How to Prepare a Good Resume for The Corporate World and Prepare for an Interview
Looking for a new job, whether you have decades of experience or are just starting out after college, is often challenging and nerve-wracking. Competition is fierce, and with hundreds of candidates vying for each open position, recruiters and hiring managers often dismiss applicants for seemingly small infractions. To ensure that you rise to the top of the list and land your dream job in corporate America, you need to both create a killer resume that shows why you are the perfect person for the job, and knock their socks off in an interview.
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Instructions
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Preparing a Resume
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Craft a statement that describes you and your skills. For example, "Public relations professional with 10 years of experience in creating dynamic public relations campaigns." This statement appears at the top of the resume, underneath your contact information and is designed to be a headline that entices the recruiter to read more.
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Summarize your qualifications in five to 10 bullet points. Use concise sentence fragments that capture the highlights of your career as they relate to the position you seek. Point out your top skills, abilities and accomplishments; you can go into greater detail in the employment history section. Include keywords; look in the job listings for your industry for words that appear regularly to determine the most important keywords that will get your resume noticed.
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Detail your employment history for the past 10 to 15 years; longer if you're seeking an upper management position. If you have more experience, summarize that in a single entry. Include the name of the employer, dates of employment and information about your duties and accomplishments that back up your claims in the summary section. Use numbers to quantify your accomplishments; numbers add specificity and weight to your claims.
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Highlight any of your major accomplishments at each position. For example, if you consistently exceeded sales targets, or landed a major account, include that in your employment history.
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Include information about your education and training. List the type of degree, subject and institution. Detail any certifications or additional training you've completed as well.
Preparing for an Interview
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Research the company before your interview. Explore its website, read a copy of the annual report and search for news stories featuring the company. Understand the issues and challenges that the company faces and what it is working on now. Think about how you can demonstrate that your skills will help the company meet its challenges and goals.
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Plan your route to the interview so you are not late. Allow for traffic and delays; at worst, you arrive a few minutes early.
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Practice interview with a friend or career counselor to prepare answers to tough questions. Ask for feedback; you may not realize, for example, that you fidget or nervously tuck your hair behind your ear repeatedly.
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Plan your attire. A few days before the interview, check your outfit for stains, tears and missing buttons. Give yourself enough time to correct any issues or plan a backup outfit. Get a haircut if necessary, and women should get a manicure with a subtle, neutral polish.
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Print clean copies of your resume. Even though you've already sent a resume, the interviewer may need a fresh copies. Print a copy of your reference list with contact information; the interviewer or HR may ask for that information at the end of the interview.
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Prepare your portfolio. Confirm that it is up to date and includes copies of your best work.
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Get a good night's sleep the night before. Do everything you can to arrive at the interview fresh, well-rested and energetic.
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Tips & Warnings
Proofread your resume, and then have someone else proofread it again.
Follow-up with a thank you note after the interview. Express your interest in the position and follow up on any points you discussed during the interview.
References
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