With today’s tight job market and positions for college graduates the lowest in 20 years, differentiating you from others applying for the same position will be critical. Writing an exceptional resume will differentiate you from others.

Your resume is the greatest major asset in your career management inventory and job search. Its job is to provide the evidence that you are a candidate that should be seen.

There is no one right way to write a resume. The important point is to keep it relevant and interesting and avoid key pitfalls. Read the full story

Popularity: 3%

Think about the kind of impression you want to convey to your interviewer or hiring manager: experience, ability, and confidence. Your confidence comes out in your physical presentation, your body language, and what you say and how you say it.

Yes, you must research the company, prepare quality documents, and deliver substantial answers to interview questions, but employers are also looking at the intangibles: energy, drive, enthusiasm, and great communication skills.

Confident speaking is an interview skill that is essential to presenting yourself as a winning candidate. Here are 3 major areas where candidates fall short: Read the full story

Popularity: 7%

How to write a resume? It shoudn’t be a difficult question to answer and yet it’s a question many are left asking as they find themselves staring intently at a blank sheet of paper or an empty computer screen.

You have skills that employers want. But those skills won’t get you a job if no one knows you have them. Good resumes, applications, and cover letters broadcast your abilities.

They tell employers how your qualifications match a job’s responsibilities. If these paper preliminaries are constructed well, you have a better chance of landing interviews; and, eventually, a job.

Modern technology has added a new twist to preparing resumes and cover letters. The availability of personal computers and laser printers has raised employers’ expectations of the quality of resumes and cover letters applicants produce. Read the full story

Popularity: 100%

There are three main resume formats with each format serving it’s own purpose. These different formats are traditionally known as chronological resumes, functional resumes, and a mixture of the two, creativly titled the combination resume.

Each is defined by the way it organizes your experience. Choose the one that shows your experience to its best advantage.

Chronological Resume format

This resume type is the most common. It organizes your experience around the jobs you have held. This format is an excellent choice for people with steady work histories or previous jobs that relate closely to their career objective. To create a chronological resume, list each position you have held, starting with the most recent and working backward. For each position, give the title of your job, name of the organization you worked for, and years you worked there. Read the full story

Popularity: 78%

Many jobs require jobseekers to complete an application instead of submitting a resume. But an application is a resume in disguise: Its purpose is to show your qualifications.

Assembling the following information about you in advance will make it easier to complete applications:

Identification

Be prepared to give your name, address, phone number, and social security number. You may also need to bring proof of identification when you pick up and drop off the application.

Employment history. List the month and year you started and ended each job; your supervisor’s name, address, and phone number; your job title, location, salary, and major duties; and your reason for leaving. Read the full story

Popularity: 59%

Every résumé you send, fax, or e-mail needs its own cover letter.

Sending a résumé without a cover letter is like starting an interview without shaking hands. The best cover letters spark the employer’s interest and create an impression of competence.

Cover letters are an opportunity to convey your focus and energy.  If you don’t have a lot of experience, use the cover letter to show you have enthusiasm.

Writing a strong cover letter and then calling to follow up shows the employer you have drive and interest.

Although you should feel free to consult references and models, use your own words when writing a cover letter; don’t mimic another person’s writing style. Read the full story

Popularity: 58%

An interview gives you the opportunity to showcase your abilities and qualifications to a potential employer and it pays to be well prepared.

There is no point thinking that you can just “wing” it when it comes to a job interview. The reality is that you only get one chance to make a great first impression so get to work on some simple but highly effective preparation steps.

Find below some helpful interview tips, techniques and advice to help you sail through your big day: Read the full story

Popularity: 64%

After you have found a job that interests you, the next step is to apply for it. Let’s cover the basics of what you’ll need to do when applying for a new job.

You will almost always need to complete resumes or application forms and cover letters. Later, you will probably need to go on interviews to meet with employers face to face.

Resumes and application forms.

Resumes and application forms give employers written evidence of your qualifications and skills. The goal of these documents is to prove, as clearly and directly as possible, how your qualifications match the job’s requirements. Read the full story

Popularity: 71%

Recruitment consultants can be your best friend or most dreaded foe, however love them or hate them; it is now accepted and normal practice to use the services of a recruitment consultancy to help you with your job search. This is because keeping your career on track is a full time job in itself.

The role of the recruitment consultancy

By allowing professionals to handle your job search you can use your energy and time in doing your current job to the best of your ability.

A good recruitment consultancy knows the relevant marketplace well and can quickly assess your skills and match your aspirations to available opportunities. The services of a recruitment consultancy should be fast, effective and efficient. The relationship you have with your consultancy is a vital key in your future success and there are ways to make the relationship work for you. Read the full story

Popularity: 28%

We’ve already detailed some of the benefits of targeting a company; however half of the battle for most folks looking to target a specific company is where to start.

Find below our top 10 research tips when targeting a company:

1. Start your research early. Don’t wait until you’ve secured an interview. Researching companies and the industry overall may point you to companies you never even considered applying to.

2. Your first step should be to visit the company’s Web page and read any recruiting information you can get your hands on. Familiarize yourself with the company’s products, services, and policies. Read the full story

Popularity: 18%

Sometimes, when you are writing your CV, your covering letter or accomplishment statements you might find yourself having difficulty finding descriptive words to help you describe the activity appropriately.

Sure ’successfully achieved’ works pretty well but at the end of the day there are only so many times you can successfully achieve something and you want to avoid your CV from sounding to repetitive.

When detailing each of your achievements within your Resume, make sure that you prefix each achievement with a strong ‘doing word’.

You’re the person who was responsible for the achievement after all so make sure you take full credit for each of these achievements within your CV by throwing a nice descriptive verb at the beginning of each of your main achievements.

Here’s a list of descriptive action verbs for you to include within your Resume: Read the full story

Popularity: 41%

Stepping outside for a coffee today I walked past one of the local news stands which had on display copies of one of the local rags baring the headline “Unemployment to hit 1 Million!” (A figure pretty large by Australian standards).

It kind of got me to thinking how helpful, or perhaps more to the point; unhelpful the media are being during these tough economic times.

Read the full story

Popularity: 15%