As a major contributor to this blog and career specialist working directly with students and employers to assist in making connections, I have had the unique opportunity to review a lot of resumes. In fact, in the last six months, I have reviewed approximately 300 resumes – all belonging to SPC students. SPC students can mean a lot of things though – newly graduated high school students, grandparents coming in to show their kids that it is never too late, or even successful business owners looking to enhance their bookkeeping skills. Non-traditional students means non-traditional resumes – and I love that. There are a few similar mistakes that I see across the majority of my resumes and I want to share those with you.

1) PROFILE, NOT OBJECTIVE. In the old days (before the economic recession), a job seeker used to be able to tailor their resume in a way to say what THEY wanted from the job (a la “I am seeking a job where I can move up into management, receive incremental raises, and take 2 weeks’ vacation”) and a desperate employer still clamored to sign them.

These days have changed. With each openly posted position receiving around 200 applicants, employers are able to be more choosey. For this reason, the beginning of your resume should contain a short paragraph highlighting your BEST skills and accomplishments for that position. It should be a summary of you that entices the potential employer to keep reading.

2) NO HIGH SCHOOL. You’re in college now! You do not need to include your high school – just put your higher education. So you had a 4.0 and you were class president in high school? If it’s over a year ago, don’t include it. There are a lot of opportunities to get involved in college – find one!
a. I always get the follow up question of “Well, how do I list college if I’m not done?” I’ll show you:
School Name, City, State
Degree Pursued: Associate of _________: __________
Anticipated Graduation: 20__

3) SKILLS AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS, NOT JOB DUTIES. Everyone seems to think that a resume is to tell a future employer what you did in that job… that’s not exactly true. I like to describe it as “What made you the best person at your job?”. A potential employer knows what a server at a restaurant does, or a custodian at an office building.

What a potential employer does not know is what made you skilled and what you bring to their company. I like to say that with the future position in mind, think about when you were working. There had to have been one or two of your coworkers who you always thought “How do you still have a job? I am SO much better at this than you.” – Well, what made you better? Were you faster? Nicer? More efficient? A better leader? A team player? Always on time? These are all skills you want to highlight.

This will definitely get you started on your resume. Keep watching this blog for more insight on describing previous employments and how to highlight your skills and accomplishments. For assistance or a resume review, you can contact your local career services, or me, Rebecca Sarver. Sarver.Rebecca@spcollege.edu / 727-341-7980