human Services, Children, Counseling”. EDUCATION Bachelor of Arts, Gustavus Adolphus College, St. Peter, MN, May 20______ Major: Minor: GPA: Study Abroad (optional): Indicate where, when, for how long, and what. Special Preparation (optional): Indicate courses or other training that may be of special interest to employers. EXPERIENCE or SKILLS Position title, employer, city, state, dates of employment. Short description of activities using past tense verbs and nouns to show skills. Evidence or proof that you have demonstrated specific skills. For example, evidence of writing may be “GPA of 3.5 in all writing courses.” You may also want to include an employment section with just job titles. ACTIVITIES List items that indicate skills, leadership, competitiveness, personal qualities or interests. High school activities may be included, but are not required. HONORS List positions or honors for which you were selected such as scholarships, awards, and other recognition. High school honors may be included. THE “KICKER” Make the last item a strong statement by centering across the bottom with important information such as: Willing to Relocate and Travel” or “Worked up to 20 hours a week while attending classes full-time.”

Process n Gather information n Use Resume Worksheet n Write n Rewrite n Layout (this will take time!) n Revise n Have it reviewed n Edit again

Resume Outline n Contact Information n Career Objective/Interests n Education n Experience n Activities/Honors/Service n Kicker

Career Objective/Interests n Be specific if you can: teacher, nurse, CPA n Career Interests –Human services, children, program management, counseling –Sales, marketing, promotions, advertising –Business operations, administration, customer service n Consider more than 1 resume

Education n BA- it is the only one we have! n GPA n Study Abroad –January Term counts –High School Counts n Selected Courses n Special Preparation

Experience n Paid or unpaid n Summarize experience not directly related n Give most space to most important experiences n Persuade! (Fill Milk Tanks)

Activities/Honors/Service n Why am I putting this on? n What does it tell the reader about me? n Summarize similar experiences n Scholarships n So What?

Kicker n References available upon request is not needed n Make a strong ending –Worked up to 20 hours per week while attending classes full-time –Eager to travel and Relocate –Commit up to 30 hours a week to varsity sport

Reference Page n References for Name n List 3 -5 references n People who can speak to your work n Name, position, organization, address, phone, address, relationship n Give written permission –Release forms

Cover Letters n Handshake through mail n Never send resume by mail, fax, or without a letter n Resumes submitted in person or given out at job fair do not need a letter n Resumes submitted on eRecruiting should have letters with them. n An added tool to sell yourself!

What to say n Paragraph 1:Tell them why you are writing n Paragraph 2: Promote skills and experiences n Paragraph 3: Tell them what you want to have happen

Make it good n Use past tense verbs n Avoid personal pronouns on resumes n Be consistent n Use graphics sparingly n Use no less than 10 point fonts n Avoid underlining, italic or script fonts

Send it n Resume, letter, reference page, and envelope all on the same paper n Stay with professional neutral colors of good quality paper n - as attachments n FAX - with cover page n Upload to eRecruiting file n SMARTERsource

Tip n To correctly spell resume in Word: n hold Ctrl key and apostrophe (next to Enter key) than any vowel - will put accent mark on

Career Center n phone: fax: n n n

Hours n Mondays 8 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. –When Classes are in Session n Tuesdays - Fridays 8:00 a.m. - 4:45 p.m. n Quick Questions – 2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m., Mon - Fri – no appointments needed

Get Started! Let the Career Center know how we can help!