Resilience in Challenging Times: Planning Your Career 2

Resilience in Challenging Times: Planning Your Career 2

3 Strategies On Sharpening Resume

2% applicants pass initial resume screening and make to the interview.

It’s frustrating: you’ve submitted online applications and have not heard back. Is it because you’re not qualified? Or is it something else? Keep reading to understand how the process works, and how you can take the right kinds of actions. The 3 steps below will teach you how to sharpen your resume.

1. Understand the Hiring Process: Think Like the Hiring Team

When a company posts a position, the hiring team is looking for the most qualified candidates to enter their pipeline for an interview. They generally enlist recruiters to support this process, and recruiters reviews hundreds if not thousands of applications and resumes. Thus - you’re within a haystack of other potentially qualified candidates. Drop the notion “if they just knew how capable I am” and adopt the “how can I get noticed” approach. 

What do you know about this company and position?

How did you learn about this position: Glassdoor, Linkedin, Company website. What does the job description say, and what do your personal contacts tell you about? By doing your research, you can tailor your resume in a way that stands out from the application pool. 

How does this role support the company’s business?

What does this role do? Who does this role partner manage and report to? By doing this research, you can use specific words and numbers to ensure recruiters find you as qualified. 

Imagine you are hiring on behalf of the company, what skill sets and personalities would you be looking for? Why?

As a member of the hiring team, consider what education and work experiences are required in order to fulfill core duties? How applicants with that background and experiences would most likely look like? What else would you like to know about the applicants?

Now reflect these qualifications in your resume.

How are you aligned with the company’s functions and values?

In a healthy match between a company and employees includes employees feeling valued for their authentic role in the workplace. Ask yourself will you like the work and people you will be working with, will you continue to grow, and will your skill set and personality be welcomed and celebrated by the company.

2. Stand Out with Your Signature Strength: Highlight Your Fit

Now you know what qualifications the hiring team will most likely look for, gather information and evidence that you well possess them.

Personal information 

Key information to included: Full name, email, phone number, and a professional profile such as LinkedIn.

Tips: use an email that includes your name: such as firstname.lastname@gmail.com; customize your LinkedIn profile to linked.com/in/firstnamelastname.

Education 

List degrees, school, city, state, and year earned for all degree programs. Include position related additional academic trainings, publications, and key campus leadership.

Skills and certification

List languages you fluently speak and/or write, software use, and position related certification and license. 

Other position related experiences that emphasize your responsibilities and the impacts

List professional work experience, co-op, internship, capstone workshop and projects.

3. Polish Your Profile: Be Yourself, and Professional

Being your authentic self builds trust and deepens relationships, as honest is a universally valued virtue. Being professional shows that you understand, respect, and support the company culture, and therefore also help your co-workers to be themselves. And this, starts with your resume writing.

Formatting and font

Tips: One page is recommended for newly grads; applied position appropriate personal and/or professional style; use an existing template to make formatting easier. For example, Pages provides several resume styles from conservative to casual and artistic. 

Semantics

Use truthful, accurate, and strong verbs and nouns to describe your responsibilities and impacts made. 

Like all writings: proof read, proof read, proof read.

With Care,

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