Building Careers and Writing Rsums Copyright 2010 Pearson
Building Careers and Writing Résumés Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 1
Securing Employment in Today’s Job Market • Understanding the employer’s approach • Organizing your approach Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 2
The Employment Search 1. Build toward a career 2. Prepare a résumé 3. Understand the interview process 4. Prepare for interview 5. Take the interview 6. Follow up and accept the offer Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 3
How Employers Approach the Recruiting Process • Look inside the company • Networking and personal references • Employment agency or search firm • Unsolicited résumés • Solicited résumés via advertising Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 4
Organizing Your Approach • Monitor business news • Researching specific firms • Building a network • Seeking counseling Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 5
Three-Step Résumé Process Planning Analyze Situation Gather Information Select Medium Get Organized Writing Adapt to the Audience Compose the Message Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall Completing Revise Produce Message Proofread Message Distribute Message 6
Planning Your Résumé • Analyze audience and purpose • Gather information • Choose the best medium • Organize content Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 7
Analyze Audience and Purpose • The résumé – Use persuasion – Stimulate interest Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 8
Gather Information • Employment • Education • Personal Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 9
Choose the Medium • • • Word document Plain-text Power. Point Multimedia Plain paper Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 10
Organize the Résumé • • Think in terms of results Know how to get things done Well rounded Career progress and development Standards of excellence Flexible and willing to try new things Communicate effectively Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 11
“Red Flags” for Employers • • • Frequent job changes Gaps in work history Inexperience or over-qualification Long-term with one company For-cause job termination Criminal or arrest record Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 12
Typical Résumé Formats • Chronological • Functional • Combination Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 13
Writing Your Résumé • Respect your résumé • Take your time • Review good models • Minimize frustration Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 14
Keep the Résumé Honest • Workplace references • Background checks • Credit histories Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 15
Adapting to the Audience • Consider the employer’s perspective • Build on past accomplishments • Stress your future potential • Translate skills and experience • Clarify educational achievements Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 16
Composing Your Résumé • Contact information • Introductory statement • Educational background • Employment history • Activities and achievements • Relevant personal data Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 17
Completing Your Résumé • Revising • Producing • Proofreading Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 18
Common Résumé Problems • Length issues • Spelling/grammar • Hard to read • Poor quality • Poorly written • Boastful • Uninformed • Gimmicky Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 19
Producing Your Résumé • Printed traditional résumé • Printed scannable résumé • Electronic plain text file • MS Word file • HTML format • Electronic PDF file Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 20
Traditional Printed Résumé • High-quality paper • Professional image Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 21
Printed Scannable Résumé • OCR software • Résumé length • Keyword summary Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 22
Digital Résumé Formats • Plain text file • MS Word file • HTML version • PDF format Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 23
Proofreading Your Résumé • Headings and lists • Grammar and punctuation • Spelling and word choice • Paper and digital formats Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 24
Distributing Your Résumé • Postal mail • Fax machine • Email Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 25
Posting Résumés Online • e-portfolio • Personal website • Social networking • General job sites • Specialized job sites • Staffing services Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 26
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