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Contents What is a resume? Why write a resume? What kind of resume should you write? Tailoring for your audience Developing your content Organizing your sections Designing your page

Your Resume: General Concerns Developing your content After completing a job search self-analysis and researching the company and position, you can begin identifying which of your experiences and goals are most relevant for your tailored resume. To help identify which of your credentials are most relevant, create two columns on a blank piece of paper. In one column list your general qualifications, skills, or experiences. In the other column, write down the qualifications most desired by the company that interests you.   The goal, of course, is to identify matches between the two columns. Once you have identified some matches, you can begin developing each of these qualifications in your resume. For example, if you listed good communication skills in both columns, then you'd start listing different experiences you've had that prove you have these skills. Maybe you worked as a customer service representative or took a class in business writing. In either case, you'll want to start listing the details of these experiences. Try to answer all the "journalistic questions" for each experience. Use the journalistic questions who? write down position titles, names of your supervisors, leaders, etc. what? list your responsibilities and duties, special projects, etc.; describe the nature of your experience (volunteer, intern, academic, work, etc.) where? indicate place where you acquired such experience (the organization, program, department, division, etc.) when? write down important dates (starting date, ending date, dates of promotion, etc.) why? write down the goals--personal, professional, or organizational--you were trying to achieve how? itemize different procedures, techniques, technologies, etc. you used to achieve goals Use the skills list Another way to generate content for your resume is to look over the skills list. Go through the entire list of action words and put a checkmark next to all those that apply to you. Next go through the list again and check all those you think are most desired by employers hiring in your field. All those skills checked twice are the ones you want to develop and emphasize most in your resume. Apply the journalistic questions (above) to each skills word that was double-checked. back to top

 Written and Designed by Bryan M. Kopp and the Business Writing Consulting/Tutoring Staff with the Assistance of Liz Thelen.

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