FOC Workshop Recap: Updating your Professional Resume

FOC Workshop Recap: Updating your Professional Resume

Alaina Schnipke and Michael Santangelo provided lots of helpful insight in their experience reviewing professional resumes. They both highlighted the importance of the following:

• Proofread everything in your resume. Your resume is a digital representation of yourself and while it may seem simple, always check for spelling and grammar mistakes.
• Utilize your mentors. Having another set of eyes review your resume will help strengthen it.
• Save everything as a PDF. Formats can change based on versions of Microsoft Word so PDFs are the most accessible and reliable format.
• Headshots can be biased. Avoid headshots on your resume to maintain its legitimacy.
• Highlight your skills but avoid listing assumed skills. Employers are likely to assume that you work well on teams. Unless you are especially proficient at something, leave it off your resume.
• Cover letters are not necessary unless specified otherwise. If the job does not request a cover letter, it will likely not be read.
• More pages may come over time. If you have a larger career, your resume may be longer than that of a recent graduate.
• Do not rely on the name of your school. In many cases, names are not seen in order to avoid bias.

When updating your professional resume with the tips listed above, be sure to remember that every employer is different. Whether you tailor your resume or not, do not lie about your skills or experiences. While modesty is honorable, your resume is used to showcase your talents. Save humility in failure for the interview process.