Readers:
Dr. Randall Hansen, a nationally recognized career expert, is the Career Doctor.
Discover more about Dr. Hansen, read about the purpose of this column,
and find previous issues of this column at the home of The Career Doctor.
If you have any college, career, or job-related questions or comments that Dr. Hansen could
provide valuable assistance with, please
feel free to email him at: careerdr@quintcareers.com.
Dr. Hansen writes this column on a biweekly basis.
Vince writes:
I have a question about resumes. I am a manager with several years of
experience with one company. I have been approached about a couple of
interesting job opportunities which I want to explore so I am working on my
resume. I am having a hard time keeping my resume to one page and I was
wondering if you could tell me whether it was ok to go to two pages. Thanks.
A:
The Career Doctor responds:
It used to be there was a hard-and-fast one-page resume rule,
but no longer -- and especially not for someone with your experience.
Better than cramming all your information on one page, go to a second
page. I recently saw a resume that was written in 9 point type (very
small) with almost no margins… it looked like some densely worded
document (which it was) that no one would want to read.
So, revert those page margins back to standard levels, and push that
type size back up to normal viewing (typically 10-12 pt.), and go to a
second page. Just remember two rules about doing so. First, make sure
you have a header on the second page that identifies that is your resume
(Vince Smith, p. 2) and make sure that you use at least half of the
second page.
In fact, some resume experts now say that a resume should be as long as
necessary, and the more senior a job-seeker, the longer the resume.
Other resume tips:
If you are a seasoned job-seeker, remember that you should really
not include work experience older than 12-15 years. While the experience
is valuable, the process to do the work has probably changed dramatically
in that time.
You do not need to include every single work experience you’ve ever
had; instead, showcase the experiences that best showcase the skills/accomplishments
for the job you are seeking.
Always focus on accomplishments and how you contributed to the employer
rather than on your duties and responsibilities. And quantify those accomplishments
whenever possible.
If you’re a new college grad, a two-page resume is acceptable if you have a
lot of internships and other work experience, although I still prefer to see most
new grads with a one-page resume.
You can find lots more suggestions, tools, and helpful advice about resume
preparation in this section of Quintessential Careers:
Resume and CV Resources.
Q:
Michelle writes:
First, thank you very much for creating such wonderful website.
I found it's extremely useful!
I am in the process of applying some jobs, and experiencing difficulty
with answering few competency questions on the online application form.
Here’s the question: “Describe how you have demonstrated initiative in
extending your personal learning and developing yourself, outside the
educational environment. Describe the activities you have undertaken,
why this demonstrated initiative, and what you have learned.”
I would be most grateful for any advice you can offer.
A:
The Career Doctor responds:
What the employer is seeking about you is whether you have been actively involved
in professional development activities. This is a question for all job-seekers, but
perhaps even more important for older applicants… because the prospective
employer basically is asking whether you have kept your skills current with the
latest innovations and technologies in your field.
This question reinforces again the importance of developing a career portfolio…
which would contain copies of your resume, reference list, professional development
activities, awards and commendations, certifications and licenses, volunteering
and community service, and work samples. If you had already developed a portfolio,
this question would be fairly easy to answer.
So, what you need to do is make a list of all the conferences, workshops, and
seminars you have attended. Even though the question states “outside the
educational environment,” I would also include any certifications or refresher
courses you have taken since your last degree.
Q:
Adena writes:
I am a recent college graduate hoping to pursue a career as a journalist
(feature writer). Currently, I am a marketing intern at a respected, award-winning
regional theatre company. In college I majored in theatre, although I also
minored in journalism, wrote for the school paper and interned with two
renowned journalists.
I have sent out resumes to a few newspapers for reporter positions and recently
received an offer to work in a primarily administrative position as an editorial
assistant (this is not the position I applied for, but it is the one that has been
offered to me.) Time permitting, I might also be allowed to write feature
stories on occasion.
I am unhappy with my internship -- mostly because I am no longer interested in
marketing -- and want a job in journalism. However, they need me as an intern
at the theatre company, and would be very angry at me if I chose to leave.
My internship officially ends July 2006.
What do you think I should do?
A:
The Career Doctor responds:
You don’t need to hear this, but I do wonder why you took the internship
in the first place if theatre was not something you were going to pursue as a career.
I think before you decide anything, you have some big questions to ask
yourself -- and answer.
First, what is it you really want to do for a career? It sounds like writing,
so perhaps you have answered this question, but humor me and ask if again.
Second, where do you want to live? I think it’s kind of odd that you would
take an internship on the west coast while now searching for jobs on the
east coast.
Third, why are you not using your network? Take the time to consult with
your journalism professors and the journalists in your network. Get their
advice -- and perhaps get more names of editors you can contact about jobs.
Typically, I tell job-seekers to never burn bridges because you just never
know who you will see again in your job-search. That said, if you can
answer all the above questions and want to pursue this editorial assistant
job (or some better one that comes from your network), then you should
do so… but be professional with the theatre company and give them as
much notice as possible.
If you do take the editorial assistant job and you have not had anything
published after six months, you will need to start looking again for another job.
In all my past experiences, editorial assistants were basically gophers.
Q:
Anonymous writes:
I have a high level administrative position within a university. I'd like to interview
for a position at another university. The person that I'm interviewing with is a
friend and colleague of my boss. Should I ask for an informational interview
or a confidential interview?
A:
The Career Doctor responds:
You are definitely in a delicate position, but I don’t think it’s impossible. You
have to assume that the person at the other university would be professional
enough to keep your search confidential -- which is what you need to request.
You could ask for an informational interview, but I think that would just be
confusing -- or is it your hope that under the pretense of the informational
interview, you will appear so brilliant that the person will ask you to apply
for the position at his/her university? That strategy could be kind of an
interesting way to backdoor into the position… but what if you are not
asked to apply?
I personally think you should just apply directly for the position, making
it clear in your cover letter that you are not actively seeking other
positions and that you request that the process be kept confidential.
