Hello, CLEO Students. Yesterday, the discussion on resume preparation focused on the procedural items that you should utilize to make certain your resume has t’s crossed, i’s dotted, and that you understand the intricate nature of certain forms of punctuation. Today, I want to continue the discussion and work on the various sections of our resume. We have to include our name, address, telephone number, and perhaps an e-mail address. Then we can move to the educational portion of the document, and certain specific accomplishments, as they apply to the “top half” of our resume. Then we will add all of your relevant work experience and appropriate descriptions for each position, whether paid or unpaid.
1. Name: Your name on the resume will often be the first thing the employer will see. The pitch should be no more than two sizes larger than the other parts of your resume. You never want the size of your name to overwhelm the reader nor do you want it to overwhelm the balance of your resume. You prefer that the reader look at the entire document (in its entirety) and admire its symmetry. Do not change the typeface of the lettering in your name, either. The entire resume should be in the same typeface. You never want to disturb the reader’s concentration. You do so when you keep changing, pitch, or font, or typeface. You want a person to enjoy the document, not argue with it or determine what you should have done to make it better. If the person is doing that, then he or she is no longer reading your resume; that person is now a critic. We don’t want a critic. We want an employer. There is one exception to the name, placement and style rule as it relates to typeface. You may pick a typeface for your name that is ever so slightly different than the regular portion of your resume. Promise me, however, that there is only a slight variance and that the two typefaces are not in direct opposition to one another.
2. Address: You can place your address at the bottom of your resume, in the last line, out of sight, if you choose to do so. When you do this, you allow the reader to focus on you, your education, your experience, and how to contact you if that person agrees that your qualifications warrant an interview. The address can take up much needed “real estate” at the top of the first page and that can hurt you if you need that space to fill in work experience that you think will make you a great candidate for a position you want. There is no negative, except that not many applicants’ place their addresses at the bottom of the resume.
3. Telephone Number; E-Mail Address: The placement of a telephone number or e-mail address is customary on all resumes, however, you might have a question regarding where exactly you should place t, especially if you decide to move your address to the bottom of the resume. Keep in mind that you want the resume to display or indicate a symmetrical balance - - and it is not a good thing for too much information to be on the left side of the document and not an equal (or, somewhat equal) amount of information available on the right side.
Try this formula for your resume’s name, telephone number and e-mail address. Place your name at the top of the page and center it. Then place an e-mail address and telephone number on the line below, after your name, and display one on the left side of the page and the other on the right side of the page (try e-mail on the left side) (telephone number on the right side). Or, try this formula: include your name on the left side of the page on line 1 and on the opposite side of the page (same line) include your e-mail address. On the next line below the e-mail address, include the telephone number. The third method would include the name centered in the middle on line one, then the e-mail address and telephone number (centered) on the next line, or the next two lines. Print out all three possibilities. Which of the three most appeal to you? You may not have a clear cut answer immediately, but you have created possibilities. And that is what you want. Options! Right now, I want to work with you on options and placement, not really content. Not, yet.
4. Education: Credentials mean a lot to employers. Yours should mean enough to yourself that you want to present them (your credentials) carefully, correctly, and proudly. You should include all post-high school education that you obtained that resulted in a degree or a certificate that you think will add to the weight of your law school degree. Do not add continuing educational classes or courses that resulted in a certificate in a program, unless it is a program specifically related to a job that you want, or a job that no one can do, or that very little people can do (or, have done). If you completed a course that certifies fluency in a foreign language, then add that to your education, especially if it is a language that could require translation at any job (eg., Spanish, Korean, Portuguese, Japanese)). Add any skills you may have that an employer could find useful, but have no direct bearing on your job, later in the resume (eg., Interpreter for the Hearing Impaired, CPR Certified).
As you know bias exists in all walks of our daily lives, and many times you must navigate your course through life in a minefield full of someone else’s likes and dislikes. With that said, please be ever so mindful of what employers may find tasteful or lacking in taste. However, remember this is your life to navigate. You must make decisions based on your personal level of integrity, and the depth of a person’s integrity varies from one individual to another. So, if you are interested in highlighting an area of your life that you believe is important to you, and you do not think it should be hidden from others, then make the personal call for you and your family to include it. I just implore you to stay in touch with the responses you receive from employers. It is very important that you keep your eye on your prize by understanding how the job market works, how to make it work for you, and not against you.
We will pick this up tomorrow with the particulars regarding education and move into the body of the document. Thank you very much for your time.
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