Tips for Writing a High Impact Resume

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Tips for Writing a High Impact Resume
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Choose a Job Target

• Represent your major strengths
• Communicate to employers what you can do for them
• Be honest, positive, and concise
• Be clear about your job direction

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Step 2 Know what job skills and experience is
required

• Use an objective statement that includes job
  skills the employer is seeking
• Use functional skills vocabulary through out your
  resume examples organizing, teaching, problem
  solving ect..
• Speak with someone already working in the field
  to get better insight of what the job entails

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Step 3 List Your strongest skills

• Include relevant skills and strengths required
  for target job
• Briefly list key points at the top of the 1st
  page that qualify you for the job

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Step 4 For Each Skill List an Accomplishment

• Include work history(period,volunteer)
• Include accomplishments
• Ask yourself questions such as What am I good
  at?

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Step 5 Use Action Statements

• Use catchy one liners, rather than long wordy
  sentences
• Use action words such as achieved, accomplished,
  certified, delegated
• See action word list for resume writing

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Step 6 List all your past jobs in chronological
order

• Include short term jobs ( only if relevant)
• Periods of training or education
• Omit jobs that do not relate to your target job
• Use job titles that are clearly understood to
  describe the work you did

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Step 7 Make a List of Your training and education

• Correspondence courses, workshops, ect.
• Have a separate section for training and
  education
• Professional Affiliations

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Step 8 Choose Resume Format

• Functional ( focus on skills)
• Combination
• Chronological (focus on jobs held)

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Functional Resume
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Combination resume
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Chronological Resume
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Step 9Be concise

• 1 year or less experience, 1page
• 15 years or more, 2 pages

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Top 10 Most Common Mistakes

• Spelling Errors
• Typos
• Word Usage
• Leaving out computer skills
• Including personal statistics
• Using current employers fax and e-mail
• Including pictures
• The use of I
• Job titles with no meaning
• Overselling and exaggerating

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When to use a Functional Resume

• Desire to focus on transferable skills
• To downplay work gaps
• Reflect the type of work actually done
• Are changing careers
• if skills have been acquired through volunteer
  activities
• Re-entering the work force
• New college graduate

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When to use a Chronological Resume

• If you have a clear job target
• The next job is the logical progression
• Current job is in healthcare, finance, science,
  or the engineering field
• When your title and company are impressive
• Senior management

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When to use a Combination Resume

• If you have a great deal of experience
• Four or more years with your current or last
  employer
• Substantial accomplishments
• Middle or senior management

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Be sure to

• Tailor your resume for the job you are applying
  for
• Use the situation and how you solved the problem
• Always include a cover letter
• Use good quality paper
• Font is important, do not use fancy script (Arial
  or Times Roman)
• Proof-read

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References

• Adams, B. (1999). The Complete Resume Job Search.
  MAAdams Media
• Fein, R. (1992). 101 Quick Tips for a Dynamite
  Resume. VAImpact Publications.
• Parker, Y.(1996). Damn Good Resume Guide. CATen
  Speed Press.
• Ryan, R. (1997). Winning Resumes. New York Wiley
  Sons
• Yate, M. (2003). Resumes that Knock em Dead. MA
  Adams Media