Did you know that an increasing number of companies weed through
resumes electronically; discarding ones that have spelling errors
or which don
’t match certain key words before a human actually reads them?
Competition can be fierce in today’s job market and in many cases a
well-designed resume can get you into the door for that crucial
face to face interview.
Did you know that an increasing number of companies weed through resumes electronically; discarding ones that have spelling errors or which don’t match certain key words before a human actually reads them? Competition can be fierce in today’s job market and in many cases a well-designed resume can get you into the door for that crucial face to face interview.
The library offers a variety of resources to help you learn how to create a professional looking resume and a cover letter that will not only highlight your skills, but also attract the attention of the human resources people that will do the job interview.
Books like Job Hunting for Dummies by Max Messmer and What Color is Your Parachute by Richard Nelson Bolles give an overall view of the job search process and have chapters that detail resume and cover letter dos and don’ts. We have plenty of books that focus solely on resumes. They offer samples of a variety of resume styles and explanations of why you would choose one style over another.
A few recent titles are: Resumes That Knock ‘Em Dead by Martin Yate, High Impact Resumes and Letters by R. Krannich and W. Banis and Resumes for Re-Entering the Job Market by the editors of VGM Books.
These days many businesses recruit over the Internet, so a resume printed on paper is not enough. If you plan to apply for work online but don’t have your resume saved in simple text (ASCII) format, be sure to educate yourself about e-resumes before you proceed.
One book that can help is E-Resumes: Everything You Need to Know About Using Electronic Resumes to Tap Into Today’s Job Market by Susan Whitcomb.
Be sure to check out our library webpage reference employment links at w. Just click on Employment for a variety of websites, selected by Santa Clara County librarians, that will be helpful in all aspects of job seeking including resume writing.
Once you have a call back and a scheduled interview, remember that the library has books and videos that can help you prepare.
A couple of suggested books are Haldane’s Best Answers to Tough Interview Questions by Bernard Haldane Associates and Get Hired! Winning Strategies to Ace the Interview by Paul C. Green. Tom Washington’s video Interview Power has demonstrations of key interview skills and lots of practical tips from professional hiring managers.
Questions and suggested topics for At the Library, which appears in Tuesday editions, should be directed to Nancy Howe, community librarian, at nh***@**********************ca.us or by calling 779-3196. The Morgan Hill Library, located at the corner of Peak and West Main avenues next to City Hall, is open every day but Sunday.
