Let's say your wanting to land the perfect summer internship, you're browsing the JobDUN internship listings and start nodding your head to the bullet points of skills and the amazing opportunity you'll get if you land the job.
Then, you scroll down the page to: Submit your resume.
Hmmm, you've got a vague idea of what a resume is and know that it resembles some form of document that is meant to land you a job some day...
But, where to begin? Have no fear, consider this as a heads-up on how to write a killer resume.
1. Outline The Basics
The fundamentals - Your name, where you are based (which city) and your contact details so that your potential employer can get in touch with you for when they are interviewing.
2. Education
This is where bullet points become your friend, keeping information nice and tidy and easy to read for potential employers. Keep in mind, that it's not just your secondary and tertiary eduction that is important... Remember that First Aid Course you did last semester so that you could become a nanny part time while you study? Yep, that counts. Add it to the list!
3. Skills
Maintaining honesty here is key, and don't worry if not all of your skills match the ones on the job description you're applying for... consider the skills that you currently don't have as an opportunity for you to learn more and develop.
Skills can range from copywriting to proficiency in Adobe CS5, or operating an Eftpos Terminal and cash handling.
4. Work and Leadership Experience
This section can include a variety of experiences that you may not of considered - Sport, group or club leadership, peer support during high school, mentoring or tutoring - as well as any employment experience that you may have gained throughout the years.
In short, the easiest way to communicate this section of experience is noting examples.
For example:
Part Time Sales Assistant - Cotton On Kids - January 2017 - June 2021
- Customer service, including product selection, returns & exchanges, advise on product use and care, special orders.
- Key holder for opening and closing the store.
- Cash handling as well as EFTPOS, In-store Afterpay and Credit Card payments.
- Coordination of online orders.
- Stocktake.
- Inter-store stock transfers.
- Maintaining a high level of personal presentation.
- Keeping the retail space tidy and clean.
5. Activities and Interests
This is the part that excites me the most when reading potential employee's resumes. Why? Because it gives an insight into who you are as a person, what you do in your spare time and what makes you tick.
Employers want to know if you moonlight as a Lifeguard at the local beach on the weekends, or participate in the annual yoga summit held in Queenstown each year. Are you in a sports team or community group? Great! Employers want to hear about it.
Do you do any volunteering or charity work? Excellent! Add it into your resume.
Do you LOVE music and collecting vinyls from your favourite artists? Now we're cooking with gas, add it into your resume.
Now, putting it all together...
There are some great online tools that are free - like the online tool Canva.
Choosing a template that best suits your personality is a good way to start, but remember the golden rule of creating: K.I.S, Keep It Simple!
Spell check! One of the most commonly forgotten steps before sending a resume. And trust me, this is crucial - showing potential employers that you can string a sentence together as well as pay attention to detail is key.
Ignore what they say - size DOES matter! At the end of the day you want your potential employer to be able to open your resume so that they can read about how amazing you are, right?
- Well, making sure that what you are attaching is less than 10MB will ensure that they can do just that.
- Are you applying for a creative role? Make sure that you either include a link to your online portfolio OR attach a portfolio with several examples. You're applying for a creative role and so visuals mean every.
Linky McLink Links. Including hyperlinks in your resume can be a great way to avoid creating massive file sizes but also shows that you're savvy when it comes to providing context for what you're wanting to showcase.
Just remember, any links to files that you might have on your personal Dropbox, Google Drive or Sharepoint will not be able to be seen by your future employer because, well, they are personal.
Instead, opt for a more friendly sharing app such as Wetransfer - and the best thing is that it's free!
