Most on-campus career services organizations work with students. They help college students create resumes that are adequate for presenting to companies recruiting at the school. These resumes do not need to lead to interviews because the interviewers are coming to the students. The resumes are used for talking points by recruiters and hiring managers who have traveled to that specific school to find employees.
If you are not a college student and are not attending a school “job fair,” then you need a different type of resume, one that the career services organization’s are often unfamiliar with.
Unlike a student resume presented to on-campus recruiters, your resume must win you that first interview. Therefore, it must accomplish two tasks. First, it must pass through the Applicant Tracking System (ATS) – a scoring system using keywords and other information that most companies use. Second, it must highlight your accomplishments so that hiring managers will pick your resume out of all the resumes they see.
In addition to being a professional, certified resume writer, I am a leading expert in ATS for the resume and career services industry. This year, I made a presentation on ATS and resumes for the GCDA. This is an association of college career counselors. I am a member of GCDA and frequently attend their meetings where I speak with career counselors from schools such as Georgia Tech, Georgia State, and Emory. I have provided coaching to students at many of these schools.
So I am well aware of the differences between resumes for college students and resumes for those who are already out in the working world. I have written technical, executive, career transitioning, and scientific resumes, as well as curriculum vitae, for individuals at every stage of their careers. Each resume presents its own challenges; but my experience, training, and contacts in the recruiting industry have prepared me to deal with those challenges.
Please contact me at Robin’s Resumes® for professional, up-to-date advice on your resume.