44 Resume Writing Tips

44 Resume Writing Tips 44 Resume Writing Tips 44 Resume Writing Tips By Daniel Scocco Having a solid and effective resume can greatly improve your chances of landing that dream job. That is beyond discussion. How does one make sure that his resume is top notch and bullet proof, however? There are several websites with tips around the web, but most bring just a handful of them. We wanted to put them all together in a single place, and that is what you will find below: 44 resume writing tips. 1. Know the purpose of your resume Some people write a resume as if the purpose of the document was to land a job. As a result they end up with a really long and boring piece that makes them look like desperate job hunters. The objective of your resume is to land an interview, and the interview will land you the job (hopefully!). 2. Back up your qualities and strengths Instead of creating a long (and boring) list with all your qualities (e.g., disciplined, creative, problem solver) try to connect them with real life and work experiences. In other words, you need to back these qualities and strengths up, else it will appear that you are just trying to inflate things. 3. Make sure to use the right keywords Most companies (even smaller ones) are already using digital databases to search for candidates. This means that the HR department will run search queries based on specific keywords. Guess what, if your resume doesnt have the keywords related to the job you are applying for, you will be out even before the game starts. These keywords will usually be nouns. Check the job description and related job ads for a clue on what the employer might be looking for. You can read more about resume keywords on the article Tapping the Power of Keywords to Enhance Your Resumes Effectiveness. 4. Use effective titles Like it or not, employers will usually make a judgment about your resume in 5 seconds. Under this time frame the most important aspect will be the titles that you listed on the resume, so make sure they grab the attention. Try to be as descriptive as possible, giving the employer a good idea about the nature of your past work experiences. For example: Bad title: Accounting Good title: Management of A/R and A/P and Recordkeeping 5. Proofread it twice It would be difficult to emphasize the importance of proofreading your resume. One small typo and your chances of getting hired could slip. Proofreading it once is not enough, so do it twice, three times or as many as necessary. If you dont know how to proofread effectively, here are 8 tips that you can use, or use a grammar checker. 6. Use bullet points No employer will have the time (or patience) to read long paragraphs of text. Make sure, therefore, to use bullet points and short sentences to describe your experiences, educational background and professional objectives. 7. Where are you going? Including professional goals can help you by giving employers an idea of where you are going, and how you want to arrive there. You dont need to have a special section devoted to your professional objectives, but overall the resume must communicate it. The question of whether or not to highlight your career objectives on the resume is a polemic one among HR managers, so go with your feeling. If you decide to list them, make sure they are not generic. 8. Put the most important information first This point is valid both to the overall order of your resume, as well as to the individual sections. Most of the times your previous work experience will be the most important part of the resume, so put it at the top. When describing your experiences or skills, list the most important ones first. 9. Attention to the typography First of all make sure that your fonts are big enough. The smaller you should go is 11 points, but 12 is probably safer. Do not use capital letters all over the place, remember that your goal is to communicate a message as fast and as clearly as possible. Arial and Times are good choices. 10. Do not include no kidding information There are many people that like to include statements like Available for interview or References available upon request. If you are sending a resume to a company, it should be a given that you are available for an interview and that you will provide references if requested. Just avoid items that will make the employer think no kidding! 11. Explain the benefits of your skills Merely stating that you can do something will not catch the attention of the employer. If you manage to explain how it will benefit his company, and to connect it to tangible results, then you will greatly improve your chances. 12. Avoid negativity Do not include information that might sound negative in the eyes of the employer. This is valid both to your resume and to interviews. You dont need to include, for instance, things that you hated about your last company. 13. Achievements instead of responsibilities Resumes that include a long list of responsibilities included are plain boring, and not efficient in selling yourself. Instead of listing responsibilities, therefore, describe your professional achievements. 14. No pictures Sure, we know that you are good looking, but unless you are applying for a job where the physical traits are very important (e.g., modeling, acting and so on), and unless the employer specifically requested it, you should avoid attaching your picture to the resume. 15. Use numbers This tip is a complement to the 13th one. If you are going to describe your past professional achievements, it would be a good idea to make them as solid as possible. Numbers are your friends here. Dont merely mention that you increased the annual revenues of your division, say that you increased them by $100,000, by 78%, and so on. 16. One resume for each employer One of the most common mistakes that people make is to create a standard resume and send it to all the job openings that they can find. Sure it will save you time, but it will also greatly decrease the chances of landing an interview (so in reality it could even represent a waste of time). Tailor your resume for each employer. The same point applies to your cover letters. 17. Identify the problems of the employer A good starting point to tailor your resume for a specific employer is to identify what possible problems he might have at hand. Try to understand the market of the company you are applying for a job, and identify what kind of difficulties they might be going through. After that illustrate on your resume how you and your skills would help to solve those problems. 18. Avoid age discrimination It is illegal to discriminate people because of their age, but some employers do these considerations nonetheless. Why risk the trouble? Unless specifically requested, do not include your age on your resume. 19. You dont need to list all your work experiences If you have job experiences that you are not proud of, or that are not relevant to the current opportunity, you should just omit them. Mentioning that you used to sell hamburgers when you were 17 is probably not going to help you land that executive position. 20. Go with what you got If you never had any real working experience, just include your summer jobs or volunteer work. If you dont have a degree yet, mention the title and the estimated date for completion. As long as those points are relevant to the job in question, it does not matter if they are official or not. 21. Sell your fish Remember that you are trying to sell yourself. As long as you dont go over the edge, all the marketing efforts that you can put in your resume (in its content, design, delivery method and so on) will give you an advantage over the other candidates. 22. Dont include irrelevant information Irrelevant information such as political affiliation, religion and sexual preference will not help you. In fact it might even hurt your chances of landing an interview. Just skip it. 23. Use Mr. and Ms. if appropriate If you have a gender neutral name like Alex or Ryan make sure to include the Mr. or Ms. prefix, so that employers will not get confused about your gender. 24. No lies, please Seems like a no brainer, but you would be amused to discover the amount of people that lie in their resumes. Even small lies should be avoided. Apart from being wrong, most HR departments do background checks these days, and if you are buster it might ruin your credibility for good. 25. Keep the salary in mind The image you will create with your resume must match the salary and responsibility level that you are aiming for. 26. Analyze job ads You will find plenty of useful information on job ads. Analyze no only the ad that you will be applying for, but also those from companies on the same segment or offering related positions. You should be able to identify what profile they are looking for and how the information should be presented. 27. Get someone else to review your resume Even if you think you resume is looking kinky, it would be a good idea to get a second and third opinion about it. We usually become blind to our own mistakes or way of reasoning, so another people will be in a good position to evaluate the overall quality of your resume and make appropriate suggestions. 28. One or two pages The ideal length for a resume is a polemic subject. Most employers and recruiting specialists, however, say that it should contain one or two pages at maximum. Just keep in mind that, provided all the necessary information is there, the shorter your resume, the better. 29. Use action verbs A very common advice to job seekers is to use action verbs. But what are they? Action verbs are basically verbs that will get noticed more easily, and that will clearly communicate what your experience or achievement were. Examples include managed, coached, enforced and planned. Here you can find a complete list of action verbs divided by skill category. 30. Use a good printer If you are going to use a paper version of your resume, make sure to use a decent printer. Laser printers usually get the job done. Plain white paper is the preferred one as well. 31. No hobbies Unless you are 100% sure that some of your hobbies will support you candidacy, avoid mentioning them. I know you are proud of your swimming team, but share it with your friends and not with potential employers. 32. Update your resume regularly It is a good idea to update your resume on a regular basis. Add all the new information that you think is relevant, as well as courses, training programs and other academic qualifications that you might receive along the way. This is the best way to keep track of everything and to make sure that you will not end up sending an obsolete document to the employer. 33. Mention who you worked with If you have reported or worked with someone that is well known in your industry, it could be a good idea to mention it on the resume. The same thing applies to presidents and CEOs. If you reported to or worked directly with highly ranked executives, add it to the resume. 34. No scattered information Your resume must have a clear focus. If would cause a negative impression if you mentioned that one year you were studying drama, and the next you were working as an accountant. Make sure that all the information you will include will work towards a unified image. Employers like decided people. 35. Make the design flow with white space Do not jam your resume with text. Sure we said that you should make your resume as short and concise as possible, but that refers to the overall amount of information and not to how much text you can pack in a single sheet of paper. White space between the words, lines and paragraphs can improve the legibility of your resume. 36. Lists all your positions If you have worked a long time for the same company (over 10 years) it could be a good idea to list all the different positions and roles that you had during this time separately. You probably had different responsibilities and developed different skills on each role, so the employer will like to know it. 37. No jargon or slang It should be common sense, but believe me, it is not. Slang should never be present in a resume. As for technical jargon, do not assume that the employer will know what you are talking about. Even if you are sending your resume to a company in the same segment, the person who will read it for the first time might not have any technical expertise. 38. Careful with sample resume templates There are many websites that offer free resume templates. While they can help you to get an idea of what you are looking for, do not just copy and paste one of the most used ones. You certainly dont want to look just like any other candidate, do you? 39. Create an email proof formatting It is very likely that you will end up sending your resume via email to most companies. Apart from having a Word document ready to go as an attachment, you should also have a text version of your resume that does not look disfigured in the body of the email or in online forms. Attachments might get blocked by spam filters, and many people just prefer having the resume on the body of the email itself. 40. Remove your older work experiences If you have been working for 20 years or more, there is no need to have 2 pages of your resume listing all your work experiences, starting with the job at the local coffee shop at the age of 17! Most experts agree that the last 15 years of your career are enough. 41. No fancy design details Do not use a colored background, fancy fonts or images on your resume. Sure, you might think that the little flowers will cheer up the document, but other people might just throw it away at the sight. 42. No pronouns You resume should not contain the pronouns I or me. That is how we normally structure sentences, but since your resume is a document about your person, using these pronouns is actually redundant. 43. Dont forget the basics The first thing on your resume should be your name. It should be bold and with a larger font than the rest of the text. Make sure that your contact details are clearly listed. Secondly, both the name and contact details should be included on all the pages of the resume (if you have more than one). 44. Consider getting professional help If you are having a hard time to create your resume, or if you are receiving no response whatsoever from companies, you could consider hiring a professional resume writing service. There are both local and online options are available, and usually the investment will be worth the money. 45. Leverage online tools to write your resume You can find several tools online that will remove part of the burden and complexity of writing the perfect resume. Some of them will give you a starting template, others will help with the formatting and so on. You can find suggestions for 10 tools and resources on this post. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! 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USS Saipan (CVL-48) - Cold War

USS Saipan (CVL-48) - Cold War USS Saipan (CVL-48) - Overview: Nation:  United States Type:  Light Aircraft Carrier Shipyard:  New York Shipbuilding Corporation Laid Down:  July 10, 1944 Launched:  July 8, 1945 Commissioned:  July 14, 1946 Fate:  Sold for scrap, 1976 USS Saipan (CVL-48) - Specifications: Displacement:  14,500 tons Length:  684 ft. Beam:  76.8 ft. (waterline) Draft:  28 ft. Propulsion:  Geared steam turbines, 4 Ãâ€" shafts Speed:  33 knots Complement:  1,721 men USS Saipan (CVL-48) - Armament: 10 Ãâ€" quadruple 40 mm guns Aircraft: 42-50 aircraft USS Saipan (CVL-48) - Design Construction: In 1941, with World War II underway in Europe and growing tensions with Japan, President Franklin D. Roosevelt became increasingly worried that the US Navy did not anticipate any new carriers joining the fleet until 1944.   To remedy the situation, he ordered the General Board to examine whether any of the light cruisers then being built could be converted into carriers to reinforce the services Lexington- and Yorktown-class ships.   Though the initial report recommended against such conversions, Roosevelt pressed the issue and a design to utilize several Cleveland-class light cruiser hulls then under construction was developed.   Following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7 and the US entry into the conflict, the US Navy moved to accelerate the construction of the new  Essex-class fleet carriers and approved the conversion of several cruisers into light carriers. Dubbed the Independence-class, the nine carriers that resulted from the program possessed narrow and short flight decks as a result of their light cruiser hulls.   Limited in their capabilities, the primary advantage of the class was the speed with which they could be completed.   Anticipating combat losses among the Independence-class ships, the US Navy moved forward with an improved light carrier design.   Though intended as carriers from the outset, the design of what became the Saipan-class drew heavily from the hull shape and machinery used in the Baltimore-class heavy cruisers.   This allowed for a wider and longer flight deck and improved seakeeping.   Other benefits included a higher speed, better hull subdivision, as well as stronger armor and enhanced anti-aircraft defenses.   As the new class was larger, it was capable of carrying a more sizable air group than its predecessors.    The lead ship of  class, USS Saipan (CVL-48), was laid down at the New York Shipbuilding Company (Camden, NJ) on July 10, 1944.   Named for the recently fought Battle of Saipan, construction moved forward over the next year and the carrier slid down the ways on July 8, 1945, with Harriet McCormack, wife of House Majority Leader John W. McCormack, serving as sponsor.   As workers moved to complete Saipan, the war ended.   As a result, it was commissioned into the peacetime US Navy on July 14, 1946, with Captain John G. Crommelin in command.       USS Saipan (CVL-48) - Early Service: Completing shakedown operations, Saipan received an assignment to train new pilots off Pensacola, FL.   Remaining in this role from September 1946 through April 1947, it then was transferred north to Norfolk.   Following exercises in the Caribbean, Saipan joined the Operational Development Force in December.   Tasked with assessing experimental equipment and developing new tactics, the force reported to the commander-in-chief of the Atlantic Fleet.   Working with ODF, Saipan primarily focused on crafting operational practices for using new jet aircraft at sea as well as electronic instrument evaluation.   After brief break from this duty in February 1948 to transport a delegation to Venezuela, the carrier resumed its operations off the Virginia Capes. Made flagship of Carrier Division 17 on April 17, Saipan steamed north Quonset Point, RI to embark Fighter Squadron 17A.   Over the course of the next three days, the entirety of the squadron qualified in the FH-1 Phantom.   This made it the first fully-qualified, carrier-based jet fighter squadron in the US Navy.   Relieved of flagship duties in June, Saipan underwent an overhaul at Norfolk the following month.   Returning to service with ODF, the carrier embarked a pair of Sikorsky XHJS and three Piasecki HRP-1 helicopters in December and sailed north to Greenland to aid in the rescue of eleven airmen who had become stranded.   Arriving offshore on the 28th, it remained on station until the men were rescued.   After a stop in Norfolk, Saipan proceeded south Guantanamo Bay where it conducted exercises for two months before rejoining ODF. USS Saipan (CVL-48) - Mediterranean to the Far East: The spring and summer of 1949 saw Saipan continue duty with ODF as well as conduct reservist training cruises north to Canada while also carrier qualifying Royal Canadian Navy pilots.   After another year of operating off the Virginia coast, the carrier received orders to assume the post of flagship of Carrier Division 14 with the US Sixth Fleet.   Sailing for the Mediterranean, Saipan remained abroad for three months before steaming back to Norfolk.   Rejoining the US Second Fleet, it spent the next two years in the Atlantic and Caribbean.   In October 1953, Saipan was directed to sail for the Far East to aid in supporting the truce that had recently ended the Korean War.    Transiting the Panama Canal, Saipan touched at Pearl Harbor before arriving at Yokosuka, Japan.   Taking station off the Korean coast, the carriers aircraft flew  surveillance and reconnaissance missions to assess Communist activity.   During the winter, Saipan provided air cover for a Japanese convey transporting Chinese prisoners of war to Taiwan.   After taking part in exercises in the Bonins in March 1954, the carrier ferried twenty-five AU-1 (ground attack) model Chance Vought Corsairs and five  Sikorsky H-19 Chickasaw helicopters to Indochina for transfer to the French who were engaged in the Battle of Dien Bien Phu.   Completing this mission, Saipan delivered helicopters to US Air Force personnel in the Philippines before resuming its station off Korea.   Ordered home later that spring, the carrier departed Japan on May 25 and returned to Norfolk via the Suez Canal. USS Saipan (CVL-48) - Transition: That fall, Saipan steamed south on a mission of mercy following Hurricane Hazel.   Arriving off Haiti in mid-October, the carrier delivered a variety of humanitarian and medical aid to the ravaged country.   Departing on October 20, Saipan made port at Norfolk for an overhaul prior to operations in the Caribbean and a second stint as the training carrier at Pensacola.   In the fall of 1955, it again received orders to aid in hurricane relief and moved south to the Mexican coast.   Using its helicopters, Saipan assisted in evacuating civilians and distributed aid to the population around Tampico.   After several months at Pensacola, the carrier was directed to make for Bayonne, NJ for decommissioning on October 3, 1957.   Too small relative to the Essex-, Midway-, and new Forrestal-class fleet carriers, Saipan was placed in reserve.      Reclassified AVT-6 (aircraft transport) on May 15, 1959, Saipan found new life in March 1963.   Transferred south to the Alabama Drydock and Shipbuilding Company in Mobile, the carrier was slated to be converted into a command ship.   Initially re-designated CC-3,  Saipan was instead re-classified as a major communications relay ship (AGMR-2) on September 1, 1964.   Seven months later, on April 8, 1965, the ship was renamed USS Arlington in recognition of one of the US Navys first radio stations.   Re-commissioned on August 27, 1966, Arlington underwent fitting out and shakedown operations into the new year before taking part in exercises in the Bay of Biscay.   In the late spring of 1967, the ship made preparations to deploy to the Pacific to take part in the Vietnam War.      Ã‚      USS Arlington (AGMR-2) - Vietnam Apollo: Sailing on July 7, 1967, Arlington passed through the Panama Canal and touched in Hawaii, Japan, and the Philippines before taking up a station in the Gulf of Tonkin.   Making three patrols in the South China Sea that fall, the ship provided reliable communications handling for the fleet and supported combat operations in the region.   Additional patrols followed in early 1968 and Arlington also participated in exercises in the Sea of Japan as well as made port calls in Hong Kong and Sydney.   Remaining in the Far East for most of 1968, the ship sailed for Pearl Harbor in December and later played a support role in the recovery of Apollo 8.   Returning to the waters off Vietnam in January, it continued to operate in the region until April when it departed to aid in the recovery of Apollo 10.    With this mission complete, Arlington sailed for Midway Atoll to provide communications support for a meeting between President Richard Nixon and South Vietnamese President Nguyen Van Thieu on June 8, 1969.   Briefly resuming its mission off Vietnam on June 27, the ship was again withdrawn the following month to aid NASA.   Arriving at Johnston Island, Arlington embarked Nixon on July 24 and then supported the return of Apollo 11.   With the successful recovery of Neil Armstrong and his crew, Nixon transferred to USS Hornet (CV-12) to meet with the astronauts.   Departing the area, Arlington sailed for Hawaii before departing for the West Coast.    Arriving at Long Beach, CA on August 29, Arlington then moved south to San Diego to begin the process of inactivation.   Decommissioned on January 14, 1970, the former carrier was stricken from the Navy List on August 15, 1975.   Briefly held, it was sold for scrap by the Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service on June 1, 1976.    Selected Sources DANFS: USS  Saipan  (CVL-48)NavSource: USS  Saipan  (CVL-48)USS  Saipan  (CV-48) Association