Writing the resume that puts your best foot forward
By Chris Nonrod
Of th* Kmarald
Employment prospects today
are fewer and further apart than
in the past. Many of the best
career opportunities for new
graduates are in other cities,
other states and other regions.
Thus, the job-seeking college
student finds it necessary to ap
ply far. wide and often in order
to catch a chance at the best op
portunities available. This
quantitatfve method of job hun
ting requires that the first im
pression of the applicant, for
most prospective employers,
must come from paper — a let
ter and, a resume. . °
Entire, books have been
devoted to the topic of resume
writing. At least three very
useful resume guidelxroks are
available in the-University Main
Library: ’‘Your Resume: Key to
a Better job.’' by I-epnardCor
wen; "How, to Write Better
Resumes.'.;' 2nd edition by
A dele Lewis; .arid. “The Perfect
Resume.”' by Tom jackson.
Each of the books is packed
with inforrhation and advice on.
how to write the.best resume to
get the job you want.
Another -good place to get in
formation and personal Kelp pn
resumes is at the Career. Plann
ing and Placement Service in
Hendricks . Hall.- “The. service
distributes information booklets
titled "Job Search: A Guide for
Success in the Job Market.”
which include several pages of
guidelines-fo'r resume-writing.
The service also holds resume
writing workshops each week .
The following, ipiportant
points in resume construction
were derived from a survey of
the available materials:
The practice of resume
writing began after World War
II due to the expansion in the
work force and commercial in
dustries. Resumes were
necessary as a means to screen
the numerous applicants with
whom personal interviews were
impossible.
For the employer, a resume
accomplishes three objectives:
it screens out the completely
unqualified applicants, it
familiarizes the employer with
the applicant before the inter
view, and it allows the
employer to consider positions
for which an applicant is most
qualified.
For the applicant, a resume
servos many useful purposes. It
saves time and travel for un
fruitful interviews. It requires
the applicant to think about per
sonal strengths and weaknesses
.useful in Selecting a job.
If -is simpler, shorter and
easier to prepare.than a detailed
description • of one's .past. It
. helps applicants get organized
for interviews. It eliminates
time-taking background ques-’
tiqns in an interview And it
eliminates the temptation to ex
aggerate. about one’s past dur
ing, an interview. . •*. ■
Generally. • resumes , contain
the following'categories:
PERSONAL IDENTIFICA
TION: Include name.: address,
' telephone number. An alternate
telephone ’ number. (parents qr
friend) where a message ran lie
leftisagrHnliilea *
' POSITION SOUGHT, or
CAREER OBJECTIVE: Be as
specific as possible.
E D U C A T I O N A L
BACKGROUND; Include name
How to get an interview
with a campus recruiter
Students do not always have to go searching for an
employer Often, prospective employers come to the Univer
sity in search of qualified people to fill their positions.
Campus interviews are organized by the University
Career Planning and Placement Service. Early each term, the
CPPS conducts an orientation session Participants complete
registration forms and receive packets of bid cards, which are
valid for interviews that term
A schedule of campus interview recruiters is listed in the
Et al. section of the Oregon Daily Emerald. Students can
decide which interviewers they are interested in and then
submit bid cards at the CPPS in Room 244 Hendricks Hall one
week before the interview
Bids are screened according to the student's qualifica
tions for the post ion and the priority number on the bid card.
Ties are resolved by random choice.
Students whose bids are selected can schedule an ap
pointment for an interview and read information about the
employer at the Career Information Center, room 221 Hen
dricks Hail. On the day of the interview, students should
check In at the reception desk In 244 Hendricks Hall at least
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of college, degrees earned, ma
jor, minor, date of graduation,
G.P.A. if better than 2.7 (the na
tional average). Be discrete
when deciding what to list. Not
all of the above information is
necessary or even helpful for
every application.
EMPLOYMENT EX
PERIENCE: Emphasize any rele
vant experience. Condense
unrelated experience. List
employment experience star
ting with the most recent and
working backward. Briefly
describe relevant experience us
ing action verbs.
MISCELLANEOUS INFOR
MATION: Include extracur
ricular activities, personal data,
outside interests and hobbies,
military or draft status. This
category may be divided into
separate categories for each
listing.
REFERENCES: Some sources
condone listing references oh a
resume for -immediate
availability- to the employer.
This, will hejp when who you
know is as important as-what
You-know. -. ... • •
. However, other resume ex
perts believe listing references
may . result in • unnecessary •
bother for the references dr pro
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blems for the applicant if
. references should change while
a prospective employer holds
the resume. If references are not
listed, a resume should state,
“References available upon
request.”
In any case, all sources stress
the importance of using only
those references that are sure to
give a good report and never
taking a reference for granted.
Always call potential references
and ask their permission prior
to listing them, and alert them
K
that a potential employer may
call.
FORMAT and MAKE-UP: In
the past it was recommended
that each resume be typed in
dividually to show the
employer special concern for
that job. Today that is no longer
practical because a job-seeking
college student may send out
more than 100 resumes. High
quality photocopied or printed
resumes are used most often to
day. A personal touch is usually
added with a cover letter.
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