ENG 333 Communication for Science and Research

Imaginative, yet Practical, Advice

"When it comes to the internet resume, you can never have too much information, especially for a contract position. They want as much on your resume as you can muster. To that end, my resume comes out in two pages if you print it from the Web. That's how much information I've included. All the interviewers so far said that somehow people get the notion that they have to cram everything on one page so they applaud my way of incorporating so much information on my resume that doesn't overwhelm, but gives them a great idea about who I am. I have a one page resume handy, but it is so general that a keyword search will not reveal much to an employer (which proves a problem for a lot of people). Have a lot on there, but don't put too much. Balance it.

Model Skeleton

Name (Big, bold, and animated)

Add a divider to make your name stand out

Current Address, Permanent Address (Smaller font, and include every bit of contact information including email address)

Add a divider so that your contact information is one section

Objective Statement (A one liner that gets right to the point about what you want to do)

Experience, Date, Company (Bold and all caps), Location

Bullets (Each starts with a verb, is precise, and is careful to include keywords, such as soldering, Tektronix, T-Berd, etc.)

Education, Date, School (Bold and all caps), Location

Include all information here for your GPA (the highest one you have which I hope is your major), your honors and your degree. Companies like to see NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY on your resume too.

Add a divider because you are about to have a lot to say

And now the section that is why I have gotten all these calls and hits. I knew that I was fresh out of school so most companies earmark this like a store does when you write check number 101 (remember that). So it can be a good thing, or a bad thing. I decided to gamble and play this as a good thing.

First of all, you must have a tag line for your resume when you post it on monster.com (the most successful job search I have encountered - I would put computerjobs.com second, and hotjobs at a distant third. There is also raleighdurham.techies.com, but there aren't many job listings there yet).

Since I decided to play on my newbiness, my tag line had to say "Fresh out of college, highly capable and adaptive, eager to get his hands dirty, from a reputable school, in the area, and of course it had to be cathcy." If you can cram a one liner that includes most of that, you have done the first part. With much pain and imagination, I got this done.

Now, back to the resume. Right after the tag line, I have a section that varies for each resume and goes under a heading like "Advanced Projects and Concepts." Here is where I gambled and it worked. I bullet each major project that I've done in school, and sum it up in a one liner about what I did.

• Developed a Motorola 68HC11 based instant message device

Notice I got two keywords just by writing it that way (Motorola and 68HC11).

After this, I indent and write Hardware. After that, I plop keyword after keyword related to hardware that I had experience with.

• Developed a Motorola 68HC11 based instant message device
  • Hardware: EVB component interfacing, RS232 and RS485 components

  Notice the keywords (RS232, RS485, Interfacing). When an employer types in those keywords, your resume is immediately flagged. But I didn't stop there.

  Under Hardware, I add Software.

  • Developed a Motorola 68HC11 based instant message device
    • Hardware: EVB component interfacing, RS232 and RS485 components
    • Software: Assembly

    Got another keyword (Assembly). You don't see programming here, because it appears elsewhere in the resume. Last, the section that allows you to add even more keywords. I simply dubbed it Concepts. In all those classes, you've been loaded with concepts. Sometimes you are lucky and get to apply what you've learned. To cover all bases, I simply include what concepts I was introduced to.

    • Developed a Motorola 68HC11 based instant message device
      • Hardware: EVB component interfacing, RS232 and RS485 components
      • Software: Assembly
      • Concepts: Digital Systems, Interfacing, Embedded Systems, Troubleshooting, Debugging

      The Concept section allows me to throw up as many keywords as I want. But don't put too much to overwhelm the employer. Balance. With this skeleton, I can easily adjust it for the job which I apply for by simply changing the content within the skeleton as I have outlined.

      Add a divider when you are done loading up your resume with what you know, and not some generalities just to get down to one page.

      Now add the usual user level and language sections and your references if you have them (or just upon request if you want).

      And that's it. I put this skeleton together so that employers would most likely hit my resume because of all the keywords I had in it. Once there, the employer was treated to a clean format in which he or she could easily discover more about me. And of course everything isn't on the resume to leave yourself open for discussion during the interview.

      And here is one more important thing. I have samples to back up everything on the resume. I have code examples, schematics, you name it, I have them easily partitioned in my folio so that I can expand on any issue. This way, you have some clout behind your statements in which you can also easily add the icing on the cake by rattling off a more detailed view of the concepts you've been introduced to in your college career or outside experience."