The Resume Building/Interview Process/Job Hunting tips thread...

[Brown_Pride]

Is it realistic to get a permanent job from an employment agency if you want to re-locate? I don't mean an $11/hour job either, something to further your career.

i'd say yes. All but 2 of my 10 plus professional career jobs have come from "temporary" placements. I just view that shyt as a way to get my foot in the door. Plus it is good having a "staffing agency" on your side, they when they find you work so they want you to find work .

The caveat is they usually HAVE TO send 2-4 "candidates" so every once in a while you might just be filler. Either way though
You looking for a job < You + Staffing Agency looking for a job for you.

 

[nyknick]

Brehs, do you put the cover letter as the body of the email or as an attachment?



I've been sending it as an attachment along with the resume and I get a feeling they're not even opening that shyt.

 

[Schmoove]

What's been your experiences with being hired/working for the federal government?

 

[The Frozen One]

So i'm about to graduate this year and I need to fix up my resume to get jobs.

I have some problems though:
my gpa is average
i have no experience in my field
i have done shyt jobs to pay for my school, nothing that i can use towards my career however.

i'm getting in the sustainability field - ba in policy and minor in econ and political science.

what i want to do is get into research studies. there are positions open for the summer, which i really wanna take, but i don't know how i can fix my resume. even an internship would be nice.

what do i need to put on there?
should i put the courses i've done on my resume and how they've helped me?
does my resume need to be 1 or 2 pages? etc...

 

[Conscious Pilot]

So i'm about to graduate this year and I need to fix up my resume to get jobs.

I have some problems though:
my gpa is average
i have no experience in my field
i have done shyt jobs to pay for my school, nothing that i can use towards my career however.

i'm getting in the sustainability field - ba in policy and minor in econ and political science.

what i want to do is get into research studies. there are positions open for the summer, which i really wanna take, but i don't know how i can fix my resume. even an internship would be nice.

what do i need to put on there?
should i put the courses i've done on my resume and how they've helped me?
does my resume need to be 1 or 2 pages? etc...

Try a a variation of a "Functional Resume". Google Functional Resume for your desired field samples.

 

[MeachTheMonster]

So i'm about to graduate this year and I need to fix up my resume to get jobs.

I have some problems though:
my gpa is average
i have no experience in my field
i have done shyt jobs to pay for my school, nothing that i can use towards my career however.

i'm getting in the sustainability field - ba in policy and minor in econ and political science.

what i want to do is get into research studies. there are positions open for the summer, which i really wanna take, but i don't know how i can fix my resume. even an internship would be nice.

what do i need to put on there?
should i put the courses i've done on my resume and how they've helped me?
does my resume need to be 1 or 2 pages? etc...

Concentrate on your good qualities and what you HAVE done.

If your GPA is just average then don't list it

You have no job experience in your field, then talk about life expierinces that have prepared you for your field.

Anylize your "shyt" jobs and figure out what it was about them that made you a better candidate for the job your applying for.

You should not only list the courses you took. But specific things about them that relate to the job you're applying for.

As for the amount of pages, I've heard it both ways. Some people say one page is enough, some say the "one page" rule is outdated. I guess it just depends on how much you have to say. But just make sure EVERYTHING you say is directly related to the job you're trying to get. Don't hesitate to make multiple variations of your résumé. That way each one can be exactly tailored to the position you are applying for.

And just some advice from my personal experience. Don't get discouraged. When I graduated I was pretty much in the same situation as you. It took me a while to find a job, and I was beginning to get frustrated. Just keep trying and stay confident and it will work out in the end.

Also cover pages and thank you/follow up letters are very important in making a good impression with recruiters.

 

[acri1]

As far as resume I've always been told that you should try to keep your resume to one page unless you have a lot of relevant work experience. Reason being that most of the people looking at resumes (especially for entry level jobs) will receive a lot of them and may not bother even looking at more than the first page.

If you don't have work experience, try listing relevant courses that you took on your resume and perhaps any projects you think might impress employers.

Biggest thing, and this is something I wish I'd been more open about, is be open to the idea of moving. Your odds of finding a decent job are way better in some areas than others. If you live in an area with no jobs in your field, you may want to seriously consider relocating. Especially if you don't have a family.

 

[Regular_P]

Is it appropriate to contact HR or the recruiter who posted a job after applying for a job? Some jobs say not to contact anyone after you've applied while some make no mention of it. What are people's experiences with this?

I prefer to try it and not be left hanging in the wind with a blind submission.

 

[acri1]

Is it appropriate to contact HR or the recruiter who posted a job after applying for a job? Some jobs say not to contact anyone after you've applied while some make no mention of it. What are people's experiences with this?

I prefer to try it and not be left hanging in the wind with a blind submission.

Well, if the posting specifically says not to contact them then that's a no go.

Otherwise, it's probably ok to send an email after a week or two thanking the person and politely inquiring as to the status of the opening. I probably wouldn't call people, especially if you haven't even interviewed yet.

 

[Atlrocafella]

A cover letter should never be this long.


Overall when you're writing cover letters keep them short and straight to the point. Only talk about one job position you feel is most relevant to the job you're applying for. It's unnecessary to talk about more than one job because your resume already details the experience you have. Cover letters really aren't as important as they seem. They have the power to hurt you but they won't help you. Your resume matters the most.

I agree. If this is your first real career job out of college than yes, get yourself a cover letter. However if you're moving from one employer to another in your career field, than your résumé is all that really matters.

 

[Silky Johnson]

Brehs, do you put the cover letter as the body of the email or as an attachment?



I've been sending it as an attachment along with the resume and I get a feeling they're not even opening that shyt.

Da fukk you got in the body?


The cover letter should be the email with the resume attached.

 

[gho3st]

@Nudie, @MyGawdThePower , @duckbutta
can somebody let me know if this is good cover letter and resume??







I got hit with the Donotreply@invalidemail.com

 

[REdefinition]

@Nudie, @MyGawdThePower , @duckbutta
can somebody let me know if this is good cover letter and resume??

I got hit with the Donotreply@invalidemail.com

"Connoly Inc's number asset"....typo in the cover letter. If you directly copied that then you may wanna correct it before sending it again.

 

[acri1]

@Nudie, @MyGawdThePower , @duckbutta
can somebody let me know if this is good cover letter and resume??

I got hit with the Donotreply@invalidemail.com

Resume:

-Remove the objective, it's unnecessary. Anybody reading your resume already knows your objective is to get a job offer.

-I'd list specific courses you took in the "coursework" section that you think are relevant

-Be more specific on the projects portion. For example if you created an application, you might want to specify what language you used (ie. Java or C++) and other technical specifics, or for the website you might want to specify what coding/scripting you used. Even better if you have a link to it.


Cover letter:

-It's ok I suppose, but I usually frame things in terms of how I could benefit the company, ie. "I believe that my skills and education would allow me to contribute to the organization". And instead of saying "I'd like to set up an appointment" you might want to say something like "I would sincerely appreciate an opportunity to learn more about the position".


Just my two cent.

 

[duckbutta]

@Nudie, @MyGawdThePower , @duckbutta
can somebody let me know if this is good cover letter and resume??

I got hit with the Donotreply@invalidemail.com

I would tailor it more to the job. Something like this.

Data Mining : Created ad-hoc subset queries using SQL and MySQL to report internal user trends for some use and validation, as well as for customer product use.


Or some BS like that. As it stands, if I was reading it, I would ask myself "Okay so this guy says he knows SQL, Unix, Networking, ETC... but how would these skills help him as a data analyst...

As a hiring manager, I am literally looking at your resume for a minute tops...so all of your skills need to tell me how they relate to the actual position, because i got 30 more in the pile to go through before i go out back and snort some coke with the Hungarian receptionist

You say you created a website...expand on that a little bit...with what...html?...flash...? did you have to do code deploys to it...did you use something like dreamweaver...?