RESUME AND COVER LETTER WORKSHOP

WHEN: TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 07, 2012 5:00 PM- 6:00 PM
WHERE: FROMM HALL, BERMAN ROOM

Unsure of how to write a resume that will get noticed? Confused about what a cover letter is and how to get started writing it? If you answered "yes" to either of these questions, then this workshop if for you! Come and get excellent tips and tricks for effective resume and cover letters.

BEST FRESHMAN RESUME

Hey Freshman – do you want prizes, everlasting fame in the Career Services Center, and the glory of being a winner? Of course you do. But how?!

The answer is easy: participate in our 2nd annual Freshmen Resume Writing Contest. The top three entries get prizes listed below and the first place winner will also get their resume proudly displayed in our updated Resource Guide utilized by students past and present. 

When: The competition takes place from October 20th – November 20th; Winners will be announced December 1st.

How: Submit your best resume to careerplanningpeer@usfca.edu by midnight on the deadline day (11/20/11) to enter.

Requirements: You must be a current Freshman. A minimum of 1 and a maximum of 2 drop-ins with our office are allowed to work on your resume formatting and content. Drop-ins happen every weekday from 11am-2pm. You must mention in the drop-in you are submitting to the contest to be eligible.

Prizes:  1st - Amazon Kindle e-book reader and resume featured in our new Resource Guide 

             2nd - iHome speaker system with built-in subwoofer 

             3rd - USF leather portfolio 

Easy, right? Right. So what are you waiting for?

Summer!!!

Aloha Everyone,

Welcome back to school! I hope everyone is looking forward to the new school year! Time to seems to be flying, I can't believe I am a junior already. So how was everyone's summer? Well I just wanted to give you all a heads up on how my summer went.
This summer I went to New York/New Jersey and interned at Northeast Private Client Group in May and June. They are a smaller private advising company, with higher end clients compared to bigger companies like Fidelity and Northwestern Mutual. It was a great learning experience and I gained so much from the people there. I attended appointments and meetings with the president and a few of the directors. I also put together financial portfolios and serviced the clients needs. During my last days at the company I was offered a job with the company upon graduation. They stated that I would work in New York for a few months to a year than move to Hawaii to create a new client base.
Many internships turn into jobs so I would suggest putting your best foot forward at all times, because you never know what could happen. I also would recommend if you're ever given the opportunity to take a job in New York, to take it. It is an extrodinary experience and a world on its own. So break out of your comfort zone and try something new, something different and grow. Not to mention it would be something great to put on your resume.
After interning with Northeast Private Client Group I came back home to Hawaii in June and interned at the Hawaii Visitor and Convention Bureau(HVCB), under the Hawaii Tourism Authority for the rest of the summer. It was also another great experience meeting people in Tourism and working in Waikiki. At HVCB I got to work on a few projects dealing with the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation(APEC) that is coming in November and a new project that I created which was a green meeting planners guide for Hawaii coming out next quarter.
On weekends or when I had free time I would spend time with family and friends eating at all the local spots or going to the beach. It was an amazing summer and I gained so much experience and a better perspective of the world. So get out there and look for those internships and if you need any help come into our office in the UC building 5th floor for some advising.

I hope everyone had a great, fun filled summer!

Aloha,

Nate

Getting Back in the Game

Welcome back to the land of papers, deadlines, and responsibility! I hope you enjoyed your Summer vacation to the fullest. Now that we are back for the Fall semester, it might seem daunting to think of going through classes AND working AND getting an internship. No worries, it is completely possible to get all of these things done and still have time to grab a coffee with your roommate! Just a quick warning, completing these tasks may require some work.

TIP #3  “All work and no play...”
...might just add to your stress levels. Just as important as it is to get your work done, it is important not to burn out. Don’t forget about yourself! Schedule a time during the week that is “me time”. Whether it is taking a 30 minute break to watch an episode of your favorite show or catching a yoga (or boxing) class at Koret, it’s healthy to take a step back from everyone and everything. Be careful to set an alarm on your cell phone or something, so that you don’t make a 30 minute break turn into a 3 hour break.

TIP #2 Note to self: Eating and Sleeping are NOT optional
Do not forget to eat, and when you eat, eat well (i.e. go for the water, not the sugar-filled soda). Remember, what you put into your body will be the energy that will get you through the day.
As crazy as it may sound, set a bed time and a wake time for yourself. Easy enough, right? Sometimes. It will take some work to keep to your schedule. Things come up and things fall apart, thank goodness you had a schedule. Getting a consistent amount of sleep every night will help keep you more alert for the next day!

TIP #1 Time Management:
“You will never "find" time for anything. If you want time, you must make it.”--Charles Bruxton
Unfortunately, not everything will simply fall into place this semester without a little grunt work. If you do not own a planner, get one, or some sort of organizing device (i.e. iCal, Notebook for planning...). It is essential to know what will be going on in your day or days to come. This will come in handy when you are scheduling those many interviews and appointments. By the way, if you need help with your resume/cover letter to apply to jobs/internships or are just looking for some career tips, stop by the Career Services Center! Regular drop-in hours are from 11am-2pm. (UC 5th floor)
“Ordinary people think merely of spending time. Great people think of using it.”--Author Unknown
There is a time to watch movies and a time to buckle down and get to business. Use your time wisely, so that you can actually enjoy your free time...granted that you scheduled in free time. Set aside times to research about your future job to make sure that you are on the right track, or to apply to internships in your field of interest. Think of the many ways you could brighten up your resume with more experience! You can explore your Dons Career for different jobs/internships you could apply for this semester.

There is so much more advice out there, but those are the few nuggets that have stuck with me throughout my college experience.
Carpe diem! It’s going to be a great year.
--Victoria

EXTRA TIP:
Use social networking sites to your advantage!
Be sure to check us out on TWITTER & Facebook for career tips and more information!
Tweet: @USFcareer
FB: USF Career Services

Career and Internship Fair Prep

The Career Fair is fast approaching. Are you ready for it?

If not, don't fret! Here's four easy steps to get yourself prepared:

Step 1: See who's coming
Do you research. Check out the full list of all employers who will be attending the 23rd annual Career and Internship Fair. Decide who you want to talk to, and check out their websites for more detailed information  and the positions they might be hiring for.

Step 2: Get your resume reviewed
This week on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday we will have real recruiters down in Parina Lounge to review your resumes from 12 - 1:30pm. If they're packed, you're always welcome to come in for drop-ins every day (except for Career Fair day of course!) from 11am-2pm. Don't miss this opportunity.

Step 3: Attend our Career Fair Prep Workshop
Tomorrow night (March 2nd), from 5:30-7pm in the Fromm Maier Room, we will have a panel of real recruiters there to answer your questions about what they want to see at the career fair. Not sure what types of questions you should ask at the fair? Don't know how to dress? What better way to find out than from the recruiters themselves.

Step 4: Attend the fair
Come dressed to impress, bring several copies of your resume on nice resume quality paper (can be found in the bookstore or any office supply place), and have questions prepared. Know who you're going to talk to, introduce yourself, ask about the positions available, show that you did your research on the company, and most of all be enthusiastic.

Simple enough? Great. I'll be seeing you there!

-Sarah

Resume Writing Time!

Hello, All!
       My name is Victoria! I am in training to be a Career Planning Peer (CPP)! Just a little bit about myself... I am a Psychology major, and I am minoring in Music and Biology. Basically, what that means is, I want to be a superhero, rock star, and a dentist. I’m rooting for all three! I came upon working for the Career Service Center by applying as a Psychology Practicum volunteer. I’ve had my fair share of experiences working with younger children and with adults, it had been a while since I worked with my own peers. I really like to help people feel like they have something less to worry about, and this job seems like just the ticket!
        So far, I have shadowed drop-in hours in action and have learned just a couple of small details that can make all the difference in writing a resume. I am excited to have this new perspective on resume writing!
        The number one thing that I have witnessed: Students have not heard of the Resource Guide on the CSC website. For those of you reading this, you can find a resource guide (click the link to the right-->) Career Services Site, under Quick Links. It’s a pretty great tool to use if you are writing up a resume or cover letter! Hey! It beats Googling “how to write a resume/cover letter” over and over only to find thousands of varied results. Check it out and enjoy!
--Victoria

Resume and LinkedIn workshop TONIGHT

Hey everyone,

As we all know in our technological age the job hunt and networking process are inevitably becoming more and more digital. This is why we're combining two crucial concepts - resume writing and online networking - into one jam-packed information rich workshop. Don't know what LinkedIn is? Never had your resume critiqued by anyone else? This workshop is for you!

Don't forget: Tonight, 2/10/11, at 5pm in Fromm Hall, Maier Room. 

Learn how to write and properly format your own winning resume, and then learn how to best used LinkedIn to your career advantage (including information on the new 6,000+ member USF LinkedIn group - helloo networking!)

Be LinkedIN or LeftOUT.

See you there,
Sarah

Be a S-T-A-R Resume Writer

Hello All!

My name is Rosie Ceja and I am a Sophomore Nursing major. I have been working at the Career Services Center as a student assistant for the past 3 semesters. Towards the end of last semester I was presented with the opportunity to become a Career Planning Peer (CPP) and I am super excited to be in training this semester for this awesome position!!

As part of my training process I have been shadowing a few drop ins and counseling appointments. The most common reason for drop ins is to have a resume looked over and reviewed. In the sessions I have shadowed, I have noticed a few reoccurring topics when it comes to resumes that I would like to address in hopes of making the resume writing process a little easier. 

One of the most important (if not THE most important) components of a resume are the accomplishment statements. These are meant to be a detailed explanation of what you accomplished for the company or how you made a difference in your position. There are a few things to remember about writing a strong accomplishment statement. You may want to keep the S-T-A-R format in mind:

S - Situation: define the general context

T - Task: identify the key objective

A - Action: describe the action you took or initiated and emphasize the skills you incorporated.

R - Result: Summarize the outcome; QUANTIFY as much, and whenever possible. 

- With every accomplishment statement you should start with an ACTION VERB and avoid starting with "responsible for" or "duties included"'

- Recall and incorporate specific and unique examples

- Write your accomplishments as concise bullet points (not paragraphs)

- You should write about 2-3 statements per position

- Quantify whenever possible and use numerical digits

Once you have your accomplishments set, the rest should be easy! Focus on format and consistency with every aspect of your resume. 

Hope these tips helped and good luck to you all this semester!

Rosie

Resume and Cover Letter Worskhop!

Hey there all you blog readers. Have you been thinking about updating your resume lately? Need to write a cover letter for that job you're trying to apply for? (Hint: you ALWAYS have to write a cover letter for that job you're applying for!)

Well you're in luck. On Tuesday, September 28 we're having our resume and cover letter workshop, just for you guys! It's going from 5:00-6:30pm in the Fromm Maier Hall. Come to learn all the best tips and tricks on how to spice up your resume and write a cover letter to get that employer wanting to talk to you.

Any questions? E-mail us! Careerplanningpeer@usfca.edu. Or call us: (415) 422-6216.

Be there or be square!

-Sarah

The Throwaway Game

Hi Everyone!

I hope your summers have gotten off to a good start.  I've noticed that a lot of students have been coming in to the Career Services Center trying hard to get summer jobs.  I think you've all been doing a good job of trying to get employment, especially if you're seeking out our services.  However, I think there are some startling facts the rest of you need to know if you haven't been giving your all in applying for jobs.  In this economy, employers are obviously hiring a lot less, but that doesn't mean that tons of people aren't applying for jobs.  To sort through all those applicants, employers will resort to some unsettling tactics:

• Deadlines: When it comes to deadlines, earlier is ALWAYS better, especially if you're applying by email.  Employers will often check out just the first few resumes that they receive because they're bombarded with so many resumes.  So don't wait longer than it takes to get your resume polished to send it in- try your best to send it in the same day the job was posted!
• Cover letters:  A seasoned professional can tell whether or not you spent 5 minutes copying-and-pasting what you wrote for a past cover letter, as opposed to taking the time to address the specific position at the specific company you're applying for.  Make sure that in your cover letter, you write down at least one reason why you want to work for that company you're applying to (e.g. do you like it's mission statement and/or values?) and how you feel you can contribute to that company.  Be specific and concise.  And ALWAYS include a cover letter with your resume, even if no one asks for one.
• Resume length: If you think it's not that big a deal if your resume is slightly longer than one page, think again.  Employers spend about 15-20 seconds glancing through your resume, which is why resumes need to be organized so specifically: employers want to find specific information super fast, such as whether or not you're a student (e.g. that's why an "Education" section is first for all current students).  Remember to consider that when an employer is sorting through hundreds of applicants, a one-page resume versus a resume that's more than one page will be most likely to avoid being thrown into a shredder.

I hope this helps!  Best of luck!
Seghel

De-Crowd Your Resume, Increase Your Chances of Getting a Job

For those of you who have the not-so-terrible “problem” of too much information on your resume, this blog is for you.  A lot of people think, hey, how can this be a problem?  A lot of work experience should work in my favor, right?  The short answer is sometimes yes, and sometimes no.

If you’re an undergraduate student, then yes, having a lot of work experience definitely works in your favor.  But it’s not likely that all of your work experience is relevant to the kinds of jobs and internships you’re applying for to build your career.  We can definitely show you how to shape your resume based on the position you’re applying to, and it’s something you can learn to do easily as well.  Essentially, the kind of jobs you’ll be applying to are going to be entry-level positions that require a one-page resume, so start editing.

The only way you can get away with a resume that’s more than one page long is if you’re applying for a non-entry-level position and if your resume is AT LEAST one and a half pages long.  A page and a quarter just won’t do.  

Have a great weekend,

Seghel

What ARE objective statements anyway?

While I look at a variety of resumes on a daily basis, all with their own unique flavor and design, the one thing I find myself catching over and over again are issues with objective statements. So let's take a more in-depth look at what they're all about.

What are objective statements?
Simply put, objective statements are a one sentence declaration of what you’re looking for and why you’re sending your resume in to the employer. It should be short, clear, and focused. The main purpose is to make it simpler for the hiring manager to know exactly what you are looking for. Therefore, just like with a cover letter, object statements need to be tailored to a specific position, so make a new one each time!

Really? I have to make a new one each time?
Unfortunately yes. But lucky for you, changing them is incredibly simple as they really are only one sentence long. But they must be changed because they must be specific, and catered to each job you’re seeking.

What if I’m attending a Career Fair?
In a situation like this I’ve usually recommended students just take their objective statement off completely. It’s important to note here that objective statements are not mandatory, and most every employer will not have an issue if you chose to omit this section.

What do they have to include?
Objective statements are very basic, but very specific. Having a general statement like: “I’m a driven young professional looking for a career with a great company” is, in all honesty, just fluff. It doesn’t add much to your resume, and really just winds up being a space waster in the end. Instead, you need to include at least two, and ideally three basic components.

• Who you’re applying to (Kaiser, Project Open Hand, Ernst & Young…)
• What position you’re applying for (Intern, Marketing Assistant, Accountant…)
• What you can bring to them (communication skills, leadership ability…)
• This point is not necessary, but may add to the overall feel

Or to put this all together more clearly, here is the basic template we show to all resume writers:

To obtain a position with ________ company as a _________ utilizing my _______, __________, and ___________ skills.

Of course this is a stock example, and is certainly not your only option in terms of objective statement structure. What we want you to take away from this template, though, is the necessity of being specific with what you’re applying for, and where to include your personal skills if you chose to do so.

Some other clear, focused examples to consider:

• An internship position with Wright and Young inc. with a focus on counseling issues related to older adults, their adult children, and their families.
• To obtain a position in a Registered Nurse New Grad Training Program in Pediatrics.

To sum it all up

• Objectives can be helpful, but are not a mandatory part of your resume writing process. If you’re struggling with space on the resume, or if you’re attending a career fair or similar event, it might be in your best interest to remove the objective statement entirely.
• If you are going to include an object statement, make sure it’s specific, make sure it gives a basic overview of what you’re applying for, and make sure it has one to two examples of what you can bring to the organization.

Hope this cleared some things up!

-Sarah

Transform yourself into the best candidate for the job!

I was looking around to see what different people and organizations are saying about what is important regarding finding and landing a job. A common theme seemed to pop up everywhere; and it’s a theme that we can’t stop talking about here at CSC. Any guesses?

Personalization, personalization, personalization.

Besides the obvious problems with misspelling a company’s name (or including the wrong company’s name!), a hiring manager can tell when you haven’t tailored your cover letter and/or resume to fit their wants and needs.

So how do you make yourself look like the very best person for the job?

Take the time to research each company individually. Read the job description carefully, and identify the skills or requirements they are looking for.

Once you know what they’re looking for, think about the experiences you have that show how you acquired each of those skills. It won’t do you much good to go into detail about your incredible painting skills when they are clearly asking for someone with public speaking skills. Now, this doesn’t mean you should make up a story about “that time you spoke to an auditorium full of hundreds of people,” when it was really only a few friends. It does mean that you should brainstorm examples that show your speaking abilities, i.e. class presentations or giving reports to your club.

If the company doesn’t have a job description (or even if they do…), find out any and all information you can about them. Read their mission statement, their impact on the community, etc. Even if you don’t use this information for your resume or cover letter, it will certainly benefit you in an interview. Or, it may even show you that this isn’t a company you want to apply to.

The point is: know what you’re applying for, understand what they are looking for, and use your creativity (truthfully) to show why you’re the best candidate for the job!

Good luck!
-Allison

Resume and Cover Letter Workshop

Are you finding that your Resume or your Cover Letters are lacking a little… color? Do you want to find a way to make them stand out? Well don’t fret, because the Resume and Cover Letter workshop is going on next Wednesday, February 3^rd, from 5:30-7:00pm in McLaren 252.

Make sure to bring those monochrome Resumes and Cover Letters and we’ll help you brighten them up!

See you there,

Sarah

Introducing the 2009-2010 Graduate Intern

Hello everyone,
My name is Geneva and I am the 2009-2010 Graduate Intern at CSC. I am very excited to join the CSC family, which means I get to blog here too. So here goes my first blog post:

Earlier this week, I helped put on my first CSC workshop: The Cover Letter & Resume Workshop on 9/29/09. It was great to be able to help students learn the good, the bad, and the ugly of resume and cover letter writing at the workshop.

But if you missed the workshop, you can still get the inside scope on making your cover letter and resume shine!

First, you can take advantage of the many resources available at CSC, including the very handy Job & Internship Resource Guide. The Job & Internship Resource Guide has a ton of great information in it about writing resumes and cover letters. I like to tell students to make the Job & Internship Resource Guide one of your best friends!

Second, you can come to CSC drop-in hours. Drop-in hours are Monday through Friday from 12pm to 2pm and also on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings from 5pm to 7pm. During drop-in hours, you can get a 15-minute appointment with a Career Counselor, Career Planning Peer, or me and we'll help you polish your resume and cover letter.

Doing these two things will help you put together a strong resume, and, as I am learning, are just the tip of the iceberg that CSC can help you with.

I look forward to seeing you at CSC!

-Geneva

Getting Creative – Do or Don’t?

In the past few weeks I’ve seen a steady increase of “out of the box” designs for resumes, ranging from including .jpeg images to making two or three columns of text instead of the usual linear format.

Whether this is because students feel these designs better represent who they are, or because they feel like a more creative design might catch an employer’s eye (and thus get them in for an interview), I can’t be sure.

So what should you do?

Through my conversations with students I’ve come up with a few opinions on the matter. I think creativity is wonderful, and I also think, bottom line, that your resume needs to represent you to the best of its ability, whatever that may be. However, I think some general things need to be taken into consideration.

If you’re not following a linear format, your information still needs to be clear, straight forward, and easy to find. An employer is only going to spend about 15-20 seconds looking at you resume, so if they can’t find where you worked, when you worked, what you did, and where you went to school in that time period you’re toast.

Also keep in mind too that many employers have a different idea of what’s appropriate than you do. Unless you’re getting recommended through a friend or have inside knowledge of the company, you can’t be entirely sure who is going to be looking at your resume. And, for all you know, you could get Mr. “By-The-Book” HR guy who probably wont be pleased with your deviation from the norm.

In the end it’s a matter of your own personal values. Your resume needs to show who you are, so do what you need to do to accomplish that. Just keep in mind too that you’re not the only one who will be looking at that resume, so make the decision that’s best for you.

If you’ve got any questions about your resume, or formatting in general, please stop by the Career Services Center in UC 403 and have either Seghel or I, or one of the counselors, take a look. We’d be happy to talk about this in more detail with you.

Best of luck,
Sarah

Fattening Up Skimpy Resumes

Guys, there's no reason to freak out if you don't have a ton of work experience to put on your resume. If the jobs that you're applying for are mostly entry-level, then it wouldn't make sense for the employers to expect you to have a whole lot of relevant work experience. It's important to remember that the point of a resume is to show how the various skills you have learned can apply to the new job you're applying to. So, even if you've only worked at Joe's Burger Shack every summer since you were fifteen, you've probably acquired a whole host of skills that you could use at any other entry-level job. And if you haven't had a lot of work experience, emphasize any volunteer experience you have had. Also remember that you've already got a full-time job as a student, so emphasize transferable skills you've learned on campus through volunteer organizations, clubs, languages, and even proficiency in Microsoft applications.

If you're wondering how to do all of these things, check out some great examples of resumes on our homepage here.

Seghel

5 Key Resume Tips

• Limit your resume to one page! For graduate students with a lot of experience: you can get away with two pages, but definitely no more than that. A one page resume is always ideal. Longer is never better. Employers only spend about 20 seconds looking at it anyway, so the more concise it is the better.
• Always put the city and state for every experience you’ve had, whether it’s a job, volunteer work, or school.
• Make your job titles pop. You want your job titles to stand out from the rest of the information on your resume so that they’re easy for the employer to find. Italicize, bold, whatever suits your fancy. Just make sure it's distinct.
  
• Don’t use resume templates! I know it looks easy to select a template from word an input the information, but don’t give in to the temptation! Employers can spot a template from a mile away, and it makes you look a lot less creative. Do yourself a favor and start your resume from scratch on a blank word document.
• Make sure the font you use is readable. Use 11-12pt font, 10pt if absolutely necessary, but no smaller than that. Also, make sure to use well known and conservative fonts like Arial or Times New Roman.

-Sarah