1. KEYS TO A WINNING RESUME!
Career Services Department
ITT Technical Institute
Albany, NY

2. YOUR TICKET TO AN INTERVIEW!
What is a Resume?
The Resume is:
A tool to market yourself so that you can get the interview!
An expression of you (showcases your skills/qualifications & accomplishments)
The first thing a recruiter or hiring manager looks at in the hiring process ( usually for maximum of seconds)
What will truly make a difference in the type of job you will get
YOUR TICKET TO AN INTERVIEW!

3. RESUME FORMATS CHRONOLOGICAL - ( preferred format to use)
FUNCTIONAL – ( May be used by some people if appropriate)
Scannable – ( Every job seeker needs to have a scannable version)

4. CHRONOLOGICAL RESUME
Organized by your employment history in reverse chronological order covering the past 5-10 years.
Start with skills and education

5. CHRONOLOGICAL RESUME
The chronological resume is preferred by the widest variety of employers, as well as by recruiters and many of the Internet job boards.
It is “Reader Friendly”
Clearly demonstrates your job history and career advancement/growth.

6. FUNCTIONAL RESUME
For job seekers with limited work experience, a checkered job history, or a job history in a different career field
Organized by skills and functions clusters
communication skills
leadership skills
technical skills
customer service skills
Works best for homemakers returning to the workforce, new graduates without any prior work experience, or individuals with wide employment gaps

7. SCANNABLE RESUME
You should use a machine scannable resume only if the employer requests one
Also known as a text or scannable resume
Highlights keywords – words relevant to a specific job or field. May include specific skills, software, hardware, industry specific tolls, certifications, etc.
Useful because many employers now utilize applicant tracking systems to store candidate information and resumes. Search later for open positions. Database scans key words.
FORMATTING
KEEP IT SIMPLE!
No italics, no underlining, no shading, or other unusual enhancements. No bold or ALL CAPS. It's unnecessary; the scanner does not differentiate between this and other font styles.

8. RESUME SECTIONS Heading Objective/Profile Education
Skills/Qualifications
Work Experience
Others (i.e. professional associations, training, certifications, volunteer experience, military experience)
Leave references off (should be in a separate document)

9. HEADING Name Address Phone Number(s)
Address (should be professional)
NEVER include personal information such as photos, height, weight, gender, marital status, nationality, or religion (illegal for employers to use this information in hiring decision).
BE CREATIVE. This is an advertisement for you. You want your resume to stand out from the rest.

10. OBJECTIVE
The objective tells the employer what you want to do and what you have to offer.
The objective should be general yet geared towards the job you are seeking.
Should not be self-centered – employers want to know what you can do for them!

11. EDUCATION
Begin with your current or most recent educational experience.
Your anticipated graduation date
Include grade point average (3.0 or higher), academic honors, and any other awards.
Also include relevant courses/projects ( ex. Capstone, Techfest)
Include any certificates completed or concentrated coursework.

12. SKILLS/QUALIFICATIONS/ SPECIAL PROJECTS
Separate into categories:
Computer Skills
Technical Skills
Leadership Skills
Customer Service Skills

13. WORK EXPERIENCE Begin with your most recent employer
Entries should include:
Company Name, City, State
Dates of Employment ( Month and Year)
Position Title ( Bullet and Can Italicize)
Description of job duties (3-4)
Use bullet form
Use ACTION/POWER words (i.e. developed, trained, converted, reduced, increased, assisted, provided, coordinated, implemented, achieved)
If you’re no longer employed at a certain organization make sure that the position description is in the past tense

14. Internship Experience
Internship Experience will be under Work Experience Heading
Same format as the work experience
Company Name, City, State
Dates of Employment
Position Title ( Ex. Network Administrator Intern)
Description of job duties

15. VOLUNTEER WORK COMMUNITY SERVICE
Use experiences you may have in the following:
Volunteer work for local community center, clubs, organizations, etc.
Good to use if work experience is limited.

16. REFERENCES
Do NOT include references on your resume. Use a separate a reference page.
References available upon request on the bottom of your resume
Three types of references:
Educational (teachers, coaches, etc.)
Professional (previous managers or supervisors from jobs held)
Personal (NO family members – do not list personal references unless specifically requested to do so.)

17. KEYS TO A GOOD RESUME Short and Concise Visually Appealing
Error Free (proof read for grammar, punctuation and spelling)
Quality paper and printing ( Resume Paper)
Honesty
Source: Employment Techniques in the 21st Century

18. EMPLOYERS USE OF RESUMES
Scan quickly to determine whether or not to interview
Look at education, skills, experience
Develop interview questions
Assess communication skills
Transferable skills (i.e. initiative, high energy, communication and time management skills, leadership ability, ability to multi-task, team player, work under pressure, analytical skills, etc.)

19. FINAL POINTERS
Ensure that your resume is error free – proofread, proofread, proofread! Be sure to catch all spelling errors, grammatical weaknesses, unusual punctuation, and inconsistent capitalizations.
Make appointment with career services or a professor to review resume/offer suggestions.
Do not lie!
Update resume as you acquire new skills/experience.
Save a backup copy of your resume.
Use one font type.
Highlight accomplishments.

20. Your Resume is a self-promotional document that presents you in the best possible light, for the purpose of getting invited to a job interview.