Slide 1

Seattle Pacific University The Center for Career & Calling

Slide 2

Rsum Stats 150 900 Cost of a professional rsum writer $1800 - $10800 on rsums over your career! 78,937 1 Number of rsums per month (Microsoft) 10-30 Number of seconds your rsum will be looked at (if at all) 1.http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/bestcompanies/2007/snapshots/50.htmlhttp://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/bestcompanies/2007/snapshots/50.html

Slide 3

Agenda What is a Rsum?How to Write a RsumCover Letters Letters of Reference Thank You Notes

Slide 4

What is a Rsum? An advertisement your personal billboard A way to obtain an interview, not a job A summary of your skills and accomplishments selected specifically to demonstrate your VALUE Digested in 10-30 seconds

Slide 5

What Does a Rsum Say About You? How well you communicate in writing Your attention to detail Your relevant knowledge, skills, & abilities Your experience, what you have accomplished

Slide 6

What are Employers Looking For? Bottom line: Will you be able to help them? Make money Save money Make their life easier A match with job qualifications, experience, education, and skills A personal fit within their organization (communication style, personality, character)

Slide 7

Rsum Writing Process 1. Identify Knowledge, Skills, Abilities, & Accomplishments 2. Organize, Prioritize, and Write 3. Format 4. Proofread, Proofread, Proofread! 5. Re-write..this is an ongoing process!

Slide 8

Components of a Good Rsum Heading: Name, Address, Phone #, Email address Qualifications: 4-8 of your core accomplishments, knowledge, skills, and abilities Education: Degree, Major/Emphasis School, City & State, Date GPA (optional, if above 3.3) or Honors Experience: Position, Company, Date, Responsibilities, Transferable Skills(Include volunteer experience)

Slide 9

STUDENTS NAME 123 56 th Ave. Seattle, WA 99111 (206) 555-5555 cdc@spu.educdc@spu.edu QUALIFICATIONS Firm grasp of financial analysis, risk analysis and working knowledge of balance sheets Highly proficient in MS Excel, Word, Power Point, Access and internet tools Vice President, Finance Club. Spearheaded undergraduate investment competition Innovative problem solver with advanced ability in clarifying problems and evaluating alternatives Reliable, purposeful and solutions oriented worker EDUCATION Bachelor of Arts in Accounting Seattle Pacific University, anticipated graduation, June 2010 RELATED EXPERIENCE Computer Information Systems Help Desk: Seattle Pacific University, Sep. 2003-present Promptly respond to 15-50 phone and email technology questions per hour presented by faculty, staff, and students. Equip users with the information and skills to effectively use the campus wide technology. Schedule campus wide portable computer and media equipment usage. Oversee check out and return process. Payroll Officer: ABC Company, Inc., Seattle WA, Summers 2002 & 2003 Starting with action verbs is powerful. Created a certified wages payroll handbook and oversaw its implementation to ensure quality payroll procedures. Handled, collected, and inspected over 60 employees timesheets daily. Administrative Assistant: Seattle Law Firm, Seattle WA, Summer 2000 Recorded daily incoming payments to assist accounts receivable. Reconciled General Ledger with bank statements to ensure accurate records. Prepared bid reports and checked for accuracy upon submission. OTHER EXPERIENCE Part time Assistant Manager: The Body Shop, Summer 2001 Supervised part-time sales associates to encourage and ensure impressive customer service. Finance Club, Vice-President, Seattle Pacific University, 2002 Camp Activities Director; Ponderosa Bible Camp, Summer 1999

Slide 10

Objective Objectives are theme statements that will help organize the rest of the rsum Do NOT put objective on your rsum DO use your objective to organize each statement on rsum Write objective on separate piece of paper Tailor your rsum to your objective

Slide 11

Sample Objectives Ensure that each statement on your rsum meets your objective Compare every line in your rsum to your objective To obtain a position as a financial manager in the health care industry. To work as an intern in the electrical engineering field in the greater Seattle area, specifically at public utility companies.

Slide 12

Qualifications Similar to the abstract of a research article. First thing read, most important information What would make people want to keep reading? First on rsum, but write it last. Go through final rsum and choose core components (Accomplishments, Knowledge, Skills, or Abilities) 4-8 bullet points. Use powerful words such as: strong, broad, excellent

Slide 13

Qualifications Example Qualifications Broad knowledge of public relations based on 2 years of internships and several projects Strong presentation skills. Regularly present to groups of 30-50 people Top performer in debate team. Winner of multiple awards for outstanding debate skills Excellent organization skills, complimented for project coordination and attention to detail Fluent in Spanish, experience translating Skilled in Microsoft Office Suite, FrontPage, proven ability to easily learn new software

Slide 14

Education Full name of degree: Bachelor of Arts in English. Full name of School Location Graduation Date: June, 2010 or Anticipated graduation June, 2010 GPA / honors

Slide 15

Education Example Bachelor of Arts, English Seattle Pacific University, Seattle WA June 2010 Major GPA: 3.6 (only if 3.3 or higher) Deans List 6 out of 7 quarters Related Coursework: (optional)

Slide 16

Experience Job title, company, location, date, and accomplishment/results Use action verbs and details Highlight transferable skills Be specific about How, Where, When, etc. Show what you personally did and how it benefited your employer (Job sketch) Numbers and percents highlight accomplishments Formula: Task + Skill (Action Verb) + Result

Slide 17

Transferable Skills vs. Job Description Bullet points should describe your skills, not be list of job duties: NO: ~ Took orders ~ Cleaned counters YES: ~ Complimented for superior customer service skills ~ Maintained sanitary and attractive work environment Use general language that demonstrates skills you will transfer to your next job: NO: ~ Babysat kids, changed diapers and played games YES: ~ Provided for daily care of 3 children including nutrition and recreation

Slide 18

Organization/Layout Positioning on the page is important; what comes first gets read first Qualifications first Why hire you? Reverse chronological order (recent first) Remember it is an advertisementsell yourself with a few key points Brief is best, 1-2 pages maximum Clean, simple layout with few indented margins

Slide 19

Style of rsum Avoid personal pronouns Use action verbs and accomplishment statements. Use bullet points for skills Emphasis: CAPITALS, Bold, Underline, or italicizing

Slide 20

Final Product Use laser printing Use rsum paper recommend white or off-white Absolutely NO errors!!

Slide 21

One Size Doesnt Fit All Develop multiple versions of your rsum: Word processed document formatted for human eyes Scannable ASCII Text-only HTML coded file Targeted for specific positions

Slide 22

Formatted vs. Electronic FORMATTED: Viewed by a human Written for quick visual scanning Formatted to be pleasing to the eye ELECTRONIC Loaded into a computer database Written to be searched by keywords Formatted for complete and exact transfer of data

Slide 23

Electronic Rsum Tips Save or create your rsum as text-only Review your rsum and replace all unsupported characters with their ASCII equivalent Break the one-page rule. 1-3 pages is OK

Slide 24

Keywords are the Key Employers and recruiters search rsum databases using keywords Nouns and phrases that highlight technical and professional areas of expertise Industry-specific jargon Pull keywords Out of detailed job descriptions Industry publications Ask professionals in your field

Slide 25

Submitting Electronic Rsums Follow employers instructions on how to submit rsum on-line Always include an appropriate subject line Ex. John Doe Application Job Title Attach your rsum as a PDF When submitting a paper rsum that will be scanned: Do not fold If faxing, use fine mode

Slide 26

How to Stay Unemployed Post your rsum only on job boards (Career Builder, Monster, Hot Jobs, Craigslist) Apply to 200 random employers online Apply only to companies on the Fortune 500 list (ex. Microsoft, Boeing, Amazon, Google) Rely completely on your rsum to find your next job

Slide 27

Cover Letters

Slide 28

What Stands Out? Clear, concise, well written, and interesting Helps the employer easily see the match between their needs and your qualifications and experience Shows your knowledge of the organization and its needs An internal company reference

Slide 29

Whats in a Cover Letter? First Paragraph: Who you are, Why you are writing, What position you are applying for, and How you learned of the opening. *Add something creative so that your letter stands out. (Personal passion for the company? Liked something on their website? Love of their product? Know someone who works there?) Second (Third) Paragraph(s): Make the case for why you are a match for the position. Point out related experience, specific skills, unique qualifications that you know they need. Demonstrate how you will add to their organization. (Stay clear of what you hope to gain from working there unless you are applying for an internship.) Final Paragraph: Closing and follow up. Repeat your desire for the position and your interest in a chance to meet in person. Mention your intentions for follow-up (e.g. I will contact you next week to confirm receipt of my application.)

Slide 30

List of References Should be a stand alone document that matches your rsum format and style Is not typically sent with your rsum; bring it with you to the interview or offer it once they have shown an interest in you as a candidate Include your name and contact information at the top along with the heading References List references name, title, company, contact information, and how they know you (e.g. Former Supervisor) Be sure your references know what you are applying for and supply them with your current rsum

Slide 31

Thank You Notes Send a thank-you email within 24 hours of the interview Send a hard-copy thank-you within 48 hours Use business letter format and be brief Hand-written is okay for less professional settings Include specifics about your interview or unique qualifications that will remind them of who you are Consider sending an article on a topic discussed or an answer to a question raised. Reiterate your interest in the position and your anticipation of their response

Slide 32

Questions??? Call 206.281.2485