Deborah Brown-Volkman, PCC, President of Surpass Your Dreams
1. How can a college senior with minimal work experience prepare themselves for writing a resume that will get them a job after graduating?
DBV: Experience comes from different places besides work; volunteering, hobbies, and education. Best thing you can do is get a few job descriptions of the positions you will be or want to apply for. Identify the gaps and look for ways to fill them using the 3 areas I just stated. Employers want to know you can do the job, and when you haven’t done the job for pay, you just have to look for other ways to show you can handle the position.
2. How can the student be guided to see how to translate his/her school projects into marketable skills?
DBV: Again, it comes down to the positions you are applying for. A resume makes a case for a position, so as long as you can make your case, using school projects as an example, then you’ve shown how your education is your experience.
3. Please list the two major mistakes that people make when they create their resume.
DBV:(1) They craft their resume without a specific position in mind.
(2) They want the employer to figure out what position they should be suited for rather than figuring that out themselves.
Deborah Brown-Volkman, PCC, is a veteran career coach, and President of Surpass Your Dreams. Deborah provides Career Coaching for those who want a new job, new career, or new way to flourish in today’s workplace. Deborah has been featured in Wall Street Journal, New York Times & Fortune Magazine and wrote Coach Yourself To A New Career, Don’t Blow It! The Right Words For The Right Job, and How To Feel Great At Work Every Day. Deborah’s web site http://www.surpassyourdreams.com