What kind of resume is appropriate for certain pre-employment interviews?

CW3 Dylan E. Raymond, PHR — Mon, 11 Apr 2016 15:10:43 -0400

The Resume is the weapon of choice for the military to civilian transition and the questions just dont seem to go away?

So How do you decide what to put on the resume, what format to use, (1, 2, or 3, pages), should I use bullet comments or paragraph format, how far should I go back with my experience?

What are you thoughts? love to hear the feedback and dialogue!

#rightresume

Response by SSG Ed Mikus made Apr 11 at 2016 3:14 PM

SSG Ed Mikus — Mon, 11 Apr 2016 15:14:44 -0400

all these questions are best answered by those hiring in the field you desire.

Response by COL Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 11 at 2016 3:18 PM

COL Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 11 Apr 2016 15:18:07 -0400

It depends on your level of experience and also the kind of position you are applying for. Usually a one-page format is good for entry-level positions 2-3 for mid-level to senior. Most businesses that have an HR department now utilize keyword scanning so that is also important as when you deal with positions that deal with a big volume of applicants it helps your resume to be noticed by whatever process they use.

Response by 1stSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 11 at 2016 3:20 PM

1stSgt Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 11 Apr 2016 15:20:12 -0400

Sir, I paid to have it written. I wrote what we can call a rough draft (90 grit sandpaper rough) and then took the easy route. I got hired with in 30 days of submitting my 1.75 page resume.

Response by SFC Justin Scott made Apr 11 at 2016 3:36 PM

SFC Justin Scott — Mon, 11 Apr 2016 15:36:27 -0400

I am not an expert on this by any means, all I can do is pass on the information I have obtained in my Soldier for Life classes as well as from talking to several relatives that do hiring in the private sector. The general consensus is that your Resume should not be greater than two pages (at most). In the Department of Labor Course, they instruct you not to go back further than 10 years with your employment and to tailor the information in the resume to the job you are applying for. While I have heard others say what 1stSgt Jim S said about paying to have resumes written for them, everyone I have spoken with says that it is a waste of money to do so since all of the information you need for writing a decent one is available on the internet (and for free through the Department of Labor). In addition, check the university you received your degree from, most have resume assistance services.

http://www.businessinsider.com/hiring-veterans-tips-2014-1?utm_content=bufferaf7d1&amp%3Butm_medium=social&amp%3Butm_source=plus.google.com&amp%3Butm_campaign=buffer

Thank you for your military service — now here are 9 reasons why I won't hire you

The irony is that many veterans and servicemembers have the skills and experience to make the cut, or even get the second interview, but blow it.

Response by SrA Edward Vong made Apr 11 at 2016 3:51 PM

SrA Edward Vong — Mon, 11 Apr 2016 15:51:48 -0400

I would say each resume is written and geared differently with each type of career field. A more technical resume would have listings of the technologies or certifications they have worked with, whereas a more administrative role would have more information on accomplishments within a role. I like to have 3 resumes, one technical (IT), one administrative, and one all around that combines the best of both worlds depending on what I'm applying for.

Sometimes I will modify my resume based on the job I am applying for.

Response by SFC Adam Potter made Apr 11 at 2016 5:05 PM

SFC Adam Potter — Mon, 11 Apr 2016 17:05:11 -0400

First important piece is to tailor your resume to the position you are applying to. Where I work, we screen all resumes against the minimum requirements we had posted on the job requisition. If you are missing a requirement you are screened out.
Keep the experience and the details relevant, other work history that is not relevant can go in its own section to close any gaps that may show up after you profile your relevant experience. Showcase what makes you stand out! Remember, you are competing against others, what makes you better than the other candidates that we should interview you?
Bullets/Paragraphs, whatever best tells your story, and why you should be interviewed. It should be fluid, easy to read, and draw the readers attention to your qualifications. No more than 2 pages, unless you are applying for a Federal Position. Exclude the military jargon! Civilianize your job titles if needed, Example: Station Commander is a Recruiting Office Manager. Civilians would not know what a Station Commander was, but they can relate to a manager of recruiters.
I agree, don't pay to have a resume written, Hiring Our Heroes, USA will prepare one for free for you.

Just my opinions on the topic!

Response by SFC Antonio Nieto made Apr 12 at 2016 10:32 AM

SFC Antonio Nieto — Tue, 12 Apr 2016 10:32:04 -0400

Build a master resume with all your skills knowledge and job related experienceses, after creating through usajobs, build each specific resume for the job desire

Response by Lt Col Jim Coe made Apr 12 at 2016 2:27 PM

Lt Col Jim Coe — Tue, 12 Apr 2016 14:27:35 -0400

In most every large company and government agency your resume will be read by a "grumpy old man" like me. I worked in private and public sector jobs for over 22 years after retiring from the USAF. The positions I held put me in line to review resumes of people the company, and later the Command, were considering for interviews. The processes in the private company and the government civilian workforce were similar, but the government process was more stringent. I have reviewed at least 250 resumes from applicants seeking management, management consulting and IT type positions--and a few administrative jobs. The jobs were in the $50K to $100K salary range.

Here's how to get me to NOT recommend you for an interview.

-Spelling and grammar errors. Word processing software will cover about 80% of the possible errors. One error probably won't direct your resume to the trash, but more than that will almost certainly do you no good at all. Take the time to read the resume backward. Strange as this sounds, it helps you spot errors the spell checker will miss, for example "your" vs "you're." Sometimes reading the resume out loud helps correct grammar problems and points out clumsy sentence construction.

-Texting in resumes. This one was an automatic eliminator. "Gr8" may be okay in a text to your friend, but it will get your resume into my trash can immediately.

-Send me a general resume for a specific job. Most of the time, I'm looking for specific experience and qualifications. I won't read pages of detailed experience descriptions to figure out if you have any possibility of showing up with the skills, education, and capabilities we need. Low score for sure. Do a specific resume to each job application. Make sure the points where your experience, education, certifications, and aptitudes intersect with the job requirements are very clear.

-Functional or capabilities based resume. This one is a bit of a pet peeve. I much prefer a chronological resume. I will read a functional resume--and hate every word of it. A chronological resume allows me to figure out if you have a history of jobs with increasing levels of responsibility and success. I can identify long periods of unemployment and potential job hopping. It also makes it easy for me to determine if you meet the "10 years general experience and 5 years specialized experience" requirement from the job announcement.

-Too Much Information. I always cringed when I saw a three or four page resume. Even for the most senior positions for which I reviewed resumes, GS-14, a good two-page resume will do. A common error is reaching back too far into work history. Unless a job over 10 years ago covers a specific requirement in the job announcement, you really don't need to provide great detail. Sometimes just the job title and time frame are adequate. The second problem is too much of the wrong information about the job itself (see next item).

-All Responsibility and No Accomplishment. This one was prevalent among government civilians. If you use up a page telling me what your job responsibilities were and don't let me know how well you carried off those responsibilities, I will score your resume low. Worse yet, if it looks like you copy-pasted the responsibilities from your last performance report, then you're doomed. Always illustrate how well you did the job. Use numbers whenever possible. "Managed organization's travel pay account worth over $20-million." is only meaningful if it's followed with, "Identified inaccurate and fraudlent travel claims saving the company $1.2-million in my first year. CFO accepted my process and software improvements."

-Leaving out critical information. If the job requires a bachelors degree and you don't show one on your resume, then you're eliminated. Again, read the job requirements carefully. If a degree or certification is required with no substitution allowed, then make sure it's clearly indicated on your resume. Unless you're the CEO's cousin, I won't take time to call you and ask.