How To Write A Resume

Cover Letter

- The object of the cover letter is a quick introduction. Keep it short and make sure it is no longer than one page. 

- Do your research and custom the cover letter for the job you are applying for. 

- Highlight your skills. Make it a quick synosys of why you are qualified for the job. 

- Do not include any details: salary, work experience and reference. Save them for the resume and interview. 

Header 

- Name, address, phone numbers (both home and mobile numbers), email address. 

Objective 

- Focus your objective on the requirements of the employer. 

- Summarize your skills based on the objective to the specific job title. 

- Many companies now use electronic scanning software for keywords. Make sure you use similar words from the ad description.  

Achievements 

- Include important achievements and use numbers and statistics. Be specific to include important milestones with numbers that you contributed to your present or previous employers. 

- Do not lie in your resume. Nothing is more embarrassing than being asked questions on a subject that you are not an expert in. 

Employment 

- List your most recent work experience and highlight the job functions first. Employers will not be interested in the job from ten years ago. 

- Make sure to include employer name, address, website address and your job title. 

- Do not include salary information.  

Education 

- List school information, degree, and other job training education. 

- List awards or honors from schools or your previous employers. 

Grammar 

- Proofread and make sure that you check grammar and spelling before sending the resume. 

- Use bullets, bold, underline and italics to make the resume easy to read. 

Omissions 

- Do not include irrelevant information: age, marital status, hobbies. 

References 

- Your references should be on a separate page and they should not be included with your resume and cover letter. Most employers will not ask for references at the first interview but you should have them ready just in case. 

- Only include professional references and not personal references. 

- Make sure you only list the ones that you had a good working relationship with. 

- Contact the one that you listed as your references and make sure that you have up-to-date contact information.