Resume questions

vivithemage

I am curious, I think my resume is kind of a mess right now ... I think I may be listing way too much.

So I am wondering, can anyone give me an example of what one should do?

Regarding education, I have my AA, slowly getting my BS, should keep that I am getting my BS, as In Progress?

How does one typically list technical skills? In a list, or should you list it per job?

Is there a way I should summarize some of my positions held?

I could not upload my resume, no option, so I am hosting it :

http://vivithemage.com/delete/resume.doc

Thanks all!

networker050184

Mess is definitely the word I'd use to describe it unfortunately. A couple suggestions:

Get rid of all the different font sizes. Stick to one size in the body. Having the header a bit larger isn't bad though.

Definitely get rid of the colors. All black is fine.

Combine the Technical Skills and Other Technical Experience into a good Technical Summary at the top. Use a short paragraph outlining your experience, then you can highlight a few of the software/Hardware OS etc. that you are proficient with. No need for that huge list of technologies. Especially outdated ones like the old MS OSs you have listed.

For the Professional Experience I go with a couple sentences for what you have listed under Duties and then a few bullets highlighting some of the aspects of the job you want to stick out.

I'd leave the In Progress on there if it were my resume, but opinions on that differ vastly from what I've seen on here.

I'd get rid of some of the bold in the Education portion. I kind of defeats the purpose if its all bold.

Get rid of some white space and get it all on two pages.

MickQ

I think we'll have to put up a sticky of a template for this kind of thing

Ok, I've attached a resume template (based around mine) to this post. Compare and contrast. Then write a 4 page essay on the fluctuations of the tea market in Ceylon in the mid 18th century.

vivithemage

To be fair, I did get the template from a headhunter firm. I have gotten a few callbacks on this resume, but I still feel it's a mess.

I updated it a bit.

I have an issue getting rid of all of these keywords, because, what if they search by keyword? And it's not there, yet I know it/dealt with it before... hrmmm

networker050184

I think you will be fine to take off a lot of those keywords or at least put them in a neat format. Do you really think someone is out there doing a keyword search for 3.1? If you've worked with them then just work the words into your Professional Experience section. They will still catch a search without a big jumble at the top of your resume.

MickQ

Networker's spot on. My eyes are glazing over at the huge blocks of words you have. When I forced myself to read them, there was a lot of "bloat".
Eg. Office XP/2003/2007/2010 packages (excel, word, access, PowerPoint, Outlook)
Try "Microsoft Office". Much neater, hits the keyword, easier for potential employer to read and understand.

vivithemage

What would be the best way to cut down on my MS OS's?

MickQ

vivithemage wrote: »

What would be the best way to cut down on my MS OS's?

Use linux

Seriously though, how about
"Microsoft Windows from 3.x to 7, Windows Server 2000 to 2008 R2, various editions of Linux."

That'll include your Ubuntu , Cent OS, Red Hat, to.

mattlee09

IMO your resume could totally be one page. As Networker said, most of your "Other Technical Experience" (for the purpose of keywords) is duplicated in your job descriptions (which have duplicates as well).

For example, from your first job:
[FONT=&quot]- Work as a team to get projects completed, as well as individual projects[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]- We are always working in a team, asking/sharing info with each other daily[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]- Creating/maintaining our images[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]- Creating images for Windows 7 to streamline the rebuild process[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot][/FONT]
Also, since your title was Network Admin, and I'm assuming your shooting for a networking role, I'd drop all of the references to PC hardware issues from your first job and replace them with more duties relevant to the job your applying for. You don't have to lie, but get clever with it.

Move your Education to below your Technical Skills. Leave off the 4th contractor job.

Those said, with condensing the proper stuff, your resume could easily make 2 pages, if not one. Not that you don't have the experience, but I think you've just gone a little trigger happy with your job descriptions. I'd call a lot of what you mentioned "general knowledge". Try to rewrite them to include relevant accomplishments "Implemented automatic hamburger delivery system, decreasing salary budget and providing 99.99% availability of hamburgers". That type of stuff.

vivithemage

Okay, I updated my resume, what do you think of it now?

Should I even list my A+ and Dell Cert?

Did I thin it too much? I got rid of the bottom part entirely, felt it was redundant info.

I am trying to make things sound better, but I think my wording might be off...

networker050184

I don't think opening the resume with just a list of keywords is a very good format. I don't use any kind of list on mine, but if I did I'd probably put it in a nice bullet format. Yours just doesn't look very professional to me. I think a resume looks much better when opened with a brief summary of yourself. When I look at a resume I want to know a little about the person and their background. A list off technologies doesn't really do that.

I'd probably leave off the high school off. You have an AA and working towards a BS. A high school diploma is basically a given at that point.

Again for the job positions I think it would be a good idea to add a couple sentences describing the position. Then use your bullets for highlights. You should also work on your bullet grammer and content. For example:

"I helped lead a few projects to help optimize our network, and bandwidth. From testing different vendors to making proposals and deploying the solutions."

Change it to something like below I came up with off the top of my head.

Project lead on optimization of 1000 user multisite network to increase business productivity. Tested multiple vendor technologies and proposals seeking a cost effective solution that met business needs. Integrated changes successfully while ensuring minimal impact to normal business while increasing productivity of users by 20%.

vivithemage

You should just write it for me? haha, I am not creative with my words at all.

I'll modify a bit more.

If you don't like the software/language/hardware/os/networking list...what do you do for those then?

networker050184

I'm not very creative with my words either compared to some people. I'd say my resume is just average, but seems to work for me. Just try to church it up a bit. When you apply for a professional position they are going to expect professional writing on your resume.

Have you thought about a resume service? I've never used one and they can be a bit pricey, but if you are having a hard time I guess it would be worth a shot.

vivithemage

That is tempting ...site like this only charges $65 or so

Professional Resume (CV) Writing Services from Certified Resume Writers

MickQ

Networker's got it right, again. You need to summarise the info more. You've far too many bullets for each job, and is there really any need to list out so many networking protocols instead of saying that you've got experience in networking - installing, maintaining, monitoring?
Keep it clean, keep it simple, convey the point to the reader.
It is a pain to try and slim things down, but you could present it to a friend and ask them to understand it - quickly.

vivithemage

MickQ wrote: »

Networker's got it right, again. You need to summarise the info more. You've far too many bullets for each job, and is there really any need to list out so many networking protocols instead of saying that you've got experience in networking - installing, maintaining, monitoring?
Keep it clean, keep it simple, convey the point to the reader.
It is a pain to try and slim things down, but you could present it to a friend and ask them to understand it - quickly.

I was just looking up samples ... and they all had them, I am just failing hard at this, haha.

In my mind, the easiest way to understand it quickly is with bullets, and what does this guy understand/know, not sentences with BS all over them.

But I am not HR, I am a tech guy, haha.

Are you saying remove all bullets entirely? Stick to wording everything? Get rid of the technical skills section?

MrNetTek

I uploaded these just for you as examples. I get an average of 2 calls/emails a week for employment (and I haven't been looking for work for a very long time---I still get the offers).

Some recommendations:
-You want 1 short resume and 1 long resume, also known as a portfolio resume (the long resume will contain things like letters of recommendation and references)
-Add a cover page
-Remove the color of course, black is good
-Highlight your certifications (companies are always looking for updated certs)
-Let your resume be an extension of you and what you have to offer
(if you send in a sparse page with little detail or grammatical errors, that's not the message you want to send)
-Nice, clean and informative are they are looking for
-If you're applying for a job with 100's of applicants, make sure your cover letter shines
-Always call your references to make sure the phone numbers work and to tell them to expect a possible call

Other stuff
-If you have a professional website, make sure you put examples of your work there (and a link to your website in your resume)
-Be prepared, review these questions 50 Common Interview Questions and Answers
-shine your shoes
-press your clothes, dry clean if you can afford it
-be confident in yourself (you can do it)
-never over sell yourself (your asking for trouble if you do)

I hope this helps....

---

Eddie Jackson (aka MrNetTek)
http://eddiejackson.net

networker050184

vivithemage wrote: »

Are you saying remove all bullets entirely? Stick to wording everything? Get rid of the technical skills section?

Leave the bullets, but use them for stuff you really want to pop. Then use a couple sentences to describe the basics of the position. Example below.

Fry Cook                                             April 2011 - Present
The Crusty Crab

Served as cook at the Crusty Crab responsible for the cooking of the 
Bikini Bottom famous Crabbie Patty and Fries.  

- Won employee of the month for 100 months straight

- Ensured 100% customer satisfaction

- Was a sponge that dressed in a suit

vivithemage

MrNetTek, thanks a lot ... yours is relatively similar to some of my positions.

Interesting that you only have ONE bullet point per position...and most of your details is up in the summary.

Is it good to have long summaries like that? I see you do not even list tech skills, has that ever hurt your chances you think?

MrNetTek

Think of the short resume as a brief outline of your work history and education, depending on the job you're going to, or whether a headhunter is acting on your behalf, this format is usually good enough.

You would fill in the technical details at the interview.


Think of the portfolio resume as more of a short-to-medium essay on your work history and education, as well as any other pertinent information you believe the employer should have upfront. This format is better for high paying jobs, as well as demonstrating you're attention to detail, professional excellence, and interpersonal skills-->relating to Letters of Recommendation.

You would actually go into further detail at the interview.

I'm not sure what you mean by hurt my chances...I've never had to look for a job that long. Short or long, resumes should highlight your professional characteristics, not really discuss in detail what you did at a job. For example, I design software packages for large scale deployment. I would put just that on a resume, and not the 10 page explanation of how I do it (it's at least 10 pages, maybe more).

I'm a technical gunslinger...but that's me. If your new to IT, then simple, clean, standard colors and fonts are what's best. If you got serious skills backed by years of experience, then you can be quite creative with your resume, as long as it isn't visually offensive.


Think of the short resume as a brief outline of your work history and education. You would fill in the details at the interview.

---

-MrNetTek
http://eddiejackson.net/

vivithemage

I'll play with it this weekend. I don't need a new job, and i've gotten jobs from that resume ... I was just thinking it was starting to look cluttered/messy.

JoshuaT

I checked my resume for free on resumeble.com and only then corrected errors