Creating a Resume Career Education Harrison Center

Introduction A Resume is a document that allows a person to go into specific detail about their education, past and present work experience and responsibilities, job related skills and abilities, interests, and more. Resumes are formatted so that potential employers can efficiently look over a person’s background. ▫They are usually looking for job specific indicators of whether or not a person would be a good employee.

Introduction, cont. Resumes should be specific, accurate, and concise. Resumes should also be modified from time to time in order to ensure the accuracy of the information. They should also be modified and reformatted when applying for a position that is different from the prior position the resume was used for.

Heading The Heading is the first part of the resume. It includes a persons name, mailing address, phone number and address. The font style and format of the heading vary depending on the type of resume used. ▫This is easy to see when using a resume template from Microsoft Word.

Heading Example

Objective The purpose of the objective is to concisely state the person’s career goal (the reason for the resume). It is usually 1 sentence and makes a clear statement.

Objective Example

Experience This portion of the resume is probably the most important. It outlines exactly all past employers, dates of employment, job titles, and job responsibilities. The key is to utilize synonyms when describing job duties. Jobs are listed from most recent, or current, to earliest. For example, instead of saying “Cleaned the bathroom”, a more professional resume phrase might read, “Monitored and maintained customer restrooms”. ▫This is essentially the same phrase, but stated professionally.

Experience Example

Education The Education portion allows a person to list all education and degrees, diplomas, and certifications received. Only go as far back as high school. Include all technical schools (e.g., TEC Center schooling) as well. List schooling from the most recent to earliest.

Education Example

Other Categories There are other categories that can also be included on a resume, especially if a person has little or no previous experience. A section titled “Skills and Abilities” can be used to highlight various skills and abilities that can translate into a work environment. Another common section is “Interests” which is sometimes used to facilitate the interview process

Conclusion Make a resume personal, accurate, specific, and concise. Focus on “dressing up” the job responsibilities Create the resume to highlight personal skills, experience, schooling, etc.