can you leave dates of employment off your resume? by Alison Green on May 14, 2019 A reader writes: I recently heard the advice that job seekers should leave dates off their resumes’ employment history. I was at a job seekers networking event, and an retiree looking for extra work shared it as advice she had received to shield her from age discrimination before the interview. A recent college grad enthusiastically […] Read the full article →
what to put on a resume when you have zero work experience by Alison Green on February 28, 2019 A reader writes: I was tapped to help my friend, “Jordan,” get their resume together. Jordan and I are both in our early-mid 20s and have been friends since we were in middle school. Jordan has always been very introverted and didn’t really do extracurricular activities at school. They were okay as far as grades, […] Read the full article →
how to write a resume that doesn’t suck by Alison Green on June 12, 2018 No offense, but your resume probably sucks, because most people’s resumes do. That’s not surprising, since it’s hard to be good at something you might only do a handful of times over the course of your life. But do not panic! We’re going to walk through exactly how to make a resume with a minimum of […] Read the full article →
love letters as writing samples, the candidate who spoke Pirate, and other tales of amazing resumes by Alison Green on May 10, 2018 A few weeks ago, I asked you about the strangest things you’ve ever seen on a resume. You shared some amazing stories — so many, in fact, that I couldn’t pick my usual 10, so here are 30 of the best. 1. “A recent applicant for an entry-level office job at the nonprofit where I work wrote […] Read the full article →
what are the strangest things you’ve ever seen on a resume? by Alison Green on March 29, 2018 I want to hear about the weirdest things you’ve seen on resumes. To kick us off, some highlights from past commenters: “The person whose description included only their entire astrological profile. I mean, sun sign, moon sign, rising sign, and midheaven sign. AND NOTHING ELSE.” “I received a resume for an IT Help Desk Technician […] Read the full article →
listing an unfinished novel as a work accomplishment on your resume by Alison Green on March 19, 2018 A reader writes: I’m a copywriter. It’s my first time hiring for a copywriter position. I don’t want to be petty or unfair to applicants, but I don’t want to hear about people’s unfinished novels on their resumes or cover letters. In my opinion, it comes off as either immature, self absorbed, or really uninformed […] Read the full article →
do employers care about college extracurriculars? by Alison Green on February 1, 2018 A reader writes: When you’re applying for jobs in your 20s, do employers care about whether you were active in honor societies/participated in academic clubs/took honors program courses? I read your post explaining that hiring managers (usually) don’t care about GPA, and I wondered if college student extracurriculars fell into this category too. (I’m talking […] Read the full article →
how can I write a resume when my jobs don’t have measurable results? by Alison Green on November 6, 2017 A reader writes: You often advise that when writing a resume, you should list the things you achieved at each previous job, rather than just listing duties. I can see why this would be more interesting to a hiring manager, but what if your job isn’t really about achieving things? I’m a property/facilities manager, so […] Read the full article →
here’s the right way to format your resume by Alison Green on October 16, 2017 The hardest part of writing an effective resume is figuring out the content – how to talk about your achievements in ways that tie to what an employer is looking for. But people also do an awful lot of agonizing about the smaller details of a resume – things like format, length and even font […] Read the full article →
can I put World of Warcraft leadership experience on my resume? by Alison Green on September 6, 2017 A reader writes: I’m looking for ways to include my group leadership experience in World of Warcraft on my resume. Essentially, for the past four years I have been: – Leading a twice weekly group of 10-15 people all with a single goal in mind (kill a boss). – Watching videos and reading information on […] Read the full article →