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resume tips?

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mcrae

Member
EDIT: i bumped this thread looking for thespot84's illustrator file, dont need many tips on my resume anymore


so I'm off to look for jobs as i move cities for school, and looking at my resume it seems bloated and just not crisp enough. I tried to be concise about my duties and such, and followed tips such as 'say how what you did resulted in positives for the company' and i can't tell where to trim off the excess fat.

EFYsF.jpg


the reason i'm making this thread is because im currently working 3 jobs, and I don't know how to even fit the third one at the top of the resume, lol. I'm only applying for more bartending/serving jobs, so a lot of it is just personality in the interview/when you walk in, but if i don't get the chance to see a manager, I want him to give me an interview since my resume is good.... not get bored reading it halfway through.

thanks in advance for advice!
 

Tenks

Member
Keep it to one page, do not go over one. Just because you're working three jobs doesn't mean you have to list them all. Only post things that would be relevant to the position you are applying. Since it is a bartender position basically anything with customer service or working in the food industry.
 

mcrae

Member
Tenks said:
Keep it to one page, do not go over one. Just because you're working three jobs doesn't mean you have to list them all. Only post things that would be relevant to the position you are applying. Since it is a bartender position basically anything with customer service or working in the food industry.

thats the thing, almost all my jobs are relevant... its just that i've had so many for only working for the past 6 years. and if i dont include something like the lawn business, then there is a couple month gap in employment
 
mcrae said:
thats the thing, almost all my jobs are relevant... its just that i've had so many for only working for the past 6 years. and if i dont include something like the lawn business, then there is a couple month gap in employment
seriously - one page. People with 30 years of experience can do it, you can too. You have way too much fat in that thing. Cut it down to one page or people will throw it in the trash.
 

zero_suit

Member
mcrae said:
thats the thing, almost all my jobs are relevant... its just that i've had so many for only working for the past 6 years. and if i dont include something like the lawn business, then there is a couple month gap in employment

Nobody cares about an employment gap of a couple months.
 
You can list jobs without listing all of their responsibilities. You should really only be doing that for your most recent work unless there's something in particular that you want to highlight about an old job.

Also try using a CV template that isn't the most boring thing in the world to look at goddam.
 

Ecrofirt

Member
mcrae said:
thats the thing, almost all my jobs are relevant... its just that i've had so many for only working for the past 6 years. and if i dont include something like the lawn business, then there is a couple month gap in employment
The thing is that people will throw out a bloated resume.

You've got way too many jobs listed, and your skills and duties take up too much space.

The list that you give of duties and experiences with each job is just way, way, too much.
 

mcrae

Member
badcrumble said:
You can list jobs without listing all of their responsibilities. You should really only be doing that for your most recent work unless there's something in particular that you want to highlight about an old job.

Also try using a CV template that isn't the most boring thing in the world to look at goddam.

good point

any suggestions on style? examples? i've scoured about.com and stuff like that but can't really tell whats better/why
 
I don't want to get into an excess of detail about it, but you need to make sure that everything is in the same tense.

"consistently exceeded," for example. They're not supposed to be complete sentences, but they still need to be grammatically correct.

Do a better job of spacing things. If your resume is written in 12 point font, try to use a 4 point line to space things out instead of a 12 point one.

And yeah, get it down to one page. Double-sided if you must, but cut down on the descriptions if you can.
 

Blader

Member
Get rid of those spaces between paragraphs.

Cut the volunteer experience, unless it's relevant to the jobs you're looking at.

You list a lot of the same jobs (a couple bartender gigs, a couple server gigs, etc.), which is redundant and unnecessary.
 

Ecrofirt

Member
Shit man, I'm not even a potential employer and I got bored with all the stuff you've got listed on there.

Big whoopiefuck, you worked at a camp. Oh look, you've been a server at three different restaurants, basically doing the same shit at all of them. Who gives a fuck?
 

daviyoung

Banned
Too long. Most of the jobs you've listed will become irrelevant if you're looking for a career outside of hospitality.

Trim the bastard and focus it. Every CV you send out should be tailored for a specific job.
 

Tenks

Member
mcrae said:
thats the thing, almost all my jobs are relevant... its just that i've had so many for only working for the past 6 years. and if i dont include something like the lawn business, then there is a couple month gap in employment


Not really.

Remove:

*Summation

*All jobs except:
-Bartender May2011-presnt
-Bartender Aug2010-April2011
-Bartender & Server Sep2008 - March 2009

Almost remove like half the bullet points of each

*Volunteer Experience

ToDo:

Get a resume template. I don't know why half of your first page is just whitespace and contact information. In general for a template it would be like:

Header (this will have your contact info, email, address)
Goal (basically to achieve a bartender position)
Experience
Education
References (always available upon request -- don't give them if they don't want them)


Though seriously you're not applying to be CEO of a Fortune 500 company here. You're really overthinking this.
 
scrap the camping and lawn mowing work experience.

Scrap the engineer education, they dont' necessarily want you pursuing higher education.

They don't care about what you minored in at McMaster.

See if you can shorten that managers reception/Keg workexperience, though its good you prepared a 'how to' paper. I might phrase it as 'Established standard work practice and proceedures for bussing adopted by the team'

In qualifications include something about interpersonal skills.

In qualifications say somthing about being service oriented. You have a lot of experience in the service industry.

In your top work experience say something about developing good repoire with customers and increased patronage through relationships with customers.

Use more powerfull words in the qualifications. 'ability' 'work' 'provide' are all weak words. Consider 'Strong ability' 'Perform' 'skilled' 'thrive'.
 

EricM85

Member
You need to get it down to one page (not double sided).

Also, I know you're only going for bartending jobs now, but once you start applying for your first "real" job you will want to add your GPA. I remember assisting recruiters for my company while still in college, and that was the first thing we looked at when we went through resume stacks. If you had no GPA listed or a GPA <3.5 you went into the trash. I guarantee we wouldn't have flipped through 3 pages to find yours.
 

Instro

Member
Tenks said:
Not really.

Remove:

*Summation

*All jobs except:
-Bartender May2011-presnt
-Bartender Aug2010-April2011
-Bartender & Server Sep2008 - March 2009
It may not matter for the job he is applying for, but large gaps in employment do not look good on a resume. He might want to list the most recent instead of picking and choosing.
 

Entropia

No One Remembers
1) You can have more than one page.
2) Just have your name, City, Phone # and Email Address
3) Only list jobs that are relevant or are most recent. Yes, it's nice for them to see that you have a work history, but they won't care about a job you held in 2004-2006.
4) If you're adamant to do that, get rid of the list of things you did at some of the jobs that aren't relevant to what you're aiming for.
5) Under Volunteer Experience add activities - for example in my resume I put that I play in a sport and social club. Given that one of the first things I was asked by the HR Rep was what specific sports I played it proved its worth.
6) Don't need to list your supervisor's on your resume at your previous jobs. If they want to contact your former employers or want references they will ask when the time is right.
 

Tenks

Member
Instro said:
It may not matter for the job he is applying for, but large gaps in employment do not look good on a resume. He might want to list the most recent instead of picking and choosing.


True. That route would be fine as well. You basically don't need to include the lemonade stand you ran at 8 because the employer doesn't give a flying fuck.
 
Also, and this may be a gamble, but try doing it more visually striking. Break the rules and create a brand.

You can google a lot of more crazy ass resumes. Something eye-catching already has half of the work done.

(For reference, this is mine. So far it's been useful)


PS: This kind of shit may not fly in every line of work, but I do believe that if you are able to back it up, it's much better to stand out and find refuge in audacity.
 

thespot84

Member
definitely pare all that down

Wider Margins
Smaller text
tailer the description of each job to what will make you valuable for the one you're applying too
get rid of all the spaces between paragraphs
one page is ideal

 

Hari Seldon

Member
thespot84 said:
definitely pare all that down

Wider Margins
Smaller text
tailer the description of each job to what will make you valuable for the one you're applying too
get rid of all the spaces between paragraphs
one page is ideal


Dude that is a tight resume I think I'm going to steal your layout haha.
 
thespot84 said:
definitely pare all that down

Wider Margins
Smaller text
tailer the description of each job to what will make you valuable for the one you're applying too
get rid of all the spaces between paragraphs
one page is ideal


Pretty pretty clean. Like it.
 

Aesius

Member
You have way too much stuff listed on there. Only list relevant jobs and skills. And definitely keep it to just one page.

Oh, and REFORMAT YOUR RESUME FOR EACH INDIVIDUAL POSITION YOU APPLY FOR!

Copy and paste the job description/required skills and put them in a Word doc right next to your resume. Then, do your best to match each requirement with something you did in a previous job. Many times it will be a stretch, but you know what? Gaming the system is sometimes the only way your resume won't end up immediately in the trash.
 
J. M. Romeo said:
Also, and this may be a gamble, but try doing it more visually striking. Break the rules and create a brand.

You can google a lot of more crazy ass resumes. Something eye-catching already has half of the work done.

(For reference, this is mine. So far it's been useful)


PS: This kind of shit may not fly in every line of work, but I do believe that if you are able to back it up, it's much better to stand out and find refuge in audacity.


Thats a kick ass resume haha
 

Fersis

It is illegal to Tag Fish in Tag Fishing Sanctuaries by law 38.36 of the GAF Wildlife Act
J. M. Romeo said:
Also, and this may be a gamble, but try doing it more visually striking. Break the rules and create a brand.

You can google a lot of more crazy ass resumes. Something eye-catching already has half of the work done.

(For reference, this is mine. So far it's been useful)


PS: This kind of shit may not fly in every line of work, but I do believe that if you are able to back it up, it's much better to stand out and find refuge in audacity.
You forgot to add pictures of your gatos! :3

I use a website and linkedin as resume... in my line of work thats pretty common.
 
Aesius said:
You have way too much stuff listed on there. Only list relevant jobs and skills. And definitely keep it to just one page.

Oh, and REFORMAT YOUR RESUME FOR EACH INDIVIDUAL POSITION YOU APPLY FOR!

Copy and paste the job description/required skills and put them in a Word doc right next to your resume. Then, do your best to match each requirement with something you did in a previous job. Many times it will be a stretch, but you know what? Gaming the system is sometimes the only way your resume won't end up immediately in the trash.

Yep. This. Write customized resumes for each job. You're hoping for an employer to make a huge investment in you, $50,000, $60,000, $70,000 and more, taking 30 minutes to write resumes for each possible employer is the least of the commitment that you should make to applying.
 
thespot84 said:
definitely pare all that down

Wider Margins
Smaller text
tailer the description of each job to what will make you valuable for the one you're applying too
get rid of all the spaces between paragraphs
one page is ideal


Excellent resume. Reposting because it is badass. One of the best I've seen and I get a shit load of stupid resumes.
 
The Albatross said:
Yep. This. Write customized resumes for each job. You're hoping for an employer to make a huge investment in you, $50,000, $60,000, $70,000 and more, taking 30 minutes to write resumes for each possible employer is the least of the commitment that you should make to applying.

Within the field of bartending, you do not need to reformat your resume. Your resume should the tailored for the job you're applying for, yes, but if you're applying to all bar tender jobs then what is the point? They're going to be looking for the same skills, the same buzz words.
 

Fersis

It is illegal to Tag Fish in Tag Fishing Sanctuaries by law 38.36 of the GAF Wildlife Act
J. M. Romeo said:
Have you checked the QR codes? :p
QR Codes are those black and white thingies right?
Kickass resume btw. (Mine is all grey -__-!)

thespot84 resume is neato too.
 
Fersis said:
QR Codes are those black and white thingies right?
Kickass resume btw. (Mine is all grey -__-!)

Yeah, those square things. You can scan them with many apps for smartphones, kinda like barcodes. They were all the rage in Japan, or so I hear. But they are not that useful beyond the cutesy novelty value, I believe.

I like grey. Better than black, actually.
 

CoilShot

Member
Instro said:
It may not matter for the job he is applying for, but large gaps in employment do not look good on a resume. He might want to list the most recent instead of picking and choosing.

This.

Large gaps in employment are bad and I would highly recommend only one page on your resume.
 

ianp622

Member
Don't have more than one page.

You can do a lot of things to get it down.
1. Don't use those huge-ass margins.
2. Get rid of any jobs that aren't bartending or serving.
3. Get rid of fluffy self-promotion unless it's backed by fact.
4. Reduce your line spacing.

Here's mine for reference (not saying it's the best, but an example of what you can fit on one page):
jYeri.jpg
 
ianp622 said:
Don't have more than one page.

You can do a lot of things to get it down.
1. Don't use those huge-ass margins.
2. Get rid of any jobs that aren't bartending or serving.
3. Get rid of fluffy self-promotion unless it's backed by fact.
4. Reduce your line spacing.

Here's mine for reference (not saying it's the best, but an example of what you can fit on one page):

Just a small piece of feedback, and it may be difficult to implement with the amount of info in there, but that text could use a bit of space to breathe. Not much, mind you, but opening it up a little, both up and down and on the sides. That can get tricky.

And I feel a bit strange for not caring about my phone number being in the open :S
 

ianp622

Member
J. M. Romeo said:
Just a small piece of feedback, and it may be difficult to implement with the amount of info in there, but that text could use a bit of space to breathe. Not much, mind you, but opening it up a little, both up and down and on the sides. That can get tricky.

And I feel a bit strange for not caring about my phone number being in the open :S
Thanks. I should be able to open it up, because a lot of things aren't relevant anymore.
 

Tenks

Member
ianp622 said:
Don't have more than one page.

You can do a lot of things to get it down.
1. Don't use those huge-ass margins.
2. Get rid of any jobs that aren't bartending or serving.
3. Get rid of fluffy self-promotion unless it's backed by fact.
4. Reduce your line spacing.

Here's mine for reference (not saying it's the best, but an example of what you can fit on one page):
jYeri.jpg


This may just be me but this seems nearly unreadable. Like my eyes just glaze over.
 

ianp622

Member
Tenks said:
This may just be me but this seems nearly unreadable. Like my eyes just glaze over.
Alright, fine.

Look at mine for the other extreme of the spectrum. I've had people in the industry say it looks good, so I've kept it. I agree that it could use more space.
 
Tenks said:
This may just be me but this seems nearly unreadable. Like my eyes just glaze over.

Its not easy on the eyes. I'll be honest, its formatted poorly.

Also, I'm hearing a lot of people insist that resumes should be 1 page. Thats true for a bar tender. But there is nothing wrong with having 2 pages if your job and accomplishments are more extensive.
 
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