Marble Jar Gang Career Counseling: Resume Structure
The basic premise or formula is to recognize that when your skills + traits + behaviors are placed in the right environment the outcome will give you a greater chance of success and happiness in your work.
In the last post we discussed your resume strategy that included formatting and style. Today we take a look at the organization of the information including the sections and headings. These are the basic sections: (headings are BOLDED)
Contact Information: name, email, phone, Linkedin. It does not include your home address.
Summary Statement: 2-3 strong sentences which describe your skills and experiences that the employer will be looking for in a candidate. Ensure that you have used employers terms and keywords from the job description. If this goes beyond 3 sentences then the MJG suggests using a few bullet points under your summary for additional skills and experiences. 4-6 bullet points formatted horizontally will not take up much of the page.
Selected Accomplishments: 4-6 significant accomplishments where you have excelled. This is a cumulation of all past positions and experience since the ones that are job specific will be detailed under the Professional Experience section. Your selected accomplishments will be described in sentences that use words in the past tense. Examples include: designed, managed, developed, achieved, completed, resulted in and consistently has.
Professional Experience: detail your current and past employers company name. Consider using a sentence about the company in terms of headquarter city and the size and scope of the business. This gives a perspective of you working in a small, medium or large organization. If you had several positions in one company then list the total year's span next to the company and then the position specific years by the job titles. Example: you worked at Apple for 6 years, 2012-2018 and held 3 positions listed by each job title 2012-2014, 2014-2017, 2017-2018.
When listing your job titles do so in chronological order starting with the most current. Use a summary sentence of the position responsibilities then add in some bullet points on key aspects of that position and results that can be quantified. Do not repeat from the 'Selected Accomplishments' section but add on to those and focus on the results you achieved.
Education: formal education or training after high school. List all degrees, certificates, major seminars, all languages in addition to your first language, notable experiences, as in studying abroad. When listing your college education use the degree you earned, date you graduated (or use in progress) the school, City/State and GPA if it is strong (3.5+). For a deeper dive check out: https://www.thebalancecareers.com>findingajob>jobsearching>resumes
Achievements: (optional) If you have significant personal/professional achievements that may be notable, list them in this optional heading. Examples may include publications, awards, promotions, patents, running marathons or highlighted in the Top 50 Best in your field.
Let’s review a list of common blunders:
1) Avoid any statements as to your professional or job objectives
2) Do not submit References unless requested
3) The resume should not be more than 2 pages in length, excluding your cover letter
4) Check spelling and punctuation
5) Do not print your resume on fancy paper
6) Do not use a fancy font
7) No lies or exaggerations in dates, titles, responsibility or education
Your homework is to write the first draft of your resume, using this structure in the format design you previously selected. (see Your Resume Strategy post for more info)
For a deeper dive into the skills that are worth listing on your resume, check this out: https://zety.com/blog/resume-layout