What makes a good resume?

[YoungPUP]

I have found myself doubting the future of my career at my current place of employment.  I have decided to put together a resume and would like to see if I can get some points on how to put together a resume that screams HIRE ME!!!

[Oss]

As a secretary recruiter I have found that a good picture helps




so you are dog meat  bwahahahaha

seriously though good luck in your search

try this
http://career-advice.monster.com/resumes-cover-letters/resume-writing-tips/how-to-write-a-resume/article.aspx

click on the highlites like this one
http://career-advice.monster.com/resumes-cover-letters/resume-writing-tips/resume-title/article.aspx

[Thulsa Doom]

http://www.manager-tools.com/2005/10/your-resume-stinks

[RP#62]

I'm sure you'll get a lot of good advice on this but here's mine.  Keep it brief.  Find out what the company that you'll be submitting it to values and tailor it along those lines.  You may have to write several different versions.  Go over it and make sure that you don't have any spelling or grammatical errors. Make sure it doesn't leave any gaps or beg any questions you're not prepared to answer.

I've hired several technical writers over the years - you would think that someone applying for a job as a tech writer would have a grammatically correct resume, but you'd be surprised. Obvious errors tell me that they're either not good writers, or they're not taking this seriously, either way, they go to the bottom of the pile.

Another thing I look for is clues about attendance (although this comes more into play in the interview).  Just being there when you're supposed to be is huge.

-RP

[FLAVALK]

I'm sure you'll get a lot of good advice on this but here's mine.  Keep it brief.  Find out what the company that you'll be submitting it to values and tailor it along those lines.  You may have to write several different versions.  Go over it and make sure that you don't have any spelling or grammatical errors. Make sure it doesn't leave any gaps or beg any questions you're not prepared to answer.

I've hired several technical writers over the years - you would think that someone applying for a job as a tech writer would have a grammatically correct resume, but you'd be surprised. Obvious errors tell me that they're either not good writers, or they're not taking this seriously, either way, they go to the bottom of the pile.

Another thing I look for is clues about attendance (although this comes more into play in the interview).  Just being there when you're supposed to be is huge.

-RP

Sound advice. Should you land an interview, I would add, in addition to having what the company is looking for, try to find some common ground with the interviewer or others you might encounter. Having something, anything, in common can only help you.  

[GreenLantern57]

Make sure the resume says WHAT you did.  I got one that sounded like they googled thier previous places of employment and cut and pasted the companys description.  No clue what he did for the company.  Trash canned.

Another is writing your entire resume with the right tense.  Past tense for previous jobs, present tense for current job.  Shows laziness and no attention to detail. Details are what we do at our job.
This particular problem showed up with the applicant leaving his previous job in the present tense and did a poor job of describing what they did in thier current job.

Resumes are where I make my first cuts.  It doesn't have to wow me, but it has to have enough details that show you have the experience in the job I want to hire. Run a spell check and have someone you trust to double check, because spell check doesn't know that you meant  final and you only typed fine.

[da prez]

  carry  two working pens , be neat and clean , no matter what kind of job you are applying  for.
yes sir or maam or no sir or maam. be confident .and do not slouch if sitting. look at the person when talking or listening. a gentleman waits for a lady to extend her hand for a handshake . be ontime for the interview. do a follow up call if you do not hear in a reasonable time. do not carry a cell phone with you. do not make mistakes in your resume as I did in this reply.
                                               da prez

[cookiedough]

grammar errors of any kind and you won't get hired.  Way too many idiots out there who don't take the time to spell properly.  That is the #1 non-hiring mistake I think.

Good luck whatever you come up with.  Tons of jobs I am qualified for but 90% of them are part time 30 hours or less per week and well over 70% do not offer any type of benefits.  That so sucks in today's world employers can pick and choose and settle for someone not as good as me for a tad less money and yet that employer gets screwed when they miss weeks of work being sick and doesn't do a good job.  Surely bites big time vs. say 10-15 years ago I could find several jobs in the paper all full time with benefits and decent pay.  Not liking where this economy has been headed the past 7-8 years or so.  Showing up for work every single day and accomplishing the tasks that need to get done always doesn't seem to matter to employers anymore.  I may not be the most social person, but I surely get the job done and accomplish all that needs to get done fast and accurately.  I work, as you can tell, with an all women office staff and nearly everyone misses work almost weekly for one ailment or the other of which I have to cover for their jobs as well.  Even when they are working, they are gabbing or stuffing their face hours on ends or surfing the net shopping all the time.    A few waste more time at work than actually work an 8 hour shift. 

[Jabba]

I hire people sometimes...

Keep the resume to 1 page.

Say something interesting in it.  Or... in the cover letter.  The resume' is to get you in the door, and SHPW you're technically qualified for the position. 

Chemistry and the interview are where the money is.  YMMV.

Jabba

[Varmintmist]

Keep it simple, use good paper, and don't use weird fonts.

You have 8 seconds or less to impress upon the reader that you are worthy of a interview, don't make him work at looking at your resume.

[tonyfan70]

Try paperclipping a Benjamin or two to the backside of the cover page.

[Jeff K]

I go through hundreds of resumes when hiring industrial mechanics. My first suggestion is to take the time to make the resume and cover letter fit the company and the job you are aiming for . Canned resumes go... in the can.
KEEP IT SHORT! One page resume, no fancy fonts or fancy layouts.
Always include a cover letter written specifically to the person and job you want. Again keep it short.
Do not over sell yourself. I can't tell you how many resumes I pass by because they look like they are over qualified. All that means to me is that you are going to be a short term employee, and you'll be looking for a job while you are here. That's why its important to tailor your resume to the job you are applying for. With Nasa so close to us, and so many of them unemployed, I get tons of resumes from rocket scientists, really, like I need someone with rocket propulsion experience? They could be great mechanics but they tailored their resume to what they did not what they are going to do.

Leave the personal stuff out. I really don't care about your church or your fishing. I had a guy send me a resume, actually he sends it about every time I put an ad up, and he wanted to let me know that George Bush's economy put him out of a job. 


I read the cover letter first, and if I find interest in it I'll scan the resume to see if it lists the skills I'm looking for.