Tom's Resume FAQ Answers
General Formatting:
Do not use generic resume formatting programs, such as the Microsoft Word template. Why? Because it makes you look generic, and that's the opposite of what a resume is meant to do. Because once you've used it your resume is locked into their formatting code and this will cause you much grief down the road.
Do use the entire page.
Do make the page look balanced, organized, neat and professional: use bullets, line up tabs etc. Do use the graphic design "third quadrant" to emphasize info that might otherwise be overlooked. On the page that opens, choose the first of the displayed numbers that pops into your mind: "Third Quadrant"
Do use a variety of font styles and sizes, but don't overdo it.
Specific Sections:
Only use this to list specific job titles and dates OTHERWISE OMIT IT: it's a waste of valuable real estate.
Yes: Objective: Summer 2007 Accounting Internship
No: Objective: A challenging career that will allow me to learn and advance.
Do use a professional looking letterhead style that matches all other correspondence with this organization, such as you Cover Letter, list of References, and any follow up correspondence.
Do include your email address.
Do not list more than one set of addresses and contact info; do only list one.
Do not use a miniscule font size that only 21 year olds can read.
List degree, school, minors, expected graduation date, gpa if over 3.0.
Omit high school.
If you are just graduating and do not have a great deal of directly related employment experience, I'm a big fan of using the headings for this category creatively and, most importantly, separating Related Experience from Other Work Experience, with the former toward the top and the latter buried toward the bottom, or on the second page.
Possible heading for these sections include: Experience, Related Experience, Related Work Experience, Related Employment, Other Employment, or direct phrasing such as "Accounting Experience", "Teaching Experience" etc.
Use past tense verbs of past experience, present for current experience. See this example for how to list experience in active verbs.
Other sections you may want to include: Leadership Experience, Communication Experience, International Experience
Separate into two categories (one for Activities, the other for Awards) if you have a lot of them; combine if you have a few.
Unless these are directly related to your career, list toward the bottom. Briefly describe those that are related.
No one is going to hire you because you play ultimate Frisbee or rode a philanthropic sea-saw or cleaned up garbage with other Greeks, so remember: if it ain't somehow relevant to your profession, consider leaving it off and replacing it with something that is; padded resumes look like padded resumes.
Four is the standard number of people to list (and the number I require). For college graduates, as a rule of thumb, list two professional references and two professorial/academic. In other words, shoot for two bosses and two professors. Ideally, but not necessarily, the bosses and/or professors work/teach in the field you are entering.
Include Name, Job Title, Place of occupation, Mailing address, phone, email.
Format in a way that looks consistent with the rest of the resume and is easy to skim.
Use references to fill out incomplete, empty looking resume pages, or put them on their own page (with matching letterhead) in a neat, well organized form.