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Resumes

Okay, now that you've assessed your talents and know how you wish to display them in the world of work, it's time to go get a job! First, you need a resume targeting the job you're going for. Now, we know you have many talents but for this resume, we want to highlight your skills and abilities that pertain to this particular job.

A resume is a summary of who you are and how you can do the job at hand in two pages or less. Since it is a reflection of you and the quality of work you do, typos, misspellings, poor grammar, and lying (even a small lie) are NOT acceptable.

There are basically three types of resumes: chronological, functional, and a combination of the two. Chronological resumes list the paid and unpaid experience you've acquired in reverse chronological order (i.e., most recent experience first). Functional resumes allow you to highlight your skills or areas of effectiveness. A combination resume does both. Samples of chronological and combination resumes follow.

Typical categories in a resume include contact information, objective, experience, work history, and education. Additional categories are summary of qualifications, military experience, community involvement, professional affiliations/licenses/certifications, special skills, awards and recognitions, interests and activities, and a personal statement. No resume should indicate salary history or expectations, a photo (unless it is essential for the job), race, religion, political affiliation or sexual orientation, nor any negative information (e.g., terminated from a job, mental/physical health problems). Choose the categories that make the most sense for you and allow you to highlight your skills most effectively.

Write your accomplishments in the "verb noun why result" format for greatest effectiveness. For example, "I wrote a series of training manuals that shortened training time and increased productivity by twenty percent."

How do you know if your resume is effective? Give it to ten people. Ask each to spend thirty seconds looking it over. Then ask them to tell you what kind of job you're applying for and whether they think you could do the job. If their answers to the first question are in line with your target job, and they give an unequivocal "Yes!" to the second question, you've got an effective resume!

Some good references on resume writing, interviews, and career planning are:

The following resumes were written and compiled by

Renee Filice
Stanford University Career Planning and Placement Center
Stanford, California, 1979.

 

Chronological Resume
(Employment Pattern Emphasized):
 
 
KAYE STONE
Present Address: 
P.O. Box 3196 
Stanford, CA 94035 
(415) 325-9320		 Permanent Address: 
44 Coulter Street 
Oakland, CA 94619 
(415) 323-1846
 
OBJECTIVE: To obtain an entry-level position in marketing with a major computer firm.
EDUCATION:
9/89-6/93 Stanford University, Stanford, California. B.A. degree in Economics. Undergraduate course work includes computer science, accounting, industrial engineering, statistics, and psychology.
9/90-3/91 Stanford-in-Italy, Florence, Italy Studied art, history, language, and culture of Italy.
EXPERIENCE:
9/94-6/97 Fund Raiser. Heritage Fund, Office of Development, Stanford, California. Student-run scholarship service. Raised funds by contacting businesses and corporations interested in the Stanford University community.
9/94-6/95 Kitchen Supervisor. Stanford University, Stanford, California. Organized duties and scheduling for a rotating crew of four in Zeta Psi Fraternity.
9/95-12/95 Freshman Orientation Coordinator. Stanford University, Stanford, California. Selected by Residential Education Staff to assist with travel arrangements, tours, and informational sessions for incoming freshmen.
6/91-9/95 Coordinator and Instructor. San Francisco Yacht Club, Belvedere, California. Summer sail training program. Responsible for the teaching and safety of 150-200 pupils throughout the summer. Controlled $25,000 budget and delegated duties to five other instructors. Supervised maintenance on fleet of 30 boats.
ADDITIONAL 
INFORMATION:		  
Vice-president, Zeta Psi, a social fraternity. Coordinated house events and meetings, organized all committees, and made all final housing arrangements.
Designed questionnaire on procrastination, administered it to student population, performed preliminary analysis using computer program.
 

Combination Format
(Both Skills and Employment Pattern Emphasized):
 
 
KAYE STONE
Present Address: 
P.O. Box 3296 
Stanford, CA 94305 
(415) 328-0519		 Permanent Address: 
22 Live Oak Way 
Morgan Hill, CA 95037 
(408) 867-3258
 
OBJECTIVE: To obtain a position as a marketing representative for a textbook publishing firm.
EXPERIENCE: Supervision/Administration  
Supervised, trained, and motivated kitchen crew of four.
Controlled $25,000 budget for summer sail training program. Delegated duties to five instructors.
Organized and coordinated panel presentation related to career information for students interested in business.
Marketing  
Raised funds for scholarship service by contacting local business people.
Writing/Editing  
Edited and solicited articles for student services newsletter.
Chaired publicity committee for spring arts and crafts fair. Wrote press releases, ad copy. Coordinated production of posters. Supervised three committee members.
EMPLOYMENT 
HISTORY:		  
Coordinator/Instructor. San Francisco Yacht Club, Belvedere, California. Summers 6/90-9/93.
Fund Raiser. Heritage Fund, student-run scholarship program, Office of Development, Stanford, California. 7/93-6/94.
Kitchen Supervisor, Phi Psi House, Stanford. 9/92-6/93.
Peer Counselor. The Bridge, student-run crisis counseling center, Stanford. 6/91-9/92.
EDUCATION: Stanford University, Stanford, California. B.A. in English. Course work included economics, math, and psychology. 9/90-6/94.
ADDITIONAL 
INFORMATION:		  
Member, Stanford-in-Business.

Updated by
Joanne M. Wambeke, M.Ed., NCC
Santa Fe Community College
P.O. Box 4187
Santa Fe, NM 87502-4187
(Original article by Sherry K. Reisfeld, Los Alamos National Laboratory)

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