Optimize Your Resume, Cover Letter, and Linkedin Profile

Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) are a tool used by employers to filter out resumes that do not meet with their qualifications. There are two ways to maximize your success with getting your resume past an ATS and into the hands of an actual person. Those two methods are formatting and keyword implementation, which we will address in the next videos.

As you're looking through a job description be on the lookout for keywords. Keywords can be a skillset that the employer is seeking, software they want you to be familiar with, or even soft skills that they want you to bring to the table.

Keep a running list of keywords that you see in a job description so that you can easily implement them in to your resume without it taking up too much of your time.

This video covers the two adaptable sections of your resume: skills and summary. These are the perfect places to incorporate keywords from your target job description.

Summary: 

1. One to two sentences describing you as their ideal candidate using keywords

2. Avoid using pronouns like I, me, and my

3. Don't overshare. On average employers are only looking at resumes for 10 seconds or less, so use the valuable space at the top of the resume wisely to introduce yourself

4. Template for a perfect summary: Two describing words + 3 skills + one positive outcome.

Example: Tech-savvy and analytical customer service representative with 5 years of experience seeking to utilize ability to build customer rapport, independent judgement, and knowledge of all company products to be an asset in increasing customer satisfaction and retention rates.

Skills:

1. Don't list every skill you have; only list relevant skills for the job you're applying for at the moment

2. Pick 5-7 skills from the job description that overlap with your skillset

3. Change up the list between job applications as different jobs will value different skills

This video addresses the two static or unchanging sections of your resume: education and experience.

Experience:

1. Only go back 10 years to avoid ageism and keep your resume on one page (exceptions will be addressed in a future video)

2. Start with strong action verbs (spearheaded, led, marketed, created, etc.)

3. Focus on including achievements not just listing tasks

4. Include 3-5 bullet points per job

5. Incorporate numbers whenever possible to showcase your impact

Education:

1. Only list your highest level of education

2. Include your graduation date only if it was in the last 5 years

3. Do not get bogged down in details like GPA, relevant coursework, or projects (exceptions will be addressed in a future video)

This video covers multiple additional sections you can add to tailor your resume to your personal experience.

Sections covered include:

Additional Experience

Technical Skills

Certifications and Licenses

Student Experience

Volunteer Work

Military Experience

What to leave out of your resume to avoid privacy violations, discrimination, and maximize ATS compatibility.

1. Street address (city and state is enough)

2. Personal Information (age, gender, sexual orientation, marital and parental status)

3. Hobbies (keep this document limited to professional experience)

4. Your life story (keep everything brief and focused on your career)

5. Nonstandard job titles (I've seen people use customer service wizard instead of customer service representative; ATS will not pick this type of language up as a job title)

Important information for creating an ATS-friendly format:

1. Avoid anything not text-based (graphics, pictures, complicated headings, etc.)

2. Avoid using columns; ATS reads left to right across the page and will not differentiate columned information

3. Use clear headings to help ATS properly parse information into clear sections

4. Utilize the template I shared in Lecture 5 or search online for ATS-compatible templates

This lesson discusses how to address work gaps on your resume:

1. Put them in as work experience if possible to prevent the ATS scanning a gap.

2. Include any education or volunteer work to account for your time out of the work force

3. Caretaking and raising a family should be listed as work experience; you were providing a valuable service

When to Break the Rules:

1. If you're in an artistic field where you want to showcase graphic design or art on your resume it's fine to submit two versions

2. Include hobbies and interests to fill out a short resume or to show shared interests

3. Utilize industry "inside jokes" sparingly and only if you're sure they will be well-received

4. Portfolios- Have a separate link in your contact info; do not try to embed samples into your resume

5. Publications- Attach as a separate document if you have 3 or more

6. Social Media- Only if relevant to your career

This video covers the importance of submitting a cover letter with your application.

Cover letters allow you to go into more detail and show off why you are a good candidate for each job.

The ideal cover letter is easily adaptable so that you can incorporate keywords and skills from a variety of job descriptions without it taking too much time to customize.

Cover letters should include:

1. Heading with your contact info

2. Formal salutation (To Whom It May Concern:) unless you know the hiring manager's name

3. A strong opening paragraph that addresses your relevant skills

4. An experience-based paragraph that draws attention to your past achievements

5. A closing paragraph that ends with a call to action to encourage future contact

6. Professional closing

A sentence-by-sentence walkthrough of the attached sample cover letter and how to easily adapt it to fit your needs.

Tips for making your Linkedin page as appealing as possible.

1. Complete your entire profile- Linkedin's algorithms favor complete profiles over incomplete ones

2. Link with organizations and people related to your career and hobbies to show yourself as well-rounded

3. Utilize privacy settings if you aren't ready for your current employer to know you're job hunting

4. Craft an attention-grabbing headline (much like the summary section of the resume)

5. Fill in your complete employment history...but don't use their resume tool (more on that in the next lecture)

6. Incorporate industry-standard keywords in your "about" and "skills" sections

7. Take a professional-looking headshot for your photo

8. Check in regularly- those algorithms will reward you

An overview of how Linkedin's resume building tool works and why I advise against using it for your resume.

How to write a resume as a current student.

How to correctly list your education on your resume (hint: it's bachelor, not bachelor's)