Tips for good resumes

You need two types of information to prepare your resume: 1. Self information. Completing a background and experience list will give you the self information required to prepare your resume. If youve worked before, list your jobs. Next, write down the work duties for the jobs youve listed. Now, think about the skills or talents it took to do each work duty. Write them down. List your hobbies, clubs you belong to, sports youve been involved in, church and school activities, and things that interest you. Look at the first item on your list. Think about the skills or talents it takes to do that item. Write them all down. Look at the abilities (talents) identified on your background and experience list. You have talents that you use everyday. Now, find out what JOBS can use your talents. Dont limit yourself. The important thing is not the job title, but the skills and abilities of the job.

2. Job information. Gather specific information on the job youre applying for. Heres what you need: Job duties (to match your skills to the skills needed to do the job). Get your job duties from the job announcement. If the job announcement or ad is vague, call the employer and ask for a description of job duties. Education and experience required (again, so you can match your education and experience with that required for the job). Hours and shifts usually worked. Pay range (make their top offer the minimum acceptable!).

A standard resume should include...

Contact information Tell the employer your full name, street address, apartment number, city, state, zip code and telephone number (including area code). Employment goal or job objective Tell the employer the specific job you are interested in. Good examples are, "An entrylevel clerical position", "A customer-service position in the retail industry", or, "A manufacturing position utilizing my five years of quality control experience." Avoid vague statements like, "A position with growth potential", or, "A challenging position with a stable company." Remember, keep it simple and to the point. Summary of Qualifications Tell the employer your major selling points in 3-5 lines. Be brief, summarize, give facts not opinions. (This section is optional) Work Experience or Work History

Tell the employer about your work experience in one of two ways either by job titles and dates, or by functions and skills. Later in the publication you will see outlines and sample resumes which will help you decide which way would work best for you. Education Tell the employer about any job-related training or education. List your most recent training first. If you are a recent graduate with little work experience, you might want to list the following information before your work history: the name of the school, the degree or certificate received, dates, course titles related to your job goal, scholarships, honors, grades, and extracurricular activities. If you have been working for over five years, you dont need to give as much information about your education. Name the school, city, state, degree or certificate, or course work and dates (dates are optional). Include your high school unless you have a higher degree. Never include your grade school or middle school. Military Experience Tell the employer the branch of service, your highest rank, type of discharge, and date of separation. List any special assignments, duties, clearances, collateral duties, and decorations that relate to the job that you are seeking. Technical military training can be listed under the Education heading on your resume. (A Military heading is only listed if you have military experience.) Special Skills and Abilities Tell the employer any other information you feel might help you. (This section is optional.)You might want to include information about knowledge of foreign languages, volunteer or leisure activities, memberships in professional organizations, special skills such as typing, computers, machines you can operate, licenses or certificates you possess. Do not provide personal information such as your age, sex, marital status, or handicaps. References Tell the employer simply that, "References are available upon request," or, "References gladly furnished upon request." Do not list references on your resume. Instead, have them typed on a separate sheet of paper and have them available if the employer asks for them. You should have three to five references listed. They should be people who know you and your work not your relatives. Be sure to get each persons permission to use him or her as a reference.

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What is the most important thing you've learned in high school? What do you expect to be doing ten years from now? How do you define "success?" What have you liked or disliked about your school? What would you change? How would you describe yourself to someone who did not know you? What are your strengths? Weaknesses? What has been your proudest achievement so far? If you could talk with any one living (or deceased) person, whom would it be and why? What events have been crucial in your life? What mark do you feel you've left on your school? What do you want to get out of your college experience? What about you is unique? What could you contribute to our college community?
Remember to knock before you enter. Introduce yourself with a firm handshake. Tell me about yourself : This is a question common to every interview. The interviewer would expect you to introduce yourself by name, family information, school, area of interest and your reason for being here. Be confident in answering this question; interviewers expect a fluent answer. What are your strengths and weaknesses? : Similar to the first one. List out your strengths; be watchful while listing weaknesses. Working too hard can be listed as a weakness. Your inspiration : It is important to have an inspiration in a scholarship interview. Interviewers expect you to be inspired by former presidents, sportspersons or war heroes. This aspect also helps in preparing for the interview speech. Who is your favorite president? Why? : This is a question to test your knowledge about presidents and to verify information based on your inspirations. A free to talk question. Your biggest success : Interviewers get into the actual interview with this question. This is a good time to talk about a school function you led and executed successfully. Showcase any performance that you feel may impress the interviewer. Restrict it toeducation and leadership related performances only. Do you learn from mistakes? Give an example. : This is actually a tricky question and certainly not a place to display your mistakes. Give an answer similar to the weakness question. Quote a situation where you have proved that you have learnt from the mistake. Your favorite book : If you want to be a leader, you need to have a favorite book. Lots of books are available in stores that contain inspirational values. Select one and read it completely. Explain the gist of the book when asked. You are in a bookshop containing personality development books, investment related ad autobiographies. Pick two. : A tricky question. Pick two books closely related to the major you have applied for in the university. Tell us about your goals : Speak only about goals that are related to your study. To become a doctor and serve the people or to eradicate a particular disease would add shine to your speech. How do you see yourself after 10 years? : Similar goals. You should see yourself in a high position serving people. Receiving an award would be a great achievement. What has made your principal give a reference letter favoring you? : Tell about your qualities and performances that impressed him. Why do you think you are the right candidate to receive scholarship? : Explain your ambitions and goals with faith and confidence

DAYS BEFORE THE INTERVIEW

When you applied for a scholarship, you would already have first impressions of the various sponsor companies. It is worthwhile to find out more about the companies as one of them could well be your future employer.

RESEARCH ON SPONSORS
Information sources can come from your family members, the Internet, newspapers and magazines, corporate brochures, etc. Bear in mind the respective terms and conditions and requirements (bond, internship, etc) in the advertisement put up by the scholarship sponsors; you might want to raise a few questions regarding these at the interview. Whatever questions you plan to ask, ensure that the answers are not already stated in the respective scholarship advertisement.

PREPARE A COMPREHENSIVE RESUME AND COVER LETTER

A well-organised and neatly typed resume is pleasant to the eye and makes reading easy. Divide your resume into sections, with a header for each one. Include your academic results, awards and achievements, CCAs (eg. sports, uniform group, community service) and vacation work experience. Your scanned colour passport photo should be embedded in the resume. Make copies of the resume; you may have to distribute them to the interview panel members for review. Get someone to proofread your resume and correct/update where applicable. Also prepare a simple cover letter addressed to the scholarship sponsor to be attached to the resume in front. This cover letter is a brief introduction of yourself and should include briefly the reasons for your scholarship application.

CREATE PERSONAL PORTFOLIO

At the interview, you will need to show proof of your qualifications and achievements. Get a sturdy catalogue folder with several transparent sleeves for the presentation. Slot the resume you have prepared into the first sleeve, followed by your original results, educational certificates and testimonials in chronological order Primary to Secondary to JC/Polytechnic. Include documents that you think will boost your chances for the scholarship. These could be your music diploma, vacation job references or course attendance certificates. Familiarise yourself with the contents and the pages in your portfolio.

CHECK OUT THE LOCATION

Your letter from the sponsor company would have indicated the time and place of the interview. Use your initiative: you can call the office, look up the internet or refer to the street directory. You can hazard a guess as to the time taken for the journey by public transport, but a safer bet would be to make a dry run. If you do, note the bus stop or train station you get off, and also how long the whole journey takes! Spend some time to reflect on your strengths and weaknesses. Do you have the X-factor to put you ahead? A unique skill or hidden talent perhaps? Brace yourself for questions on your values, hopes and aspirations, hobbies, among others. Keep in mind the specific questions you plan to ask the interview panel on the scholarship. It is useful to write down your answers to some commonly asked questions and practise saying them as you would at the interview. You may even record it and listen to how you sound when you play it back.

THE DAY OF THE INTERVIEW

Naturally, you cant help feeling excited that the day has finally arrived, but its important to stay focused, keep your feet on the ground and collect your thoughts. Now that you know how to get there, plan your journey such that you will arrive a little earlier than the appointed time. If for any reason you cannot help but be late, take a taxi but notify the person who arranged your interview when you expect to reach the office. You will need to look and (feel good) but not showy, so avoid too many ornaments and accessories, no matter how much you love wearing them. You should have already prepared a set of smart-looking (skip the bright colours!) clothes for the occasion and have them neatly pressed. Give your shoes a new shine if you must. Also, make sure your portfolio is in order. Before you change, a good suggestion is to take a shower and freshen up your breath.

FACING THE INTERVIEWERS

When greeting the interview panel members, remember to look them in the eye and smile. Shake hands firmly but not forcefully. Impressions are formed within the first few seconds of meeting someone. You should be ready to present your portfolio to the panel. Use your discretion to comment as the interviewers gloss over the documents. Speak clearly and confidently. Be friendly but not over-familiar. When answering questions, maintain eye contact with the member who posed the question but turn occasionally to the rest of the panel members to show that they have your attention as well. The interview is also an opportunity for you to find out if the company suits you. Ask questions to clear any doubts regarding the scholarship. Ask questions which are innovative, intelligent and show that you have given the scholarship some thought. Dont ask questions whose answers are painfully obvious or can already be found in the scholarship advertisement. At the end of the interview, thank the panel for the opportunity to meet them and extend your hand graciously for another handshake to each of the members, smiling while at it. Although not the norm, a brief and gentle bow before leaving the room would certainly impress the interviewers!