Writing your Resume
More and more graduates are leaving University each year and it seems to be getting increasingly competitive for graduates to find suitable employment. Online jobs portals like SEEK or MyCareer are very popular with graduates when looking for roles, and are viewed as a good advertising method for employers. It is low cost to post an advertisement online, and employers are aware they will receive a huge amount of applications. However this is the challenge for you. Too many applications mean that your resume has less chance of being read.
An average recruiter will spend less than 30 seconds looking at your resume. This is your window to make an immediate impact and so ensure your resume follows the basic guidelines below
1) Only include relevant information
2) The resume should be specific to the role you are applying for
3) Less than 2 pages in length (most graduates shouldn’t require more than 1 page)
There is a basic structure for you to follow which we will outline here.
Personal Details:
Naturally, this piece is key but limit how much information is provided. You really only need to include your name, your contact number and an email address (which should be “professional” looking)
Career Objective:
It is essential that you specify a career objective in your resume and it must be relevant to the role you are applying for. With that in mind, you may need to alter this part of your resume for each application. This way you can ensure it is well tailored to each role you are applying for. It should be approximately 4-5 lines in length and must provide a decent snapshot of why you’re applying for the role.
Education:
There is no need to get carried away here. Simply list your University and degree as your most recent Education. Feel free to list your school, but only if you feel it carries relevance. Many employers are not too concerned about which school you went to.
Work Experience:
Think carefully about your work experience. Employers are looking for loyalty with an employer and they’re looking for the transferrable skills that you have developed in specific positions. Don’t list the tasks you did in each role, but rather discuss the skills and competencies you developed. Again, ensure that the language you use, is well aligned to the language used in the advertisement. Don’t feel you need to list every job you ever had from the age of 15. Simply choose the most relevant positions that demonstrate your fit for the role.
Achievements:
Employers like “achievers”, particularly at a graduate level. Awards you may have received can be listed here. Not necessarily “awards” such as the one you received in Year 10 for good attendance, but rather a Duke of Edinburgh Award, or an Award for Debating etc
Hobbies and Interests:
This is a section to demonstrate that you’re an active person and have interests outside of University/ work. Sports are well received by employers, along with reading/ socializing/ music interests and technology. Please avoid discussing travel as an interest as this can sometimes work against you. Employers may develop a concern that you will leave a role to “travel” at a later date.
References:
Simply make these available upon request. There is no value in adding personal contact details of friends/ family/ colleagues or co-workers on a resume. If they are needed, an employer will simply request them.
ProGrad is a specialist graduate recruitment company working with over 600 companies across Australia. For more information about our process, please contact our ProGrad Graduate Management Team on 02 8235 8300.
