After reading the articles on forming a resume, I have realized that I might as well just write my name on an envelope, spit in it, then mail it to my future employer. It is probably better than me sending an actual resume about myself. All these articles mention separating yourself from the crowd. When I read this I can't help but think, "I am the crowd." There is nothing really special about me, I get average grades, I am in a few professional practice clubs, and I have webbed feet. I feel like every other resume boasts something better than my freakish feet.
In the article, "A Glimpse and a Hook" the author is a man responsible for examining possible candidate's resumes in technical field. The Author makes it very apparent that he spends very little time examining resumes, and if something doesn't pop out the resume is trashed. There was also a bit of material that was contradicting information in other articles. For example in the "Drafting a Cover Letting and Resume" the author tells you that a cover letter is important and sets the tone of the resume, and in the "A Glimpse and a Hook" article the author says don't even use a cover letter.
It seems that there isn't really a set format that employees use to analyze resumes. I do agree with most of the material relating to resume content. It is important to put skills, experience, and education of course, but most of the reading expressed ways to present your information. Presentation is important and having a resume that is appealing has a lot to do with how it is presented.
Nothing say, "I am ready to work," like spit in a letter!
Evan
Empathy
I knw how you feel after reading all that. You think you know what you're doing, then you do this week's readings. After the first couple, you are thinking "Well hey, I got a few things wrong but this helps." Then you open up A Glimpse and a Hook, which pretty much is a polar opposite of Skeptical Resume Reader. Then you look at the comments and read the angry reactions of applicants and recruiters angrily pushing a slew of different "correct" strategies. So what do you believe?
I think the best piece of advice comes from Greggt's comment on A Glimpse and a Hook: Shotgun the world and see what hits. There's no cover-all strategy, and everyone is looking for something different. I think that's what this lesson is about. If you pick a strategy and put yourself out there, you'll probably get rejected by plenty of recruiters who see nothing but garbage in your resume, but at the same time you will probably catch a few who think you're a genius.
The comment about Sylar was pretty good, too.
Good Call
I agree with TANoNati on this one as well because after that set of readings you have to come to a conclusion that there are no “concrete” rules to creating a resume. Every one of those articles had at least one contradicting thing towards another it seemed. I also agree with you Evan in the fact that it is hard to stand out when most of us are “normal” college students that don’t have a whole lot to go by in the resume making world. That’s why we need to go with what we have and put it in a manner that will hopefully help our resumes at least get a second glance.
Webbed feet and Clubs
Your response definitely makes sense when considering resumes. When making my resume and looking at our resumes at the same time, I did not know what sections to keep or remove. When you said something about professional clubs or activities on resumes it reminded me of a section in the example resume from the Thomson Handbook. When people review resumes I would think that clubs or activities would not be important. I think that the skills section in a resume is important but after reading the "A Glimpse and A Hook" article the writer suggested to not put the section in. Everyone has an opinion on resumes, and I think that a person should make their own with what they think will promote their strengths.
Normalcy
I agree with your thoughts on separating yourself from the crowd. I feel the same exact way you do. After reading all of these articles I still have no idea of how I could possibly separate myself from anyone else applying to the same position. The only thing I know for sure is that is need to make sure I use key words for the scanners and to make my resume pretty. The best thing to do, in my opinion, is to include the information that you find important, and to make yourself seem important to the company that you are applying to.
“My Opinion on Cover
“My Opinion on Cover Letters”
I have yet to use a cover letter so my opinion may be somewhat biased. Throughout my job searching experiences I have never used a cover letter, but I have been decently successful. I think a cover letter would really be necessary in any type of online application environment, but never in a face to face job fair environment. College students are somewhat spoiled by the opportunities we receive, in regards to job fairs and recruiting companies. That ever so valuable face time is the most important part of any interviewing or pre-interviewing process.
www.JFlitt.com
Online Applications
Your point about cover letters being useful for online applications is good. And remember from the first reading, something like 5% of hires come from online applications - so that isn't even a big focus area. You don't need cover letters at a job fair because you are there in person to deliver the message you want. That's pretty much the function of a cover letter: send out your message without being there in person.
Now, I think once we get out of college (you're right, we're spoiled), more of the job searching will be done in the find-and-apply mode. Cover letters will be important for those situations, whether they are for online applications or not.
Spit Dries
There's a problem with your idea of distinguishing yourself: spit dries out. By the time they receive your letter, it won't be obvious at all that your spit inside of it. They will just receive an empty envelope that looks crippled. They will probably conclude that the envelope had been rained on.
Now to get serious - employers need some way of judging that you are a better fit than the other candidates. If you are just like most of their resume's, it's almost certain the resume will be discarded. That's simply how it is. There's always some way you can distinguish yourself. This may involve looking for opportunities to gain experience that you can later mention in your resume.
Resumes
I would have to agree also with everyone else on this matter. There isn't any specific way to create a resume. For every job that there is out there, there is a separate way of presenting your information in a resume. I don't know of anyone that would want to use the same resume for every job that they are applying. Like me for example. I would use a different style of resume when apply for a flight job than a job working in an office.