HIGHLIGHT PROGRESSION WHETHER IT BE IN SCHOOL, LEADERSHIP, OR WORK.

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Lorraine Lynch
8 years ago
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2 BE YOUR STRONG FIRST IMPRESSION WITH A COMPANY/RECRUITER. READ AS AN ACCOMPLISHMENT LIST AND NOT AS A JOB DESCRIPTION. KNOW THE DIFFERENCE. SHOW AREAS WHERE YOU VE MADE AN IMPACT (SOMETIMES QUANTITATIVE, SOMETIMES QUALITATIVE). HIGHLIGHT PROGRESSION WHETHER IT BE IN SCHOOL, LEADERSHIP, OR WORK. TOOT YOUR OWN HORN! THIS IS YOUR TIME TO BRAG. ACT AS A TEASER: IT SHOULD BE A TOOL THAT RECRUITERS USE TO THEN ASK FOLLOW UP QUESTIONS- DON T DO A WORD DUMP-SAVE SOME GOOD STUFF FOR THE INTERVIEW.

3 STAND OUT FROM THE CROWD: KEEP IN MIND THAT EVERYONE FROM YOUR MAJOR WILL HAVE THE SAME CLASSES/PROJECTS LISTED. GPA. SOME RECRUITERS ASK, SOME DON T: JUST MY OPINION - IF ITS BELOW A 3.0 LEAVE IT OFF. IMPRESS THE RECRUITER FIRST AND GIVE THEM YOUR GPA IF THEY ASK FOR IT (NEVER ASKED FOR MINE ) LIST OFF ANY HONORS RECEIVED: BE PROUD OF YOUR RESUME- ITS TIME TO BRAG! ARE YOU A TEACHERS ASSISTANT FOR A CLASS? LET PEOPLE KNOW! GRAD DATE SHOULD BE CLEARLY LISTED: THIS WILL OFTEN DETERMINE HOW TIMELY A RECRUITER WILL CONTACT YOU.

4 BRAG: HIGHLIGHT THE POSITIVE IMPACT YOU MADE (I.E. INCREASED PRODUCTIVITY BY 50% BY DOING X, SAVED COMPANY $1500 BY DOING X) DON T JUST LIST THE PROJECT- LIST YOUR ROLE IN THE PROJECT: LET US KNOW IF YOU WERE THE LEADER, IF THERE WERE 10 OTHERS HELPING. ALL THOSE DETAILS ARE IMPORTANT. BE HONEST: IF YOU WERE A CASHIER, THEN JUST PUT CASHIER- DON T SAY CEO OF MONEY TRANSACTIONS. IF YOU WENT ABOVE AND BEYOND DURING A SCHOOL PROJECT LET US KNOW: IF YOU WORK ON A PROJECT AND WROTE A PAPER ABOUT IT SHARE! IF YOU GOT TOP IN A CONTEST PUT THAT DOWN TOO! IF THE COMPANY IS UNKNOWN: WRITE A BRIEF 1 SENTENCE BLURB ABOUT WHAT IT DOES THIS IS HELPFUL ESPECIALLY IF YOU ARE APPLYING FOR JOBS OUTSIDE OF YOUR LOCAL COMMUNITY.

5 SHOULDN T READ AS A JOB DESCRIPTION: AGAIN, SHOULD READ AS ACCOMPLISHMENT AND IMPACT. LIST ANY PROMOTIONS YOU RECEIVED: IF YOU STARTED OFF AS CASHIER AND ENDED UP SR. CASHIER PUT THAT ON YOUR RESUME. KEEP IT CONCISE: BULLETS SHOULD BE JUST THAT- BULLETS- NOT RUN ON SENTENCES. DON T FORGET VOLUNTEER WORK: JUST BECAUSE YOU DIDN T GET PAID DOESN T MEAN IT DOESN T COUNT.

6 ALL LEADERSHIP COUNTS: WHETHER ITS CHURCH, CHEERLEADING, OR A CLUB- PUT IT DOWN IF YOU MADE AN IMPACT IN AN ORGANIZATION. DESCRIBE ANY FUNDRAISING/LARGE PROJECTS: THE KEY WITH LEADERSHIP IS TO NOT JUST SAY YOU WERE PRESIDENT OF A CLUB, BUT TO TALK ABOUT THE IMPACT YOU HAD (I.E. RAISED MONEY, INCREASED MEMBERSHIP, ETC) TIME LINE: IF YOU ARE A FRESHMAN/SOPHOMORE IN COLLEGE ITS OKAY TO LEAVE HIGH SCHOOL STATS ON THE RESUME- AFTER THAT ITS TIME TO UPGRADE AND ONLY MENTION COLLEGE ACTIVITIES.

7 LIST OFF ALL OF THE TECHNICAL PROGRAMS YOU FEEL COMFORTABLE ABOUT USING (DON T LIST OFF ANYTHING YOU HAVE HEARD OF). IF YOU HAVE A SET AMOUNT OF EXPERIENCE (I.E. 2 YEARS LIST THAT OFF). EXPECT PEOPLE TO ASK YOU TO TALK ABOUT ANY TECHNOLOGY YOU PUT DOWN- ITS FAIR GAME. IF YOU WORKED ON A PROJECT AND USED A SPECIFIC TECHNOLOGY OR PROGRAM LIST IT ALONG WITH THE DESCRIPTION. DON T CALL YOURSELF EXPERT IF YOU AREN T- YOU MAY INTERVIEW AT THE COMPANY WHERE THEY INVENTED THE TECHNOLOGY

8 GET SOME: VOLUNTEER FOR A JOB THAT IS SIMILAR TO YOUR INTERESTS, YOUR PASSION FOR TECHNOLOGY, ANYTHING! ADD WORK TO PAST PROJECTS: TAKE THAT MARKETING PLAN YOU WORKED ON LAST YEAR AND UPDATE IT FOR PRACTICE, REWRITE SOME CODE FROM A PAST PROJECT- KEEP BUILDING YOUR SKILLS. CHOOSE BETWEEN A FUN JOB AND A SMART JOB: IF YOU CAN FIND A JOB WORKING FOR A DEPARTMENT AT SCHOOL RATHER THAN AS A BARTENDER, DO IT. GET CLOSER TO THE FIELDS YOU ARE INTERESTED IN, EVEN IF ITS WORKING IN THE OFFICE. DON T LET NO EXPERIENCE STOP YOU: ITS TRICKY, SINCE IT TAKES EXPERIENCE TO GET EXPERIENCE. FOCUS ON SCHOOL, ON LEADERSHIP, ETC. AND HIGHLIGHT THAT IN YOUR RESUME. THINK ABOUT WORKING FOR FREE!

9 THE AVERAGE RECRUITER/CAREER FAIR ATTENDEE WILL PROBABLY SPEND AROUND SECONDS LOOKING AT YOUR RESUME IF YOU HAVE MORE THAN 1 PAGE MAKE SURE ALL THE GOOD STUFF IS ON PAGE 1, JUST IN CASE PAGE 2 GETS LOST. IF YOU HAVE A TON OF EXPERIENCE, THEN ITS FINE TO HAVE 2 PAGES- JUST DON T EXPECT SOMEONE AT A CAREER FAIR TO READ IT ALL IN A SHORT TIME. HAVE DIFFERENT VERSIONS FOR DIFFERENT TYPES OF JOBS. IF YOU HAVE A LOT OF RESEARCH EXPERIENCE THEN SAVE THAT 12 PAGE RESUME FOR JOBS THAT REQUIRE THAT KNOWLEDGE.

10 IF YOU PUT AN OBJECTIVE- MAKE SURE THAT YOU CHANGE IT EVERY TIME YOU APPLY FOR A NEW JOB/COMPANY THE WORST IS WHEN YOU SAY OBJECTIVE IS A SOFTWARE DESIGN ENGINEER AT GOOGLE AND THEY ARE APPLYING FOR MICROSOFT. IF YOU CHOOSE AN OBJECTIVE, MAKE IT SPECIFIC. PUT THE NAME OF THE COMPANY IN THE OBJECTIVE ( I VE LEARNED AN AMAZING AMOUNT THE PAST 4 YEARS AND BEING A DEVELOPER AT MICROSOFT GIVES ME THE BEST OPPORTUNITY FOR NOT ONLY APPLYING ALL I VE LEARNED, BUT CONTINUE DOWN THE ROAD OF GROWING IN THIS FIELD. I M ALSO EXCITED TO HIKE AND LEARN TO SAIL! ). THIS SHOWS THAT YOU NOT ONLY WANT TO WORK FOR THIS COMPANY, BUT ALSO YOU WANT TO MAKE IT YOUR NEW HOME YOU WANT TO INVEST, NOT JUST GET PAID

11 IF YOU HAVE 2 TYPES OF POSITIONS YOU ARE INTERESTED IN (I.E. FINANCE AND MARKETING) HAVE 2 RESUMES EACH RESUME SHOULD HIGHLIGHT YOUR SKILLS FOR THAT TYPE OF POSITION. THIS SAVES TIME: NOW YOU NEVER HAVE TO TWEAK A RESUME LAST MINUTE. YOU CAN ALSO PULL OUT PARTS OF YOUR JOBS AND MAKE THEM FIT TO WHAT THE COMPANY IS LOOKING FOR.

12 List the NON-class projects that you have worked on! Most students have worked on websites for student orgs, applications for departments on campus, and tons of personal side projects for fun that are actually pretty neat! The number one thing that makes a student stand out to me is not what they did in the classroom but how they applied what they learned outside of the classroom. I m not really interested in your hobbies. You re not going to get hired at Microsoft (or most companies) based on what you like to do in your free time. Instead list things that you might do in your spare time that are relevant to your target company. For instance, have you helped beta test some software? Are you really interested in computer graphics and how it relates to video games? Tailor your resume to the company. If you want to work for company X, show them by understanding what things you ve done that might contribute to you getting hired. The fact that you babysit or worked at Wendy s over the summer clutters up the resume. Conciseness is nice I like when they have succinct points to make about something they worked on so that I can then ask them more about it and dive into deeper conversations.

13 Write every bullet such that the reader can visualize you performing that task. You should use words that provoke movement like: contributed, participated, engaged, maintained, organized, developed, etc You have to remember that your resume is likely to be scanned, make sure you use as many brand name words (Microsoft, Adobe, etc.) With computer skills, its a good practice to put your skill level in there: basic, proficient, advanced, some experience..., etc. this tells them that: A. you are aware of your skill level and can differentiate between basic and advanced and B. that you are honest and upfront about your skills (which makes them think you are honest about everything else!) Pop at the top! Make sure you put the most impressive stuff at the top (naturally humans start to mentally fade as they read further down your resume ).

50 Tough Interview Questions

You and Your Accomplishments 1. Tell me a little about yourself. 50 Tough Interview Questions Because this is often the opening question, be careful that you don t run off at the mouth. Keep your answer