Brevity, organization and accuracy in your resume are the keys to landing the interview. The days and hours that you put into perfecting your resume will be well worth it when the recruiter makes the decision to put yours in the “keep” pile after a mere 30-second glance.

Tip 1.  Be Bold, Go Where No Man Has Gone Before!

Put category titles and your name in bold. Use italics correctly – for book titles, works of art (i.e. Mona Lisa) and exhibitions. Undo all underlines, which these days signify a hypertext link. What’s your favorite comma rule? Will you abbreviate states like the post office does? Make yourself a style sheet and stick to it. Sometimes there is no right or wrong, but inconsistencies can be fatal.

Tip 2.  Spelling, Semicolons and Things That Go Bump in the Night

There’s no room for spelling slip-ups when it comes to your resume. It takes not two (or is it to?) but one goof to get the deep six. Same goes for punctuation – it must be perfect. Yep, your Pentium has power, but rely on at least two proofreaders with pulses to help you achieve textbook results.

Tip 3.  The Object of the Game

Remember playing Memory as a kid? Recruiters get paid to make correct matches, and it’s the objective section of your resume that will get the quick glance. Give the recruiter a reason to toss yours in the “keep” pile, in lieu of the alternative. Don’t include personal pronouns in your objective, speak to the specific position for which you are applying and make it memorable.

Tip 4.  Killer Skills

In addition to your big-ticket education, don’t overlook other relevant skills. Have you been certified in a specialized piece of software? Do you speak Spanish? Japanese? Yiddish? Include anything that’s relevant in the Education section of your resume – most recent accolades first. Keep this section simple and consistent, tucked under your degree information.

Tip 5.  Do the Loco-Motion

Put some punch in your phrases! Give your resume life and include action verbs, especially in the Experience section. Action verbs will show how you made things happen, and the superior results! Cool it with words such as “helped,” “did” and “made” and heat things up with verbs such as “implemented,” “improved” and “achieved.”

For more free job-hunting tips, visit www.GetAJobBook.com

Written by award-winning authors Tara Maras & Donna Kozik, Get A Job! Put Your Degree To Work is a job manual for recent or soon-to-be college graduates. It educates students about the realities of today’s job market, revealing everything from the secrets of interview success to the art of the perfect handshake. Advice from the book has been featured in 130 newspapers including the L.A. Times, Chicago Tribune and Baltimore Sun.

Donna Kozik & Tara Maras are also the authors of www.29DaystoaSmoothMove.com,a complete household moving manual.

©2004 Tara Maras & Donna Kozik

Recommended Resources:
Resume Distribution: EmailRecruiters.com
Resume Posting: JobBoardGenie.com
Resume Writing: CareerProResume.com