Displaying your cert logos on your resume without being tacky.

dynamik

AlexMR wrote: »

Dooood...I dont know you but now i think paul is way cooler than i thought he was. I liked it.It worked! And I also had the problem of not knowing where to put my ONE logo .

You clearly don't know him personally

I honestly think Paul pulls it off pretty well. However, he does have the advantage of having the elegant Cisco logos at his disposal. CompTIA's and MS' look like trash. I'd probably change my opinion of his had he used those

tenrou

It's all about appealing to HR. We're talking about the same people who list A+/MCP/MCSE and CCNA/CCNP/CCIE on job specs, so they have no idea what they're actually requesting. Visual cues (should this be queues?) could well be a benefit in this instance and I can easily see why you would put them on there, althoguh personally I don't.

Slightly off topic but I had an interview the other day that was quite exchange heavy and they wanted microsoft certifications but had no idea what an MCITP:EMA was so that was quite interesting.

mikej412

Delightfully tacky and unrefined seems to be popular with most of the IT crowd I've worked with -- so a slightly tacky resume shouldn't be to big of a problem.

ajs1976

leefdaddy wrote: »

Paul, no offense I have great respect for you but... Why wouldn't you double everything else on your resume too? It looks equally as silly. You have logos for your certs and them spelled out. It's not effecient in my eyes and you could use that space more wisely. Just my opinion.

If it works that's great, but I think it's a waste of space. Especially if you have the logos AND have them written out.

A lot of resumes get scanned and searched. If the cert information is just in the logos, it might not come up on a search.

veritas_libertas

Paul Boz wrote: »

Fool you know my domain is blocked at work

Websense strikes again?

Stotic

I am also not a fan of the pictures on the resume.

msteinhilber

I'm not usually a big fan of logo's, but I have to admit that Paul's is well done. Frankly, all of my job's thus far and interviews I've had were all a direct result of having the right connections. So in my case I haven't had a situation really where I had to worry much about getting past the chopping block in HR. That's not to say that I don't focus on how presentable my resume is along with the quality of the content as applicable to the position I'm applying for, but it's just an observation. If I had some professional level certifications such as Paul's and I knew I had an inside man that could help me past the initial HR cut, I might utilize similar tactics since I think your IT person in the know would be more drawn to that type or resume than a plain old resume.

seraphus

I am not a fan of logos on a resume, but Paul Boz's was impressive.

Turk

Bumping an old topic but I too have a resume with logos on it. Would you guys give me your opinion on it please? I too think logos can be tacky on a resume but also believe they can make your resume "pop" if done right. How does my resume stack up?

Claymoore

I don't like cert logos in resumes in general, and for this case let me put it this way -

If you're unzipping your fly to show off your A+, N+ and Sec+, I'm going to ask if it's cold in here.

Bl8ckr0uter

Claymoore wrote: »

If you're unzipping your fly to show off your A+, N+ and Sec+, I'm going to ask if it's cold in here.

Yea can I steal this?

azjag

Right about the time I went from a 1 page resume to 2 pages I stopped using logos. That and at the very bottom of the last page I list all my recent and relevant certs for the position I'm applying for. Seems to work well for me even though it is 2 pages.

powerfool

If you want to put cert logos on your resume, here are a couple of tips for being as tasteful as possible:

1) Don't place a logo for every certification you have: I know that we are on a board for certifications and we do that in our profiles, but elsewhere it is a bit unprofessional. Do not show one every level of a certification path, just show the best and most prestigious one (e.g. Not MCP, MCSA, MCSE, MCSE: Security... just MCSE: Security). Also, just pick the ones that mean the most to you. This works well for email signatures, as well: I just put MCSE, CISSP (I used to put CCNA, but considering the level of my other certifications, I don't need to put the entry-level Cisco cert... maybe when I get a professional-level Cisco Cert).

2) Make them grayscale: This makes them subtle. The one exception is if you were going to print it on superb paper and use a little college on the stationary. Then, you would want to make it match or complement the colors of the cert logo (in colors, complements are on the opposite sides of the color wheel, and may gray when they are mixed together, like Orange and Blue, or Red and Green).

3) Place them appropriately: This will depend on your resume layout, but do not let them change your layout either.

Hopefully that helps.

powerfool

Turk wrote: »

Bumping an old topic but I too have a resume with logos on it. Would you guys give me your opinion on it please? I too think logos can be tacky on a resume but also believe they can make your resume "pop" if done right. How does my resume stack up?

I do like how that looks. However, I will reiterate the sentiment that these aren't really certs that you want to brag about. Also, if you are going to have cert logos that are red and black, you will want to pick more appropriate colors for your header.

Also, the order of your resume is backwards. You want your experience listed above your education. Otherwise, you look like a spring chicken that doesn't have relevant experience... that is just the immediate first impression that folks get when they see education first.

skyline

There is never a time when dispalying your cert logo's on your resume doesnt look tacky. To me it just looks god awful.

Devilsbane

powerfool wrote: »

Also, the order of your resume is backwards. You want your experience listed above your education. Otherwise, you look like a spring chicken that doesn't have relevant experience... that is just the immediate first impression that folks get when they see education first.

It depends on where you are at in your career. If all of your experience is being a cashier or stockboy, then your Computer Science degree needs to be on top. If you have at least 1 or 2 strong work experiences, then that should be on top.

earweed

If I had something like a CCIE it would be custom watermarked on the paper I used for my resumes.

poriggity

Claymoore wrote: »

If you're unzipping your fly to show off your A+, N+ and Sec+, I'm going to ask if it's cold in here.

Clay, if you don't mind, I am going to use this as my signature here.. This is hillarious!!!
Scott

Chris:/*

The MAJORITY of the time I believe it looks tacky but there are situations where it could be beneficial. To begin with Paul Boz resume is an example of how to do it right. Not all of his certifications are shown and those that are shown are professional level or higher.

Since you are supposed to tailor your resume to the position you are shooting for, the use of certification logos for highly desired job requirements could be beneficial. Most of the HR departments I have talked to say they have to sift through hundreds to thousands of resumes through the week. They usually look for an easy to read eye catching resume not an eye gauging resume.

I will caveat this by stating not all certification logos look good together. They should all be professional level or higher, unless the job requires a specific other entry level or associate level certification. When your resume starts looking like a RBB Circus Clown or a photo album it is time to rethink the strategy. The resume should still look professional, easy to read, formatted and your name should be the biggest thing.

BTW claymoore that was a great statement!

Bl8ckr0uter

You know what? Who is to say what logos are resume worthy. To a guy at the career level like Claymore than it would be stupid but for those of us who are entry level and are still climbing then that might be the thing that sets him apart. I am thinking of redoing my resume at the end of the year and I will probably put logos on my resume. I will actually make a few resumes and see how it feels when I am done.

Mike-Mike

earweed wrote: »

If I had something like a CCIE it would be custom watermarked on the paper I used for my resumes.

awesome....



hey all you all are giving Paul props, but I can't see it anymore, I just get a red x, repost?

erpadmin

All I'm saying is, as someone who currently has only A+, Network+ and Security+ as certs, I found Claymoore's line HILLARIOUS when I first read it. I agree with that sentiment 100%.

The jury is still out for me as to whether I would ever include logos on the resume, but I would probably pass on that anyway. My experience is what's always gotten me the job....not some gimmacky resume.

@Claymoore, you get quote of the year for that one!

@Turk, I can only hope you're a good sport and that you don't take it too much to heart.

powerfool

Devilsbane wrote: »

It depends on where you are at in your career. If all of your experience is being a cashier or stockboy, then your Computer Science degree needs to be on top. If you have at least 1 or 2 strong work experiences, then that should be on top.

Yeah, but that comment was based on the experience listed on that specific resume... it appeared there was decent experience, and in that case, it is backwards, which is why I commented on it.

it_consultant

When people post their resumes here on TE with logos they look pretty bad. Normally they don't put it where they should go. MS has guidelines one their placement and if you follow there guidelines they look pretty good.

The question is your target audience. If you are applying for a job that makes a big deal out of say, the MCSE, then put it in the footer by all means, since that is what they are looking for.

The problem we see here is attention to detail. Someone will have a CCNA and a MCP logo next to each other and they are not scaled correctly or they are different sizes. That looks worse than terrible. When I used to put them in my signature block I would spend a good amount of time making sure they are just right.

Pash

To keep the discussion moving.

Would you guys think it acceptable to have your own web page with your resume and cert logo's on? Something Like Scott Morris's website at uber geek I guess.

I mean nothing long and tacky. Just a nice clean css crafted page with well placed logo images?

I am thinking of doing something like this for the long term. Which I could then link in my covering letter, as well as attaching my cv in pdf to every application.

Hows that sound?

apena7

Pash wrote: »

To keep the discussion moving.

Would you guys think it acceptable to have your own web page with your resume and cert logo's on? Something Like Scott Morris's website at uber geek I guess.

I mean nothing long and tacky. Just a nice clean css crafted page with well placed logo images?

I am thinking of doing something like this for the long term. Which I could then link in my covering letter, as well as attaching my cv in pdf to every application.

Hows that sound?

That's fine with me. It's not like you are constrained to squeeze everything on two-pages as with a paper resume. You could even link the logos to the respective exam webpages so people can get a better idea of what each certification means.

Paul Boz

For what its worth, having logos on my resume helped me out for this job as well as my last one. Still have never been declined for a job, still have never had an issue with images on my resume.

Pash wrote: »

To keep the discussion moving.

Would you guys think it acceptable to have your own web page with your resume and cert logo's on? Something Like Scott Morris's website at uber geek I guess.

Its a fine idea but I keep it simpler by just having www.mydomain.com/resume.pdf linkable rather than making it a css page or something like that. This way there's tighter control over the content and its in an easily printable and distributable format. Another benefit is that it helps me to avoid discrepancies between various versions of my resume floating out there.

Pash

Paul Boz wrote: »

For what its worth, having logos on my resume helped me out for this job as well as my last one. Still have never been declined for a job, still have never had an issue with images on my resume.



Its a fine idea but I keep it simpler by just having www.mydomain.com/resume.pdf linkable rather than making it a css page or something like that. This way there's tighter control over the content and its in an easily printable and distributable format. Another benefit is that it helps me to avoid discrepancies between various versions of my resume floating out there.

Yeh I mean the idea for me would be to show my creative side on the page with a clean link into my resume. Not too fancy, just clean information about me and my goals and background etc.

eansdad

So I guess what it boils down to for logos is that lower level/entry level certs should not be on a resume and depending on the the job and space might be left off all together...example: Applying for a position as a Network Security Director and removing the security + cert that is under the CISSP and GSE. But if you are applying for a tier I-III (help desk/desktop support type job) you should include them but not the logo unless you need something to flare it up or if you resume is lacking and has dead space, maybe at the bottom or side.

Most jobs your applying for expect these certs so chances are (unless you have a CCNA and applying for help desk) everyone else has most if not all the same certs.

Is this close to the point?

Forsaken_GA

I have the logos for my CCNP and CCIP at the top of my resume, with my personal information in between. They're appropriately sized, and placed in such a way that they stand out, but they don't look like they're part of a geocities web page.