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Hi,
I recently graduated from University with a BA in Political Science and minor in Theater. I'm thirty, and have several years of past work experience in customer service, the most recent of which was in the summer of 2012.
Since enrolling at the University in the Summer of 2012, I've had an internship and engaged in extensive volunteer work, but was unable to find paid work while attending school.
Now that I'm trying to find work to keep a roof over my head....I'm willing to accept *anything*. The few interviews that I've been invited to attend haven't met with positive results, with one employer bluntly saying: "You have extensive experience and will soon hold a degree and you're willing to work for minimum wage?" I wasn't hired for that position, and I'm getting much of the same reaction from other employers that I've contacted in the retail, warehouse and service industries.
I wondered for a moment if I should simply remove all college related positions along with my degree from my resume and applications. Then, I realized that my spotty (and distant) work history, without listing my volunteer work and unpaid positions probably looks even worse to a prospective employer.
I'm unsure of what to do. How can I modify my resume and applications to be more *appealing* to prospective employers? I'm willing to send my resumes to board members here for critique and advice, if needed. I will be homeless in two months if I am unable to find employment and that is a situation that I'm doing my best to avoid.
Try having two different resume. One for the jobs that need a degree and one for those jobs that don't.
However, you need a long term plan. You can take a minimum wage job now to pay the bills. But where do you want to be in 2 or 3 years? You need a plan that will take you from where you are now to where you want to be.
In addition to what Charlygal posted, you can go back as far as 10 years in posting positions you've had, so include those on your resumes. Just don't go back further than that.
I found resumes that I've had going back to 2005 when I was working/attending Community College, and those list the jobs that I've held since 2002, right after graduation. I'll work on creating those resumes immediately, as well as modifying the cover letters that I've drafted.
On another note:
I've read of the 'rule' that your resume shouldn't be longer than a page. In my experience, some agree with the idea and some completely disagree. What is the consensus on the one vs. two page resume here?
I found resumes that I've had going back to 2005 when I was working/attending Community College, and those list the jobs that I've held since 2002, right after graduation. I'll work on creating those resumes immediately, as well as modifying the cover letters that I've drafted.
On another note:
I've read of the 'rule' that your resume shouldn't be longer than a page. In my experience, some agree with the idea and some completely disagree. What is the consensus on the one vs. two page resume here?
Thank you.
It sounds like you don't have the background to warrant two pages. Also, you probably don't need to show jobs from 2002. If you are only going to pursue minimum wage work, you can get away with listing the last 1-3 jobs you've had.
For your "college" resume, be mindful that you want to present a consistent carer path as much as you can. Unless you can show over 10 years of applicable work, you should drop the old jobs also.
I found resumes that I've had going back to 2005 when I was working/attending Community College, and those list the jobs that I've held since 2002, right after graduation. I'll work on creating those resumes immediately, as well as modifying the cover letters that I've drafted.
On another note:
I've read of the 'rule' that your resume shouldn't be longer than a page. In my experience, some agree with the idea and some completely disagree. What is the consensus on the one vs. two page resume here?
Thank you.
Step 1: Define a target. What exactly are you trying to get? What's the market like in that (those) industries where you are right now? Are you open to relo - even at your own expense?
Step 2: Target that resume. Unpaid and volunteer positions should be indistinguishable from paid jobs on the resume. Everything on there should be geared/highlighted towards the type of position you seek
Step 3: Identify other roadblocks. Is your credit shot (not score, but is there bad debt, etc.)? Criminal/Drug history clean?
Some folks have found some great feedback by anonymizing their resume and posting it out here. There's at least 6-7 hiring managers that post regularly and a bunch of regular posters that have the game pretty darn well wired.
Oh, and nobody really cares about the number of pages.
Oh, and nobody really cares about the number of pages.
Yes they do. A young graduate with a 5 page resume would get rejected. A person with a 3 page resume of nothing but low level, inconsistent, unrelated work history would get rejected.
Resumes that are too long for the candidate's history or the job will not be perceived as favorable. Bad resumes indicate poor judgment.
A resume should be no longer than two pages. I'm sure there are exceptions for high level people but as a rule, no more than two pages or it gets tossed. For a time, people were saying one page until they realized how unrealistic that was.
I know it's hard for younger people to do this due to limited work experience, but if possible, a resume should be achievement oriented and not task oriented. In other words, instead of saying, "Assisted customers to answer questions and resolve problems" you would say, "Earned Top Customer Service Award three times" and "Reduced complaints in need of escalation by 10%". See the difference?
If you're seeking different kinds of positions, you'll want to do a couple different versions.
Oh, and always redo your resume, tailoring it so the key words in the job posting are the ones you're using on your resume. Then save that version using the company name and job title to your computer so you know which version to print out and bring with you once you land an interview.
Then applicants with resumes longer than two pages should pray they get someone like you looking at it. Odds are, they won't.
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