Good resumes
December 5, 2005 4:27 PM Subscribe
Just how good does a resume have to be? Please post links to some of the resumes that have blown you away.
I think it's pretty rare that someone gets hired entirely based on their resumé. Everywhere I've worked, it just has to be good enough to get you an interview, which is really the main decision process.
In this case, how good your resumé needs to be depends on what percentage of applicants make it to interviews.
posted by aubilenon at 4:38 PM on December 5, 2005
In this case, how good your resumé needs to be depends on what percentage of applicants make it to interviews.
posted by aubilenon at 4:38 PM on December 5, 2005
The best resume is the one that is tailored for the job you are submitting it for. Other than that, there is no one-size-fits-all "best" resume.
Proofread, proofread, and then proofread it again. And then ask a friend or neighbor to proofread it. Sloppy errors (at least in my field) are a huge detractor.
posted by ambrosia at 4:39 PM on December 5, 2005
Proofread, proofread, and then proofread it again. And then ask a friend or neighbor to proofread it. Sloppy errors (at least in my field) are a huge detractor.
posted by ambrosia at 4:39 PM on December 5, 2005
Are you talking about the content or the format? Don't get too fancy with the format -- just present the content as clearly as possible.
The purpose of the resume is to convince them to give you an interview, not to convince them to give you the job (you do that part at the interview).
posted by winston at 4:51 PM on December 5, 2005
The purpose of the resume is to convince them to give you an interview, not to convince them to give you the job (you do that part at the interview).
posted by winston at 4:51 PM on December 5, 2005
If I can't open it, read it, and print it, it is a bad resume. Don't make your resume a multimedia presentation unless that is the nature of the job for which you are applying. I strongly recommend PDF, as it works -- for free -- on all operating systems.
Seriously, I know more about notably bad resumes than notably good resumes. Ditto Ambrosia's recommendations. Be sure it is clear, concise, sells you, is free of errors, and make sure it has your correct phone number. You would not believe how many resumes don't.
The purpose of a resume is to get you an interview. Remember that it is a sales document, not an employment application.
posted by ilsa at 5:19 PM on December 5, 2005
Seriously, I know more about notably bad resumes than notably good resumes. Ditto Ambrosia's recommendations. Be sure it is clear, concise, sells you, is free of errors, and make sure it has your correct phone number. You would not believe how many resumes don't.
The purpose of a resume is to get you an interview. Remember that it is a sales document, not an employment application.
posted by ilsa at 5:19 PM on December 5, 2005
Please post links to some of the resumes that have blown you away.
I hope no one is going to do that. If someone posted a link here to my resume, I would be extremely annoyed.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 5:33 PM on December 5, 2005
I hope no one is going to do that. If someone posted a link here to my resume, I would be extremely annoyed.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 5:33 PM on December 5, 2005
Resumes have to be straight-forward. Cover letters are where you can get original and start showcasing your personality.
posted by apple scruff at 5:51 PM on December 5, 2005
posted by apple scruff at 5:51 PM on December 5, 2005
Stay in one page. Stay away from crappy Microsoft Word templates.
posted by dagnyscott at 6:08 PM on December 5, 2005
posted by dagnyscott at 6:08 PM on December 5, 2005
Example 1
Example 2
Example 3
I'm not being a smartass. I think these are the some of the best resumes I've ever seen. Get a blog, post some content related to your profession, get on Digg, BoingBoing, or Del.icio.us/popular and all of a sudden you've virally marketed yourself to employers.
posted by Hildago at 7:28 PM on December 5, 2005
Example 2
Example 3
I'm not being a smartass. I think these are the some of the best resumes I've ever seen. Get a blog, post some content related to your profession, get on Digg, BoingBoing, or Del.icio.us/popular and all of a sudden you've virally marketed yourself to employers.
posted by Hildago at 7:28 PM on December 5, 2005
This guide from Smith College is what I used when I wrote my résumé. I believe that the good advice (stick to one page, be descriptive) contained therein and the classy font I chose (Georgia) were what made it ultimately successful.
It may sound fussy, but I really advise a serif font that is not Times New Roman. Employers get tons of résumés and you want yours to stand out on first glance. You do not, however, want to be that moron who wrote your résumé in 8pt font, or worse, Comic Sans. Readability is key.
And yes, if you can tailor the résumé to the specific job you're applying for, do. Try to only include what is relevant. Putting every single thing you have ever done in your life on your résumé is not as productive as putting five things you really excelled at and briefly describing your acheivements in those areas.
posted by grapefruitmoon at 8:12 PM on December 5, 2005
It may sound fussy, but I really advise a serif font that is not Times New Roman. Employers get tons of résumés and you want yours to stand out on first glance. You do not, however, want to be that moron who wrote your résumé in 8pt font, or worse, Comic Sans. Readability is key.
And yes, if you can tailor the résumé to the specific job you're applying for, do. Try to only include what is relevant. Putting every single thing you have ever done in your life on your résumé is not as productive as putting five things you really excelled at and briefly describing your acheivements in those areas.
posted by grapefruitmoon at 8:12 PM on December 5, 2005
There is a book about writing resumes by the Five O'Clock Club. It's excellent and really helped me.
These days, you need more than one resume. You need an MS doc, a plain text doc, and something online. I would avoid being overly creative with your resume, and avoid Flash in particular, unless you are a designer, in which case, it damn well better be well done. Avoid creative resumes for these reasons: The resume is scanned, one glance decides if it stays in a pile, and that's determined by the info in it. If they can't find the info the resume is scrapped. Also, people are looking for reasons to weed out resumes, and there is much more of a chance that someone will find fault with something creative than seemingly generic. Be very subtle with your creativity. Over the top resumes encourage people to ask questions to others about what they think, and the more people that are asked the more of a chance someone won't like it.
posted by xammerboy at 8:21 PM on December 5, 2005
These days, you need more than one resume. You need an MS doc, a plain text doc, and something online. I would avoid being overly creative with your resume, and avoid Flash in particular, unless you are a designer, in which case, it damn well better be well done. Avoid creative resumes for these reasons: The resume is scanned, one glance decides if it stays in a pile, and that's determined by the info in it. If they can't find the info the resume is scrapped. Also, people are looking for reasons to weed out resumes, and there is much more of a chance that someone will find fault with something creative than seemingly generic. Be very subtle with your creativity. Over the top resumes encourage people to ask questions to others about what they think, and the more people that are asked the more of a chance someone won't like it.
posted by xammerboy at 8:21 PM on December 5, 2005
What is your field? In mine (academia) a flashy resume arouses suspicion. Keep it simple and elegant. Don't include any information not directly relevant to your qualifications for the position. Grapefruitmoon's advice is excellent.
posted by LarryC at 8:29 PM on December 5, 2005
posted by LarryC at 8:29 PM on December 5, 2005
Stay in one page
Good advice if you've something less than (say) 10 years of work experience. More than that could well merit two pages, if your job experience is varied. (If you've had only three different jobs in 12 years, then one page is probably best.)
posted by WestCoaster at 8:43 PM on December 5, 2005
Good advice if you've something less than (say) 10 years of work experience. More than that could well merit two pages, if your job experience is varied. (If you've had only three different jobs in 12 years, then one page is probably best.)
posted by WestCoaster at 8:43 PM on December 5, 2005
As someone who hires in the legal field, I look for a conservative resume with zero errors which addresses everything I'm asking for. But don't forget the cover letter. That's really what I look at. If it is without flaw, covers what I asked for, and shows an exceptional command of the English language, I will bite, hard. Just make it perfect with no typos or other errors. I never forgive.
Also no goofy paper. White please.
Finally, don't forget the advice above--you want the job, not to impress with the resume.
posted by Ironmouth at 8:43 PM on December 5, 2005
Also no goofy paper. White please.
Finally, don't forget the advice above--you want the job, not to impress with the resume.
posted by Ironmouth at 8:43 PM on December 5, 2005
For whatever reason, my resume tends to really impress potential employers.. I'm not 100% sure why...
But if you want to see it, it's located here..... (click "HTML" for now.. PDF coming eventually).
posted by twiggy at 9:54 PM on December 5, 2005
But if you want to see it, it's located here..... (click "HTML" for now.. PDF coming eventually).
posted by twiggy at 9:54 PM on December 5, 2005
WestCoaster -- sure. It's just more useful to give strict guidelines that people can stretch if they know they have a lot of experience than to say "Be concise" when that means something different to everyone.
posted by dagnyscott at 8:23 AM on December 6, 2005
posted by dagnyscott at 8:23 AM on December 6, 2005
Mine started as a .doc, which I posted as a .pdf on my website. I then decided I should put up an HTML version as well, so as to be searchable/cacheable/copy-n-pasteable. The result is this, which I think works well. I generated the HTML automatically from the PDF using a shareware program; probably the next time I update it I'll change over to a simpler, unordered list-style presentation for the web version (to see why, view the auto-generated source...).
Also, notice that I've xxxx'd out all my contact details save my email addresses. There's marketing yourself, and then there's inviting stalkers upon yourself.
posted by electric_counterpoint at 12:46 PM on December 6, 2005
Also, notice that I've xxxx'd out all my contact details save my email addresses. There's marketing yourself, and then there's inviting stalkers upon yourself.
posted by electric_counterpoint at 12:46 PM on December 6, 2005
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posted by chuckforthought.com at 4:35 PM on December 5, 2005