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Job and Career Transition Coach

Your First Resume

Recently I helped a college student with her first resume. Like most new job applicants, she made three main mistakes in her resume.

First, she wasn’t clear about the job she wanted. If you are not sure what your education qualifies you to do or how your interests might translate into a career, you may want to consult a certified career coach or Job and Career Transition Coach. At the very least, start reading job descriptions, advertisements, and postings to see what companies are looking for and how you fit their requirements.

Second, she downplayed her volunteer work. The skills you acquire as a volunteer—communication, computer, leadership, organizational, and so on—are not only valuable in themselves, they also show a commitment to the community that most companies appreciate in employees.

Third, she provided the wrong details: she mentioned every school she attended, including grammar school, but neglected to describe her 3.9 GPA, courses, and awards in college. As a recent graduate, your education may be stronger than your job (or volunteer) experience. However, your early education is not important; what you should stress are your most recent successes, including GPA if it is a good one (generally above 3.00), the courses you took that are most relevant to your chosen career path, and achievements such as founding or serving as an officer in a school association or being recognized for your contribution to academics or sports.

I have many years of experience helping recent college graduates with professional resumes that show how ready they are to enter the workplace. Let me help you.

Are You Sending Your Resume to All the Right People?

In addition to sending your resume to companies that have advertised positions, you should also be sending it to:

  • Companies who have not advertised but who are a match for your perfect position—let them know you are interested and available.
  • Personal contacts, especially those who are willing to talk to their contacts about your job search. They need the right information to make an impression.
  • Professional contacts, such as insurance agents, lawyers, financial advisors, mortgage broker or anyone else who has multiple contacts with professional clients. These individuals often solve problems; if that includes finding the right candidate for an open position, they will certainly pass along your name.
  • Work contacts, including current and past co-workers and managers, retirees, customers, vendors, and suppliers. Depending on how discrete you need to be (for example, depending on whether a layoff has already been announced), your work contacts are excellent sources of information on open positions.
  • Educational contacts, including people you met at seminars, current and former classmates and teachers, and college career center staff.
  • Community contacts, including the local chamber of commerce and civic leaders.
  • Recruiters. You can find lists of recruiters online by industry, geographic area or keywords. Try to contact recruiters personally to avoid wasting their time and yours if you are not a match for the companies they work with and not likely to be one.

Most advertisements or online job listings specify a physical or email address to send your resume to, as well as a job reference number that must appear in the letter or in the subject line of an email. You should make sure that you follow through on all information provided by the company or recruiter as to where and how to submit your resume—and if the advertisement specifies no phone calls, do not telephone.

As a member of the National Career Development Association and a certified Master Career Director, Electronic Career Coach and Job and Career Transition Coach, I can help make sure that you are sending your resume to the right people in the right way. Contact me today.

“I’m Not Sure What I Want to Do”

For anyone who is recently laid off, depression and anger are natural reactions, but so is a sense of opportunity. Now is their chance to find a job they really like, start a new career or redefine their role.

If you fall into that second category, your excitement over new possibilities is admirable. In terms of your resume, however, there are a few practical considerations.

First, your resume must always be written for the job you want. If you don’t know what that is, you will have a hard time framing your resume to appeal to recruiters and hiring managers. Your skills, knowledge and education may be transferrable but the burden is on you to explain their relevance to your new career.

Second, you may waste valuable time and energy and miss real opportunities by pursuing a vaguely defined “perfect” job that shifts with every ad you read. As a Job and Career Transition Coach, I know the value of having a professional evaluate your skills and work with you to realistically define your goals. The sooner you focus your search, the sooner you will find your next job.

Third, your online, business and personal network can only help you if they know what to look for. They cannot guess what job you want; you have to tell them.

At Robin’s Resumes®, we write resumes that help people just like you transition to an exciting new career.

Answers to Common Resume Questions

As a professional resume writer, I am often asked the following questions:

Q.           Everyone these days knows Microsoft Office. Should I mention Microsoft Office on my resume?

A.            While Microsoft Office skills are common, some job postings and advertisements specify that the candidate must know Microsoft Office. You should definitely list Microsoft Office when the skill is required and should consider keeping it on your resume just in case. In addition, skill in some Microsoft products (such as Visio, Access, Publisher, and Project) is considered a bonus by many employers.

Q.           If I’ve taken course work but not completed a degree, should I list the courses on my resume?

A.            If your course work is related to or required by the job you are applying for, you should definitely list it. You may list the course work under Education or Professional Development, and/or as part of your Summary. Please contact me if you need help deciding how to handle course work on your resume.

Q.           I can’t find job postings in my field at my level. What can I do?

A.           It is time to network in person and to make sure your LinkedIn profile and other online information is properly supporting your job search. As a Job and Career Transition Coach (JCTC) as well as a Certified Professional Resume Writer, I can help you with both your LinkedIn profile and with job search strategies.

Q.           Can I use the same resume to apply for both civilian and government jobs?

A.           Resume requirements for government jobs are very different from those for civilian jobs. For example, you must supply your social security number on federal resumes—but never on civilian resumes. Federal resumes follow a format that is much more complex than the format for civilian resumes. You may need a Certified Federal Resume Writer like me to guide you in applying for a government position.

Are you still concerned about your resume? Contact me today.

Transitioning to a New Industry: Does Your Resume Speak the Language?

If you hope to transition your skills to a new industry, your resume must show that you understand the industry. To build that understanding, you should read job advertisements and relevant company websites. You are looking to find out:

  • The challenges your target industry faces and what skills you have that might transfer well to meeting those challenges.
  • Where gaps exist in your knowledge and how you might fill those gaps, perhaps through adult education or community college courses or through an internship or volunteer work.
  • The new information that should appear on your resume. For example, you might know a second language but not use it in your current job; however, if international travel is important in your target industry, your second language is now a critical addition to your resume.
  • The words that you need to understand, especially for the interview. If you are applying for a job in the healthcare industry, for example, do you know what HIPAA stands for?

As a Job and Career Transition Coach and someone who has reinvented her own career many times (from MIT student to engineer to project manager to professional resume writer), I understand the challenges of writing a resume for a new industry. Contact me today.