The Career Report
	Volume 1 - Issue 14 - January, 2008
- Sign up for the Career Report For comments, questions or future topic suggestions, contact askmelinda@thepittmangroup.com - Search Jobs - Post Resume - Contact Us Know someone who could benefit from the information in the article? Please forward this report to them.	How to Construct a Powerful Resume (By Melinda Pittman) To help you construct a better, more powerful resume, here are 10 overall considerations in regard to your resume’s content and presentation: 1. Position title and job description.  Provide your title, plus a detailed explanation of your duties and accomplishments.  Since job titles are often misleading or their function may vary from one company to another, your resume should tell the reader exactly what you’ve done. 2. Clarity of dates and place.  Document your work history and educational credentials accurately.  Don’t leave the reader guessing where and when you were employed or when you earned your degree. 3. Employer facts.  Let the reader know the nature, size, and location of your past employers and what their business is.  Below is an example: XYZ Company, $2 billion auto after-market retailer, Cleveland, OH 4. Detail.  Specify some of the more technical or involved aspects of your past work or training, especially if you’ve performed tasks of any complexity or significance. 5. Proportion.  Give appropriate attention to jobs or educational credentials according to their length or importance to the reader.  For example, if you wish to be considered for an engineering position, don’t write one paragraph describing your current engineering job, followed by three paragraphs about an administrative job.  Also, if you’ve spent any length of time at your past two to three employers, more detail should be given to those jobs than past jobs, especially when it’s clear you’ve progressed in your career. 6. Relevancy.  Confine your information to that which is job-related or clearly demonstrates a pattern of success.  Concentrate only on subject matter that addresses the needs of the employer.   7. Length.  Fill up only a couple of pages.  Many times if you write more than two pages, it sends a signal to the reader that you can’t organize your thoughts or that you’re trying too hard to make a good impression.  There are some resumes where three pages are appropriate (those who are published, those who have a long and distinguished career, etc.)  However, for most of us, a good, concise two-page resume gets the point across. 8. Spelling, grammar, and punctuation.  I cannot express enough how critical it is to have a resume that is correct in every sense of the word.  Create an error-free document that’s representative of an educated person.  If you’re unsure about the correctness of your writing (or if English is your second language), consult a professional writer or editor. 9. Readability.  Organize your thoughts in a clear and concise manner.  No resume ever won a Nobel Prize for literature; however, a fragmented or long-winded resume will virtually assure you of a place at the back of the line.  Be sure to select a conventional type style, such as Times Roman or Arial, and choose a neutral background or stationery.  If your resume takes too much effort to read, it may end up in the trash, even if you have terrific skills.  Also, in today’s web-based world, strange fonts may reformat when sent electronically, making it too difficult to read. 10. Reliability.  Whatever you do, make certain that your resume does not contain embellishments.  Be truthful.  If you don’t have a degree, and it’s hampering your career, enroll in college soon.  But do not fabricate! Finally, if you’re at a loss for how to get started, invest in a professional resume-writing service.  If you choose to write it yourself, I suggest that you write several drafts and allow yourself time to review your work and proofread for errors.  If you have a professional associate whose opinion you trust, by all means, listen to what he or she has to say.  A simple critique can mean the difference between an interview and a rejection. (Next month we’ll look at the best way to present your qualifications, therefore increasing your chances of getting the interview.) BioScience | Informatics | Information Technology
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