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I'm planning to do some free online courses. Do you think these would make a good addition to my resume? I'm not sure 'what' subjects, but it has to be better than 'nothing' while job searching/relocating.
I think if you're learning something that will definitely be useful in your future, it's can't not be worth in some way shape or form.
If you absolutely want to use the skills you'll learn on your resume: look at the jobs you want and the required skills in the job, the more specific the better. Then look at your potential courses. Match the skills that you can learn that would help you do the jobs you looked up. Learn those skills, and mention them in your resume.
Example:
If you boost your excel skills, don't just say you have excellent or advanced excel skills. That's quite subjective. Some people think they're advanced because they can enter =1+1 into a cell or do =C1+B5. Advanced excel skills are Visual Basic for Applications (VBA), pivot tables, dashboards, financial modeling. Get specific in what you know, what you learn, and how you use it all. Develop contacts that can back up your information too.
Hi Gypsy. Look at the Elevate America program on the Microsoft site. I glanced at this for just a second and didn't see Vermont in the alphabetical list, but I would contact them anyway. They might have some information or suggestions.
Elevate America is offering free and reduced training and refresher courses beyond the introductory level/ beginner level, which is often a problem with some of the free training programs. The certification tests are also offered at a lower cost.
Everyone I've dealt with so far, by phone and email, has been pleasant. That's a nice surprise!
Ok........I decided to take two Purchasing/Inventory classes over the Internet and finished both. I took another class, Logistics and Distribution Management, from the same school, over the Internet and got a certificate for that one. Spent $300. These three classes are on my resume, under Education and NOBODY has said a word to me about taking these classes......not one agency or employer!! These classes look good to ME on my resume, but to a company or reqruiter........??????? Taking classes over the Internet can sound like a great idea, but in the long run, companies want "working experience" on the software they use, NOT just classroom experience necessarily.
LoveBoating...maybe you could "donate" your newly acquired skills to a local charity/church/volunteer organization - that way you could gain some experience and get something...anything...on your resume that shows off what you have learned. i would think that would be a good idea you could do maybe once, twice a week or something project-based as well. maybe local newspaper or craigslist to advertise? just a suggestion.
I will do them 1) to help broaden my skills and keep up my experience (I have real world experience) 2)because it's fun to learn new things. It has to be more constructive than listening to the doom mongers predict the world is ending.
At least when I go for an interview and I get asked 'what have you been doing?' I will have a real answer. (I've been working on my skills but not consistently up to now).
I'm actually toying with doing some serious language studies in the future. I have four solid years of Spanish and have retained a lot of it (I recently began to expose my son to some language training and I was surprised how much I remembered). We both seem to be 'gifted' in learning languages so I am going to focus on that as well. Anything that gives me an edge over 'the average person' is helpful.
Your four years of Spanish is bound to be an asset to you. Here in North Carolina, I see job postings all the time that are seeking bilingual English/Spanish ability. That, along with strong skiills in the Microsoft Office Suite should definitely give you an edge in areas where there presently is, or soon will be, a strong Spanish speaking population. It take it Vermont is not one of those places.
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Maybe you'll end up discovering a new passion through these classes. And it certainly couldn't hurt your resume. Good luck!
