Top News About Writing Resumes
Career Advice & Information

This is a twice weekly news report about all aspects of writing resumes and career related topics!

Stay tuned for great info about writing resumes that get you that vital interview ! I will be bringing you ...

• Informative articles on writing effective resumes

• Tips on how to handle tough interview questions

• Info on how to negotiate a top salary and other benefits

• Where to locate the most cost effective career services

• Power packed mini tutorials on crucial career skills

Read more ...

January 12, 2005 00:37 - 10 Top Resume Writing Tips

How's this for a great starter article by well known freelance writer and editor Kathi MacNaughton ...

Read more ...

January 14, 2005 00:26 - How to Choose the Right Resume Format

Following on from yesterdays 10 Top Resume Writing Tips .... have a look at this great advice on how to choose the right resume format for you ... Read more ...

January 15, 2005 09:24 - Free Resume Examples & Sample Cover Letters

The last few articles have provided powerful tips on writing resumes to get you that vital interview. Today we are going to show a selection of real life examples relating to specific careers in categories such as Executives, Professionals, Entry Level and Students. Over 45 specific jobs are shown, ranging from college admissions, to finance, music, sales, law and medicine.

The resume and cover letter samples show the before and after documents with a critique explaining what was wrong and why the changes were made. You will be amazed at the dramatic improvements that can be made ... Read more ...

January 16, 2005 14:13 - Cover Letters ... Resumes Poor Relation ?

Recent articles have focussed on tips for writing resumes and tips regarding resume formats. An often neglected but very important aspect of getting your interview is the cover letter. Todays article gives you 7 proven tips to make your cover letter an effective marketing tool in support of your resume.

7 Tips for Writing Winning Resume Cover Letters

 by: Donna Monday

Writing a good resume cover letter is something you should seriously consider when preparing to send off your resume to potential employers.

Here are seven important cover letter writing tips:

1. Address the individual by name. If you don’t know their name then use: “Dear Sir or Madam” or “Dear Human Resources Director”.
   

2. Attract attention with a strong opening paragraph. Create impact. Give them a reason to keep reading about you.
   

3. Refer to your enclosed resume. Be specific in describing your skills, experience and accomplishments. Use actual examples of things you’ve done.
   

4. Let the employer know what you can do for them. What can you bring to their organization?
   

5. Keep the letter’s tone of voice positive and professional. Be persuasive but don’t come off like a cheap used car salesman. Remember to ask for the interview!
   

6. Double check your spelling, grammar, and sentence structure. Have someone proofread the letter.
   

7. Sign your letter and keep a copy for your files.
   

Writing a strong cover letter will help you (and your resume) stand out from the crowd. Hopefully, your cover letter will give employers a reason to pick up the phone and invite you to that all-important job interview.

About The Author Copyright 2004 Donna Monday writes employment related articles for http://www.get-a-job-interview-quick-tips.com. Article From ArticleCity.com

For some excellent examples on writing cover letters have a look at this ...

Read more ...

January 17, 2005 13:13 - Why Career Advice is So Important

Choosing a career presents a nerve-racking decision, as it can have a life-long impact on you. Do not fret, as you can gain a clearer outlook into your future by thorough career planning.

Having a clear vision of the future can guide you by helping you set career goals and helping you on your way towards attaining them. Whether you are starting out on a new career or looking to change your current career, you will benefit enormously from taking sound advice.

Don't Spend Most of Your Life Doing ...

Chances are that you will be spending a great deal of time at your job, about 40 hours a week. Career advice and career profiling can guide you to a job that is enjoyable for you and matches your interests.

There are many reasons people change their careers and career advice can help them along the way. Some frequently cited reasons are:

• Stuck in a dead end job.
  
• Lost interest in current line of work.
  
• Gained a new interest in a different career option.
  

A Job For Life ... Not Anymore

In today’s world, there is increased job rotation ... also with the down turns in the economy, many people can be laid-off.

Good career advice for unemployed persons would be to consider a career change. Some of the fastest growing occupations are Medical Assistant, Network Systems Analyst, Physician Assistant, etc. Occupations that are struggling to gain workers can be a suitable option for currently unemployed individuals.

People often back off from changing careers if they are unsure of the effort it might take to start a new career and learn a new trade. If you are one of these people, career advice from professionals can help you make a knowledgeable decision.

For your convenience I have listed the links to some of the sites top pages:

Career Advice
Resume Tips
Resume Formats
Resume Articles
Resume Writing
Sample Resumes

Regards
Roger Clark
Rogers Resume Help Center

January 18, 2005 14:45 -

Resume Writing Jargon

I sometimes forget that people seeking advice on career matters and resume writing in particular, may not be familiar with the terminology used within the industry.

After all... why should you ?

It's not very often that the average person has a career change !

I thought it would be helpful to run a mini series to give a brief explanation of some of the more frequently used terms. You could of course visit our web site Rogers Resume Help Center and get a load more details ...

A good blace to start would be Resumes

A resume is a brief summary of your skills and experience that presents and sells your most positive credentials.
In other words ... YOUR personal marketing brochure.

The ultimate objective of your resume is to win an interview

I will continue with this theme over the next few articles until I have covered all the major terms and concepts.

Regards
Roger G Clark (BSc)

P.S Take a look at our new section on "Resume Objectives"

January 18, 2005 23:23 - Resume Writing Jargon - Day 2

This mini series aims to explain the basic terminology used in the career / recruitment industry. Please refer to yesterdays article for more details ...

You will recall that we started off with defining what a resume is and what the ultimate aim of your resume. Remember ? ... To get you an interview !

Today we are going to look at the first component that goes into writing effective resumes ...

Reasume Objectives:

Including an objectives section gives the recruiter a brief but concise introduction to your specific career objectives and the kind of job you desire.

The problem with declaring your specific job objectives is that it dramatically reduces your options... if your objectives do not match those of the employer, your resume will be immediately discarded!

So, think twice befor you provide details of your resume objectives.

Until the next article ...

Regards

Roger G Clark (BSc)

Top-Career-Resumes


Read more ...

January 20, 2005 13:51 - Resume Writing Jargon - Day 3

If this is the first time you have read my News Blog, I am explaining the basic terminology used in the recruitment industry. To see the first two articles, just scroll through my previous blogs.

Today I am discussing Outlines ...

A resume outline is nothing more than the content headings for the information required in the body of your resume.
e.g. Job History, Skills, Education, Experience etc

The contents within an Outline will vary according the your own specific circumstances and the job you are applying for... you will be able to read a lot more about this subject in the near future when I will be presenting an in depth article.

Until the next article ...

Regards

Roger G Clark (BSc)
Rogers Resume Help Center

p.s. check out this article I had published with EzineArticles

January 23, 2005 14:01 - Resume Writing Jargon - Day 4

Todays topic is Resume Formats.

There are 3 basic types of resume formats:

• Chronological - Career details are presented in date order
  
• Functional - Resume is structured around specific skills and experience that has relevance to the job in question
  
• Combination - As the name applies this format is a combination of the above two options.
  

Of great importance is knowing under what circumstances which of the formats is most appropriate. To learn more about this ... Read more ...

January 24, 2005 23:19 - Resume Writing Jargon - Day 5

I was asked yesterday, how long will these mini articles will go on for?

Well, the whole point of these articles is to introduce and explain these very basic concepts to enable the job seeker to get most benefit from the full version shown on our website. To accomplish this, will require 10 days, so we are already half way there.

Todays topic is Resume Layouts:

The resume layout is defined by the use of of a number of different design elements that together determine the overall layout of the resume. Some of the design elements are, font sizes and types, no of cols, alignment of text and use of whitespace.

Special consideration has to be given if the resume needs to be scannable for database purposes.

For more details on resume layouts

Read more ...

January 25, 2005 16:48 - Resume Writing Jargon - Day 6

A brief recap - In the first 5 mini articles we have covered the following topics:

Resumes
Resume Objectives
Resume Outlines
Resume Formats
Resume Layouts

Today I will be discussing Resume Templates:

• A resume template is simply a completed resume for a specific job type. e.g Accountant
  
• Templates are also specific to certain word processors. e.g Microsoft Word XP format
  
• The job seeker would download the template and update the template with their own details to create their resume

This is not a recommended practice as your resume is likely to look canned - which it will be!

January 27, 2005 08:53 - Resume Writing Jargon - Day 7

A very misunderstood topic is the importance and role of resume cover letters

The cover letter is sent to your prospective employer together with your resume. In a sense, a well written cover letter works like an agent on your behalf. It tosses a sales pitch for you to the employer, explaining why you should be at the top of the list for interview calls.

Also, you should have a different cover letter for each job application. The reason for this is ...
Read more ...

January 28, 2005 11:39 - Resume Writing Jargon - Day 8

A lot of job seekers scour the net looking for free templates and samples. While this can be beneficial, there are drawbacks you need to look out for.

So today, I will be discussing Cover Letter Samples:

If you use samples as a means to stimulate your creative thinking, thats fine. Always keep in mind that the purpose of your cover letter is portray yourself in the best possible way by highlighting the benefits you can deliver to your prospective employer for the specific job you are applying for.

The last thing you want to do is to copy / paste a stereotyped sample that is clearly canned. For further details on the do's and don'ts, read the full article.

Regards
Roger Clark
Rogers Resume Help Center

Read more ...

January 30, 2005 12:06 - Resume Writing Jargon - Day 9

Todays penultimate mini article deals with Scannable Resumes:

As a result of the ever increasing number of resumes submitted to employers / recruiters, it is becoming a common practice to store resumes in a database. It works like this...

For a specific job vacancy, the employer will enter a number of keywords which identify the specific criteria required for the job and use these to search the database. Those resumes that contain the most keywords will be extracted for further consideration.

It is therefore very important that your resume is submitted in a format that is suitable for scanning ...

Regards
Roger Clark
Rogers Resume Help Center

Read more ...