Resume Writing Tips

Writing An Engineering Resume

2010-07-20T05:16:00.000-07:00

A resume is the most important element for success in a job search. The engineering resume can be one of the most difficult documents to develop. An engineering resume is the engineer’s primary marketing document wherein he is able to sell his skills and experience as an engineer.

The most effective engineering resumes are those that can grab the reader’s attention within 35-45 seconds. A good resume makes the reader go through the whole document and extend the attention span. A successful resume is the one which convinces the reader to contact the job seeker. Apparently, the success of the job search depends solely on the effectiveness of this document- the resume.

Writing an engineering resume can be easy if you write it yourself. No one knows your background and experience as much as you do. The only difficulty that arises while writing a resume is how to sell these qualities to the reader. You can also use some engineering resume templates to understand the format properly. Here are few tips which will help you in writing an engineering resume:

Select a good organization format. Mostly resumes are written in a chronological format but it doesn’t mean that you write in the same way. A combination format would be a good choice. As it is balanced between skill description, achievements and employment history. The advantage of using this format is that you can highlight your job history to make a greater impact on the reader.
Make an assumption that your resume is going to be seen on screen and not paper. Most resumes are received and managed via a PC. But this does not mean that you create the document in an ugly and drab manner. Engineers who have images of project work have good chances of getting a reply back.
Make sure that your document is absolutely free of mistakes. The worst thing to happen in writing an engineering resume is a mistake in your resume. This could become a killer for your chances of getting a call back. Engineers are expected to be detail-oriented and that is why a small error in the engineering resume can badly reflect on your future performance.
Keep a balance between wordiness and lack of detail. Employers need to see details about your work experience and history, but they are not required to know everything. Keep the information to the point and to the aim of attaining an interview.
Consider your job duties as accomplishments. This makes you stand out from the crowd. How did you come up with a way to better your project, more efficient or costing less? What honors were won by you? Such information grabs the reader’s attention and puts your resume on top priority.

Writing A Cover Letter

2010-06-22T21:17:00.000-07:00

A cover letter is sent along with the CV when you apply for a job. Usually these things are not advertised or asked for when you send a primary application for a job. It is also known as the statement of purpose and is written according to the specific needs of the employer.

The format of this document is usually formal and is supposed to follow the conventional writing style. The cover letter should not contain more than 200 to 250 words. While writing a cover letter you have to keep in mind the word limit and start with introduction, further highlight few aspects of your CV which relate to the job requirements. Also include any experience you have had that you haven’t included in the CV. The cover letter is supposed to be short and to the point so that the employer knows whether you are suitable for the job or not.

Described below are the factors involved in writing a cover letter:

Format

This is a formal document; hence the format would be of a formal business letter. On the top right corner you will include you name, address and contact details. Below this you will add the name and address of the person you are writing to. These details will be aligned left. The date is written next to the text written aligned to the right. The format for the date is City, Date Month, Year; New York, 12^th August 2010. Many people do not write the place they are writing from, this is not obligatory. Begin the cover letter with ‘Dear’ and then the title of the person you are addressing the letter to; example Mr. Mrs. or Dr. Add the surname of the person and continue with the body of the letter.

If you leave a blank line between the name and the first line of the paragraph, only then you will start with a capital letter in the next line, otherwise you will add comma after their name and start without capitalization of the first word of the next line; example

Dear Mr Smith,

your advertisement, for the post of managing director, attracted my attention...

When you are not sure of the name of the person you need to contact for the job you will start writing the cover letter as follows:

Dear Sir/Madam,

Your advertisement, for the post of managing director, attracted my attention…

As a rule, your letter will end with Yours Sincerely if you have the name of the person you are writing to and Yours Faithfully if you do not have the details. Otherwise Yours Truly can be used for both cases.

Content

The cover letter will start off with the job post you are referring to and where you saw it. The second paragraph will include your skills, experience and your suitability for the job. Do not repeat what is mentioned in your CV. Although you will be writing the cover letter in a formal format, make it a little personal and write everything in relation to the ad you are replying to. The third paragraph will have your reason for applying for the vacancy and how you can contribute to the company. The last paragraph will sign off by mentioning when you are available for the interview and also that you are looking forward to further communication from the employer.

The CV and the CL should be on A4 paper. If it is an email, then just mention what you are attaching with the mail and a request for confirmation of receipt. If there is no reply from the employer’s end for almost two weeks, contact them and ask for feedback.

Writing An Administrative Resume

2010-05-24T22:50:00.000-07:00

An administrative resume has to be clear and written in a manner that your experience seems relevant to the job you are applying for. This could mean that you have to highlight some information in such a way that it makes an impact on the employer.

Since the administrative resume is written for applying for a high managerial post, the resume should follow a chronological order. It should clearly show your skills and background. Here a few simple steps to write your resume:

Start with your personal information like name, address, contact number and email address on the top of your administrative resume. In other resumes it does not matter if you don’t include your email address, but including it in an administrative resume shows you are familiar with the computer.
Also include an objective in your administrative resume. Don’t write the objective using a specific position. For example, ‘To find an administrative post where I an effectively use my skills to grow within an organization’ can be rewritten giving a more broader perspective, ‘To use my five years of administrative experience in making the company achieve new heights of success.’
Include your list of jobs starting from your last job to the first job of your career. Also include specific dates, company name, job title and the responsibilities you handled under your job title. It is advisable to leave the dates out of your administrative resume if there are gaps in your job history.
Adding a skill section in your administrative resume can be very helpful. It could include typing speed, word processing skills and other software applications that you can work on.
In the end, make a section for your educational background. This will include the degrees you hold, with the additional administrative seminar or secretarial training you have under gone.

How To Write An Accounting Resume

2010-05-24T03:56:00.000-07:00

Just like the accounting balance sheet, your accounting resume has to be well organized, clean and well written. It should bring out your strengths and experience as an accountant in one or two pages.

Here are a few simple steps to help you in writing an accountant resume:

It should start with a clear and clean heading which includes your name, personal address and your contact details like telephone number and email address. Do not put in fancy fonts or borders in to your resume. Your designation should follow your name, for example if you are a C.A. then you should mention: Xyz Abc, C.A.
Remember to add a job objective in your resume. This makes it easy for the employer to spot out your resume. While writing the objective, use only brief phrases to differentiate the level of the accounting job you are searching for.
In your accountant resume, state your strongest education qualifications briefly as per the job requirements, under the heading ‘Qualifications’. Use very few sentences, paragraphs or bulleted point if possible which are similar to the language used in position posting.
Certain accounting jobs need your accounting job titles to be revised for writing in the accounting resume. Include these job titles in a list of your previous accounting positions. These will come under ‘Professional Experience’. For example, you may have been a Manager in a particular firm, but were managing the receivables and the collections. Revise the job title which reflects the work you did.
The accounting resume also includes an impact statement for your last accounting jobs. This can be done by emphasizing specific responsibilities at the higher level, your accomplishments and the software and systems you used as part of your work.
The ‘Education’ sub category will include the degrees and the courses you have completed related to the job you are seeking. List your certifications clearly under the subheading of ‘Certifications’.
Complement your accounting resume with an additional heading ‘Computer skills’ to list out the technologies that you are familiar with. Bring out your expertise in the accounting, spreadsheet, database and the project management related programs.

Resume Writing, Resume Writing Tips, Writing A Resume

2010-04-26T23:10:00.000-07:00

Resume writing is the most crucial job before attending an interview with an employer. Resume writing should be done flawlessly and systematically otherwise a resume may turn out to be disaster for an employee.

Before writing a resume go through the following resume writing tips for writing a good resume -:

Resume Template - : Start with using resume templates for creating your resume. Insert information into the resume template, and then make adjustments and edit, so that your resume appears to be personal and it highlights your skills and abilities.

Basic Font -: Choose a basic font that is easily readable by the employer as well as the employee himself/herself.

Contact Information - : Include all contact information of yours including home address, telephone no, email address etc so that the employer can contact you when needed.

Keywords - : The resume must include the keywords that appear in a job description. In this way you would increase the chances of matching your resume with available positions and getting an interview call.

Resume Format -: Choose the right resume format that matches your career profile. Choose a chronological, functional or combination resume format depending on how you want to make your resume.

Resume content –: prioritize your resume content in such a way that important and relevant information is written first and accomplishments are highlighted.

Custom Resume –: Writing custom resume means writing different resumes pertaining to different profile for the same person.

Resume Objective -: Mention the resume objective in your resume so that your career objective is clear and concise to the reader.

Resume Examples - : Before writing a resume for yourself, scrutinize some resumes as examples for reference. After scrutinizing, choose a style and format that highlights your strengths, abilities and achievements.