It’s that time of year again. It’s the time when students start polishing off their resumes and start sending them to future employers and hoping for the best. Resume building is a vital skill that can either make or break landing your dream job.
When it comes to building your resume, Career Services Consultant at Fanshawe College, Sarah Ruttan says that it is important to keep your resume up-to-date throughout your life, “your resume is a very organic document. It should change quite consistently, it should change as your skills advance and improve as they grow. It should change pertaining to the job that your applying for, it should keep growing with you as long as you’re wanting to be employed.”
Resume building is unique because it’s not a black and white task. Every employer is looking for something different, but there are a few standard rules when it comes to formatting a resume. Ruttan says that consistently employers, recruiters and head-hunters want 2 pages and the top of the first page is the most important part.
“You want to remember that’s your branding. You’re selling you, so you want your name to stand out. I’m not saying it should be pink and covered in flowers, but I am saying it should be like 18 to 24-point font,” says Ruttan.
After your contact information in the header, Ruttan outlined the specific order of what comes next:
- Skills
- Education
- Experience (both paid and volunteer work)
- Other
- Hobbies
Creativity and Presentation Matters
Some Career Consultants say to put your hobbies as well if you need room to fill up the 2 pages, but it is also important to keep the resume aesthetically pleasing. Career Profile Advisor at Western University’s Student Success Centre, Arani Shanker says that it is all about the presentation.
“You really want to make sure it is easy to read so don’t keep everything crowded on the left side, make sure you have enough white space but you’re not having useless space or distracting borderlines. You know for someone whose been doing this all day, you want them to spend those 6 seconds looking at what they need quickly,” Shanker adds.
Creativity is also an aspect about resume building that can help you stand out from the crowd and catch the employers eye. Although, there is a limit to how creative you can get before it interferes with your professionalism.
“I would say for the most part, I don’t know if you saw Legally Blonde, she had a lovely pink resume that was scented, no, I don’t care what industry you’re going into, don’t do that. Generally, employers feel like you’re hiding something if you’ve got the big flowers and that kind stuff,” says Ruttan.
For resume help, head over to Fanshawe’s Career Services office for more information.
