7.

1 Resume Writing Lesson Plan

Prior to Class
Student Computer Setup:
1. Copy the Student Folder onto each desktop
2. Prepare printed copies of the following for each student:
• 7.0.1 Resume Writing Student Manual (from the Student Folder)
• 7.3 Resume Writing Session Survey
• 7.4 Resume Writing Certificate of Completion (if pre-printing certificates)

Instructor Computer Setup:

Ensure that the LCD projector and computer are working properly.
Complete the Student Computer Setup on the presentation computer.
Open the following documents on your computer and then minimize them so only your desktop
appears.
• 7.2 Resume Writing Presentation
• From the Student Folder:
o 7.0.2 Chronological Resume Example
o 7.0.3 Functional Resume Example
o 7.0.4 Resume Editing Activity
o 7.0.5 Resume Information Activity
o 7.0.6 Chronological Resume Template
o 7.0.7 Functional Resume Template
o 7.0.8 Resume Writing Online Resources

In Class
Tell students that Resume Writing is a two to four hour course designed to instruct students
how to craft a resume for a 21st century job search. Students will learn how to use computer
resources to write, format, and distribute a resume that accurately reflects their skills,
experience, and educational background.
Complete introductions. Ask if any have prior experience. Explain that we will only be going
over basics because this is an introductory course. Ask about their expectations… ie: “What do
you hope to learn today?”

Maximize the 7.2 Resume Writing Presentation.

Go through the 7.2 Resume Writing Presentation using the information below to guide you.
Ask students to take notes in student handbook (dotted lines are provided in the handbook for
this purpose) when necessary. ENCOURAGE students to stop you if they have any questions.

Learning Goal

You will create, format, and distribute a complete resume that accurately represents your skills,
experience, and educational background

INTRODUCTION

BEGIN by discussing what a resume is and why it is important:

Q. What is a resume?
A. A resume is a document that summarizes your skills, experience, and educational
background. Employers look at resumes to find qualified employees.

Q. Who needs a resume?

A. EVERYBODY who wants a job needs a resume!

Q. Why is a resume important?

A. A resume is like an “advertisement” that sells you to an employer. It is almost always
the first step to getting an interview.

Q. How have resumes changed with technology?

A. Today, resumes must be created with word processing software. Many employers now
only accept resumes submitted through e-mail or the web.

Q. What makes a “good” resume?

A. A good resume should tell YOUR story. It should demonstrate professional growth and
development. A good resume needs to be thorough yet concise. Why concise? See the next
question:
 Q. How long does an employer typically look at a resume?
A. Less than 1 minute! You must make a good first impression. Even the tiniest mistake can
mean the difference between an interview or not!

ANATOMY OF A RESUME

A resume usually has these 5 Sections:

1. Contact Information
2. Professional Summary/Objective/Career Profile
3. Employment History
4. Educational Background
5. Other Skills, Non-Work Experience, and References

SECTION 1: Contact Information

[FIRST NAME] [LAST-NAME]

[Permanent Address]
[Phone number]
[E-mail]

DISCUSS formatting and content of contact information.

Things to consider:

• Name should be written in a large bold font

• Use a permanent address that can reliably receive mail.
• Use an appropriate personal e-mail address. Give examples of appropriate and
inappropriate addresses.

INAPPROPRIATE APPROPRIATE
[email protected] [email protected]
[email protected] [email protected]
[email protected] [email protected]
SECTION 2: Professional Summary

Go over two approaches for writing a professional summary.

PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY
Experienced, resourceful and effective retail manager with proven proficiency in
all aspects of boutique management. Cutting-edge merchandiser with expert
ability in combining innovative display techniques with visual standards and sales
strategies in order to achieve optimal retail success. Top-selling sales associate
who regularly exceeds client expectations by building on-going quality
relationships.

A paragraph format professional summary has these features:

• about 3~4 sentences
• written in the third-person without “I” or “[your name]”
• uses adjectives, verbs, and other focused keywords that “match” qualifications for
the sought position. Ask the class to identify keywords in example.
• describes the scope of roles, responsibilities, achievements, career highlights

CAREER PROFILE
 Caring, compassionate Registered Nurse with seven years experience in
private practice, hospital, and hospice environments
 Experienced Charge Nurse for cardiac and oncology floors for major teaching
hospital
 Strong analytical skills, capable of assessing conditions and implementing
appropriate intervention
 Effective trainer and educator for both peers and patients
• information is presented in organized “bite-sized” chunks. Each bullet point
describes a different skill or experience—easy for quick a quick scan
• still uses focused keywords to describe roles, experience and skills
• section is titled “Career Profile” instead of “Professional Summary.” There are many
ways to title this section

Objective
To contribute acquired bookkeeping and office management skills to an
organization offering opportunities for advancement.
DISCUSS the pros and cons of each approach format.
SECTION 3: Work History

WORK HISTORY:
Previous/Current Employer Names
Dates worked (optional)
Locations
Job Titles
Responsibilities, skills gained, achievements

Two different work history formats:

Chronological Format
• List work in reverse chronological order (most recent job first)
• Include measureable accomplishments
• Good for people with steady work history

Functional Format
• Showcases skills and accomplishments first and lists your employers second
• Omits the exact dates worked (divide employers into present and past)
• This format works well for people who have gaps in the work history, older applicants
who don’t want to reveal their age, people who have held lots of jobs in a short amount
of time, and younger workers who do not have extensive experience.

SECTION 4: Educational Background

EDUCATION:
School Name, Location
Degree Earned, Major, Graduation Date
GPA (if higher than 3.0)
Honors, Accomplishments, Relevant Coursework (optional)

DISCUSS the following:

• How long since graduation?

• Which degrees should you mention?
• Where should you place this section in your resume?
SECTION 5: Other Skills, Non-Work Experience, References

Other Skills
• Languages (level of fluency)
• Computer and other technical skills (typing speed, Microsoft Office, Operating
Systems, industry-specific software, computer languages)
• Professional associations
Non-Work Experience
• Volunteer service
• Way to demonstrate skills not listed in work experience

After slide 16, minimize the 7.2 Resume Writing Presentation.

Display the 7.0.2 Chronological Resume Example. Then display the 7.0.3 Functional Resume
Example on the LCD Projector. Rearrange the windows so that you can view both examples at
the same time.

Ask students to locate the printed copies of 7.0.2 Chronological Resume Example and 7.0.3
Functional Resume Example in their Student Manuals. Ask students to compare and contrast
the examples.

Close the resume examples and maximize the 7.2 Resume Writing Presentation. As you
continue through the presentation, point out how the various resume writing strategies below
are used in the example resumes that students should be looking at in their Student Manual.

Resume Writing Strategies

CONTENT or “How to Write a Resume”

• Be concise • Detail oriented

• Keywords (specific skills/soft skills • Accuracy
hand outs) • Audience
Research • Word choice/voice
DESIGN or “Make It Look Pretty”—demonstrate concepts in Microsoft Word

• Bullet points • Alignment

• White Space • Font size and style
 • Spelling • Headers
AVOID or “Don’t Do This!”

• Lies • Overly personal information

• Multiple fonts • Salary
• Pictures • Misspellings and other typos
Minimize the 7.2 Resume Writing Presentation after discussing Slide 21 and tell student it is
time to do hands-on practice.

Display the 7.0.4 Resume Editing Activity and have students locate and open the corresponding
document on their computers. It is recommended for you to complete the activity on the
screen while students follow you. As you go through the editing process, review the following
word processing skills with students:

Key functions used in Microsoft Word for resume formatting:

• Formatting text (fonts, style, alignment, spacing)
• Working with bullets
• Spell check and thesaurus
• Create a resume from a template

Ask students to locate the printed 7.0.5 Resume Information Activity in their Student Manuals
while you pull the document up on the LDC Projector. It is recommended that student complete
this activity using the printed copy in the Student Manual. It is possible that students do not
have all of the information they need on hand to complete the activity. In that case, you may
want to plan a second session. Alternately, you can ask students to invent information that
they do not remember.

Maximize the 7.2 Resume Writing Presentation to Slide 22 (21st Century Resumes). Discuss
with students how they can save their completed resume in different formats that may be
required for attaching or posting online, including SAVE AS a PDF file.

Display the 7.0.6 Chronological Resume Template and 7.0.7Functional Resume Template to
students on the LCD screen. Ask students to choose the template that would work better for
their particular set of skills and experience.

Tell students to open either 7.0.6 Chronological Resume Template or 7.0.7 Functional Resume
on their computers. Students will fill in information on the template using the information
they completed on the Resume Information Activity. It is best practice to have students
immediately use Save As to create a unique name and file for their resume before they begin
working on it.

Help students save, email, and/print their completed resumes.

Additional Online Resources and Information in the Student Manual

Show the student the 7.0.8 Resume Writing Online Resources document on the screen and
discuss the resources. Also point out the corresponding document file in their student folder.
Then, depending on the student skill levels and time constraints, you can choose to cover
additional material in the student manual.

ASSIST STUDENTS WITH COPYING THEIR STUDENT FOLDER FILES TO THEIR OWN USB DRIVE
OR THEIR OWN ONLINE DRIVE.

7.3 Resume Writing Session Survey

Ask students to complete the printed hand out 7.3 Computer Basics Session Survey and collect
these before students leave.

7.4 Certificate of Completion. Depending on your printing situation, do one of the following:

• Call students up one at a time to print their Certificate of Completion from your
computer. You can ask them to type in their own names. Sign their certificates.

• If no printer is available in the lab, have pre-printed certificates available and write or
pre-type student names. Sign certificates before the class so they are ready to
distribute.

Instructor Notes: ................................................................................................................................

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