Developed and Presented by the Casa Grande High School Counseling Department

1. Developing an Effective Resume and Cover Letter Developed and Presented by theCasa Grande High School Counseling Department

2. What is a Resume? • A one- or two-page representation of you • A tool to get a specific job

3. A Resume Should • Provide a clear summary of your working history for a specific job • Advertise yourself • Reflect your personal characteristics • Highlight your skills, achievements, and abilities • Win an interview

4. Nine Questions Employers Ask Themselves As They Review Your Resume • Who are you? • What can you do for me? • Do you have the skills I’m looking for? • Where have you worked before? • Is your experience relevant to my needs? • Do you have the right education/training? • What kind of person are you? • Do I see any “red flags” in your background? • Can I easily get in touch with you?

5. RESUME CONTENT FEATURE DESCRIPTION PERSONAL DATA Name, address, email and telephone EDUCATION Name of school, major degree received, graduation date or expected date EXPERIENCE Paid work, volunteer work, internships and military work. List the employer name and job location, your job title, and dates of employment OPTIONAL FEATURES ARE LISTED BELOW JOB OBJECTIVE One sentence that includes the position desired and industry title. SKILLS & ABILITIES OR Transferrable skills, foreign languages, computer skills, office SUMMARY OF skills, lab techniques not referred to somewhere else in the QUALIFICATIONS resume. ACTIVITIES List any collegiate athletics, campus activities, student organizations, professional associations and committees that you are associated with. Include dates of affiliation and list in reverse chronological order. VOLUNTEER OR List volunteer events COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT HONORS Deans list, honor societies, scholarships, magna cum laude INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE Include Study Abroad, or if an international student college education outside the United States

6. Resume Design Tips • Choose a “clean” font such as Arial and Tahoma • Use a 12-point font • Be sure your name and contact information can be quickly read • Keep paragraphs short – no more than 3 or 4 lines • Limit bullet points to 4 or 5 items. Odd numbers are more visually pleasing • Use action verbs • Keep format to one page

10. Sarah Jane Gomez • 3389 Willow Creek Rd. • Petaluma, CA 94952 • (707) 548-0090 (Cell) • Objective: To obtain the position of • Skills: • Microsoft Word, Excel and Power Point Proficient • Knowledge of cash register and credit card machine • CPR Certified • Class B California driver’s license • Bilingual in Spanish and English, conversant in French • Experience: • April 2008 – present Noah’s Bagels Petaluma, CA • Customer Service • Served up to 200 people per shift • Organized up to 15 orders simultaneously and prepared up to 20 pounds of food per shift • Completed sales data entry with Excel • March 2006 – January 2007 Bremerton Family Petaluma, CA • Childcare • Cared for children ages 2 years to 12 years of age • Assisted with French homework, created interactive games, and cooked healthy meals • Responsible for driving kids to all sports games and practices • Education: • 2006 – 2009 Casa Grande High School Petaluma, CA • Student of the Month (January 2007) • Teacher’s Assistant: Algebra IB (2008)

11. What Goes With a Resume? A Cover Letter • introduces the resume – it “covers” the resume • is a short, formal letter • is polite and positive

12. Cover Letter Basics 1st Paragraph Why are you writing the letter? 2nd Paragraph Why are you the best candidate for the job? 3rd Paragraph – Seal the Deal! Indicate your desire for an interview Discuss your flexibility and availability

14. THANK YOU LETTERS Write the letter very soon after the interview ABC COMMERICAL BANK 1234 Golden Gate Avenue, # 1 San Francisco, CA 94117 April 5, 2006 Ms. Jane Baxter Vice President Bank of the Bay Area 25 South Street San Francisco, CA 94111 Dear Ms. Baker: It was a pleasure meeting with you yesterday to discuss the opportunity in commercial banking. Your planned expansion is most interesting, especially your ideas concerning outreach to small businesses. My experience working for a number of small service businesses in San Francisco while completing my degree has made me particularly sensitive to the unique needs of small business owners. As you learned from our conversation, I have also worked as a bank teller, and understand the bank’s commitment to high quality customer service. I remain very interested in the commercial banking representative position. I am confident that my skills and experience would be a valuable addition to your team. I look forward to hearing from you. Sincerely, Chris Williams Chris Williams BLOCK STYLE – all sections left aligned Refer to something you learned about the company or position Reinforce the most important aspects of your qualifications Restate your interest in the position Include something you forgot to mention in the interview, or expand on Your relevant qualifications Show confidence and enthusiasm!

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