getting ready for your resumé assignment/discussion: what skills are most valued by employers?

Getting Ready for Your Resumé

• Assignment/Discussion: What Skills Are Most Valued By Employers?

Your Resumé

• Your resumé is your sales material

• Explains all the reasons why the employer should “buy your product”

Your Resumé

• Identifies your skills• Shows you’re qualified to do the work– Either you have the skills to do the work– Or you’re able to learn those skills without a lot of

training or special attention

Your Resumé

• Assignment: Character Resumé– What are job skills?

• What Skills Are Most Valued by Employers?– Fill out worksheet and compare your answers to

what employers say...

Great Expectations

• Do you look like the right person?– Personal appearance– Manner– Paperwork

• Can an employer count on you?– Attendance– Punctuality– Reliability

Great Expectations

• What can you do?– Skills– Abilities– Experience– Education– Training– Interests– Hobbies– Volunteer Work– Life Experience– Achievements

Importance of Describing Your Skills

•More than 80% of all job seekers are unable to describe their skills in an interview.

Three Types of Skills

1. Self-Management Skills2. Transferable Skills3. Job-Related Skills

Identifying Your Skills

• Self-Management Skills– Describe your personality– Allow you to adapt to new situations– Make you a good worker

Identifying Your Skills

• Transferable Skills– Can be used in a variety of jobs– Usually require some training or experience– Are often used for screening applicants

Identifying Your Skills

• Job-Related Skills• Required for a particular job• Usually require some training or experience• Often used for screening applicants

Areas of Experience

• Work– Paid work– Informal work like babysitting family– Volunteer work

• School and Extracurricular Experiences– Vocational training programs– Other related courses– Extracurricular activities, including clubs and

sports

Areas of Experience

• Hobbies, Family Experiences, and Other Experiences– Hobbies and special-interest activities– Family responsibilities– Church activities– Any experience that required responsibility, hard

work, or special knowledge

A Resume Is...

• Expected by many employers• A quick way to make an impression – either

good or bad• A way to answer “Why should I hire you?” by

listing related skills, accomplishments, and experiences

• More likely to get you screened out than screened in

Your Resumé

• If you don’t have the specific skill used in the job you’re applying for, how can you show you can learn that skill quickly?– Mention things you can do which are somewhat

similar

Your Resumé

• Job Application– Education– Work experience– References

• Resumé– All of the above plus• Skills• Abilities• Accomplishments

Your Resumé

• Pour On the Sizzle– You have to become your own salesperson– Show employers how you can help them– Promote your skills• Take a skill needed for the job you want and add details

to show how good you are at it

See Powerhouse Buzzwords on p. 13 in Job Hunting Handbook

Sizzle is irresistible

Your Resumé

• Job Hunting Handbook– Page 14• Hints for writing a winning resume

– Page 15• Nuts and Bolts

Your Resumé

• Assignment: Creating a Resumé– Where does the information about skills and

abilities come from for my resume?– How can I turn my resume into sales literature?

CTAE-FS-10: Career Development: Learners plan and manage academic-career plans and employment relations.

You’re a nice person, but what can you do?

Wicked Witch of the West