The almighty resume...

We all know how important a well structured, strong resume is...I mean, that's what we basically work our butts off in school for.

...We join our school TV or radio station...We become Admissions Ambassadors, giving tours to prospective students, tutors, or mentors...We apply for different honor societies and even join clubs related to our majors...All because we want to put those experiences on our resume...All because we want to look more desirable to employers...(If you're not doing these things, you should start!)...

One thing I've learned is that leadership skills are one of the most important things employers look for in a potential hire.

Prospective Investigative Interns...

My supervisor, Producer Ed Dress, is in charge of interviewing all potential interns and making all the hiring decisions. Now that I work beside him, I also must help make decisions regarding who would be best for our department. Just so you know, it is a HUGE turnoff when an interviewee is TOO enthusiastic...We had one girl practically begging us to hire her for the internship. Needless to say, she wasn't hired.

Let your resume sell yourself. Ed will ask questions based off of the different experiences he sees down on paper. Then, he will ask you how you might handle certain situations that might occur in the office. Now don't get me wrong, be enthusiastic...And, smile! But, don't overdue it. Fakeness is easy to pick-up on.

The length of an interview varies, that's why a strong resume will help the hiree remember you. Your interview may only last for 15 minutes. Especially since the journalism industry is unpredictable and journalists are always on deadline.

A journalist might think the day is going really slow. Then, all of a sudden, they're paged and being sent down to City Hall to chase after Andy Reid's sons...That's the way it is...

So anyway, even if your resume lasts 15 minutes...You can be remembered! A strong resume helps the hiree, in the investigators case Ed, remember your face. It's has that, "Oh yeah, I liked him/her," effect.

Resume Tips...

• Revise, revise, revise! Just like your cover letter, you don't want any misspellings or typos!

• Your resume should be short and to the point. I've always been told to keep my resume to 1 page. Being a young, undergraduate student it's not necessary to have more then 1 page. If you are an older adult, with more experience you may need more than 1 page. (That's what the lady in my Career and Academic Planning Center told me at Rowan...I followed her advice and I seem to be doing well).

• Like your cover letter, structure your resume so that it suits the position you are applying for. Your objective section, the discripter sentence that tells the employer what your goal is and why you'd be good at it, should be changed with every position you apply for so that it relates to that position.

• Include your part time job even if it doesn't relate to the journalism position you're applying for. It shows employers that you've had previous work experience. (Some people may tell you not to include these little part time jobs in your resume...I included my part time serving position at Famous Dave's in mine.)

• Use neutral color paper, normal margins (1inch on the top/bottom and 1.25inch on the sides), and allow some space between each section. Your resume should be easy on the eyes...The easier to read, the better.

• Don't write in first person using "I."

• Be consistent in your bolding, capitalization, bulleting, and italicizing.

• In order to save space, don't include jobs that you've had 10 or 15 years back.

Sample resumes...

JobStar Central is a great place to find sample resumes, not just cover letters. They offer tips as well.

Also, check out RemXfinancial.com. Liz Gangi, an alumni in my sorority at Rowan, Alpha Epsilon Phi, is a staffing manager at RemX and came to our Alumni Career Day last year. She gave us a whole packet with resume and interviewing tips.

Fisher, Holly. (April 2006). Strong cover letter, resume keys to getting noticed. Quill. 94, 45.

Gangi, Liz. (2007). Resume tips. RemX financial staffing. www.remxfinancial.com