Career Options Magazine

What makes a great résumé—the kind that stirs employer interest and compels them to call the applicant right away?

A strong résumé is not a stroke of luck, but rather the result of matching skills and experience to job qualifications. Many graduating students are challenged by this idea because they often feel they don’t have either. The truth is everyone has skills, whether specific/technical or soft/transferable. The beauty of soft skills such as organizational, communication, interpersonal and analytical skills is that they apply to so many work situations, and are an excellent way to demonstrate your potential even if you lack experience in the field.

If you want to convince an employer that you are a strong candidate, you’ll need to put some time into your résumé. Great résumés are well researched and well written. Begin by looking at what you’ve accomplished over the last four or five years. Identify the skills, knowledge and experiences gained through your course work, and review previous jobs, volunteer positions and co-curricular activities. Involve your campus career centre in this process, as they will have tools and/or counsellors available to guide your work.

Next, research the position and the organization to which you’re applying. What skills, level of responsibility and previous experiences are required? What are the company’s vision and goals for the coming year? What are the major trends in the field? The answers to these questions will help you decide which of your skills and experiences best match the position. Depending on where these come from (for example, volunteering or the classroom), you will know how to format and name the section headings. Let’s look at an example of how this is done.

Danielle is a 4th-year student graduating in 2010 with a bachelor’s degree in economics. She has a part-time job at The Body Shop and is a member of the Economics Students’ Association. She is interested in applying for a job with a consulting firm specializing in public policy advising. After reviewing the qualifications for the position, she compared them to her education and work experience:

Employer qualifications: Post-secondary degree in Economics, Urban Geography or related discipline
Danielle’s experience: BA in Economics; courses included Urban Economics, Financial Economics

Employer qualifications: Outstanding spreadsheet abilities with strong emphasis in Excel
Danielle’s experience: Developed Excel spreadsheets for Financial Economics course

Employer qualifications: Excellent written and oral communication skills
Danielle’s experience: Part-time job helping customers with product selection; chair meetings and take minutes for Economics Students’ Association; write reports for courses

Employer qualifications: Strong analytical abilities
Danielle’s experience: Group project work analyzing city financial planning process

Danielle meets their qualifications, but only when she takes into account all her experiences: her course work, her part-time job and the Economics Students’ Association. This is not uncommon, and it’s the reason you need to broaden your experience outside the classroom while at college or university.

For an immediate impact and to showcase her diverse experience, Danielle decides to begin her résumé with a “Qualification Highlights” section presenting the employer with evidence.

Qualification Highlights:

• Graduating in June 2010 with a Bachelor of Arts in Economics
• Spreadsheet abilities; developed Excel spreadsheets for Financial Economics course
• Excellent written and oral communication skills: share product knowledge with customers in retail store; chair meetings and take minutes for Economics Students’ Association
• Strong analytical abilities developed through group project analyzing city financial planning process

She then follows this with an “Education” section and highlights courses relevant to the job, demonstrating her depth of knowledge. If she has received academic awards or special recognition (e.g., Dean’s list), they could be added here. Until Danielle has professional work experience on her résumé, her post-secondary education is critical and needs to be on page one.

Education:
2006–2010 Bachelor of Arts, Economics,
University of Toronto
Related courses: Urban Economics, Financial Economics, Quantitative Methods in Economics

In the next section, Danielle lists a course assignment that demonstrates her knowledge base and the skills she developed along the way. Notice her choice of action verbs: collaborated, analyzed, earned. There is a greater chance that an employer will conduct a keyword search on these verbs than on the more commonly used terms worked, responsible for and earned. This section could also have been titled “Relevant Experience.”

Relevant Course Work:
Sept.–Dec. 2009 Critical Analysis of the City of Toronto’s Financial Planning Process, Urban Economics,
Dept. of Economics, U of T

• Collaborated with three other students to critically evaluate the financial planning process in relation to accountability and efficiency
• Analyzed the plan and recommended a process intended to deliver the right services in the most cost-effective manner
• Earned the second highest mark in the class based on final report and class presentation

Working at The Body Shop, Danielle has strengthened her interpersonal and communication skills. She also demonstrates her work ethic by doing her best to increase sales for the company. This achievement helps to make an otherwise ordinary job noteworthy to employers, as it illustrates the contribution she is capable of making.

Work Experience:
2007–present Sales Assistant, The Body Shop

• Assist customers with their needs by sharing product information in a helpful manner
• Increased sales by 15% from the same four-month period of the previous year

Danielle realized that she would not impress employers with her G.P.A. alone, and decided to further improve her skills by joining the Economics Students’ Association. Here she gradually built up her leadership skills by chairing meetings, organizing events, and introducing and thanking speakers. She also added another accomplishment to her list by implementing a very successful speaker series.

Leadership Experience:
2008–present Executive Member, Economics Students’ Association, U of T

• Implemented a speaker series inviting prominent members of the financial community to discuss Canada’s economic situation in the global economy
• A record 85 students attended each session, a 35% increase over previous events

Danielle has trouble deciding whether to include an “Interests and Activities” section; it may impress a potential employer to see that she has diverse interests that have further sharpened her analytical skills, but it may also be viewed as extraneous information. The only way to know is through further research to determine company preferences—this would be true of many decisions made when composing a résumé. Only include details about yourself that are important to the company, but at the same time also make sure not to leave unexplained gaps.

Interests and Activities:
Cycling, sudoku, amateur computer programming

The final step in preparing a résumé is to have it reviewed.

Have someone from your career centre look it over for you. They can offer feedback on how well you are presenting yourself through the use of concrete examples, action verbs and accomplishments—they may even help by spotting typos.

Your goal is not to have just one résumé, but rather to have several versions tailored to specific positions. Remember: the effort you are willing to put into your résumé shows your prospective employer the effort you are willing to put into the job!

by Mary Giamos