CollegeRecruiter.com Blog

This blog entry is courtesy of Alise Cortez, who is the co-author with Claudia Faust of the ImprovedExperience.com blog called It’s ALL About the Experience. This is one in a series of blog entries that come to CollegeRecruiter.com via a swap of content between bloggers who write about employment-related issues. And now to the Alise's excellent advice for job seekers:

Having been a former technical recruiter who has critiqued and developed countless student resumes, there is one point I like to emphasize to those preparing a marketing blitz with potential employers. It's a rather simple point, but one that often gets lost in the translation: in your race for the job, make sure that “you” show up in the resume.

What's that, you say? How can I not be in the resume? That's all of my experience and course work in there! My internships, my summer jobs, my extracurricular activities!

"You" means your personality, your uniqueness, and your strength of character. In addition to the other data points, these are the things that should show up in your resume. After all, recruiters and managers hire people, and not pieces of paper.

Showing your individuality can be as easy as starting with a personally descriptive "Objective" statement. For example: “I'm seeking a challenging, entry-level Sales position where my passion for being the best, my unbridled enthusiasm, and my adoration for all things technical will be welcome.” Then, where appropriate in the resume, use statements that tell the story behind that objective.

Most resumes focus on the duties that someone has carried out: the verbs, if you will. Create copy, test code, answer phones, file memos. Telling the story means adding the adjectives and adverbs - and it can be a competitive differentiator for your resume in the job market. Statements like:

“Ranked No. 1 in customer satisfaction and service for my cheerfulness and determination to see the job through to completion.”

Or

“I was recognized by the professor as undoubtedly being the most determined and creative problem solver in the class.”

These statements, full of adjectives and adverbs, describe not only what you did, but how you did it - and they offer your sense of confidence that you will behave in a similar way for your employer. Conviction is another insight to your individuality; after all, if you are not sure of your own worth, how can you convince someone else?

But, you say, what if the company doesn’t like enthusiasm? What if they confuse my conviction for arrogance?

What if, indeed. The purpose of a resume is to get the interview, and the purpose of the interview is to help both parties determine if there's a match for the job. Be professional, but be yourself - both in the resume and in the interview. A company that says no to enthusiasm may not be the place for you. Would you be happy there? Could you be yourself there? Honoring who you are and being truthfully bold in your resume speeds up the selection process and it ultimately makes getting that first post-graduation job much more satisfying. Employers know what will work in their environments and what won't; they can weed you out quickly, which saves you time and later heartache, OR they can select you in.

Putting forth a strong, personally demonstrative resume is like offering a firm handshake, a big smile, and a few words that make a great first impression. What else could you hope for in the few brief milliseconds someone looks at your resume?