Finally time to start applying for jobs; Opinions on Resume?

ciscoman2012

I'm graduating this May and am about to start applying for jobs. My father has helped me get my Resume to where it is currently and I just wanted to gather some feedback on what you guys thought as well. I am going to be applying to Network Engineer, Network Analyst, Helpdesk/Desktop Support related positions. While I understand that most Networking jobs require 2-3 years of hands on experience, I figure it wouldn't hurt to shoot them a cover letter with my Resume attached. I'm currently working towards my CCNA, should I put that anywhere on the Resume? I've been told to not attach it anywhere unless I actually have the certificate in my hand. People claim these are the type of things I can talk about once I've received an interview. Last question, currently my overall GPA is a 2.83 and my Major GPA is around a 3.3. I still have to finish out this semester and am hoping that my overall GPA will be a 3.0 and Major should be around a 3.5. That being said, how should I reflect that on my Resume currently? Should I leave my Major GPA on there (since it's currently higher) or leave the Overall GPA on?

Thanks for the help TE!

Almost forgot, is it stupid to put my words per minute on my resume anywhere? I can type around 110WPM but I don't know if that is something that should go on my Resume or not? lol I know this is funny but I'm serious

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Comments

ptilsen

WPM is not something needed on a tech resume. Also, you have enough personal information here that we could identify you, if we really wanted to. Honestly it doesn't matter IMO, but I noticed you had masked your info and I thought I'd mention that.

Your resume is very well put together, but there is simply too much on it. A prospective employer would get frustrated at having to read quite so much to answer relatively few pre-interview questions. If it were me, I might take the time to read it and give you an interview. For most of the world, you'll be lucky to make it past the recruiter/HR/filtering system. The entire top section needs to get absorbed into the rest of the resume, with most of it simply being eliminated.

I would take out the heading you have on both pages, which takes up valuable space. Take out your address too. You just need your name, number, and email address at the top of page one.

Since you have what amounts to only one job and well under five years of professional experience, this will need to be a one-page resume. I know you have a lot of experience and accomplishments you want to describe, but you just can't have a two-page resume.

You should completely remove the extra-curricular activities section.

You should try to cut down the "Technology Expertise" section. You can keep most of the content, but store it in a more space-efficient manner. I would cut down on some of the networking stuff and some of the software. A/V products do not relate to your career and are not worth the line they're taking. I would take out "Languages" entirely unless you are proficient with a scripting or programming language I'm not seeing. Even if you are deeply proficient, unless they are going to be job-relevant they probably don't belong there. "OS Systems" should be "Operating Systems" or even "Systems".

You could even split networking into different sections. if you want, since that's what's going to be relevant to your career. Still, I'm not a fan of protocol overload on a resume. You're not thinking of another ten or twenty protocols you could list that I'm sure you're familiar with, and there are already too many. Try to break them into logical sections and capture only the important ones -- protocols like ARP and CSMA/CD don't need to get listed. You should also be prepared to have job-specific resumes. A standard helpdesk job will be different from a NOC or junior networking job. No one will care about most of the networking protocols at a helpdesk, but a service provider will care deeply.

Combine certifications and education into one section. Take out high school once you've finished your B.S.

Your job descriptions, diction, and style are great. You're clearly trying hard to demonstrate where you've stood out, which is what most of the resumes I look at lack. That said, your descriptions are pretty verbose. I would try to cut down a bit. I would also list the helpdesk job first, which seems to be the only "actual" job, if you will. I'm not sure what to say about the business entrepreneur listing. In some ways, it's really not relevant, but it seems good. I would say keep it unless you can't get it down to one page.

VAHokie56

Thought it looked pretty good, you can kinda pick up on your drive and motivation through it . Good luck I am sure you will be fine