Resume help

[63dot]

Believe it or not, in the old days here, and before at the EDD and a printshop, I overlooked resumes and gave out advice. This was in the days of the typewriter and the one page resume rule. Now resumes are slightly larger and often emailed so over one page is not an automatic dismissal.

I was thinking of getting a PT job while I was building my business and going to school. I put my regular experience down, the accredited education, objective, etc.

But I was thinking of putting in trade school, unaccredited info into my resumes. Good Idea? I went to the Microsoft technician's school to get my Microsoft Certification training (places like that would be New Horizons, Microsoft Silicon Valley Campus, and Full Sail).

All Microsoft schools are required, then by Bill Gates, to only go for the lowest possible standard, sound familar?, and are only accredited by the US Department of Education. But that's the lowest form of accredidation and used for business license purposes mostly.

The real and only accredidation for the education section of a resume are the regional accrediting bodies, like the Western Association of Schools and Colleges which covers K-12, junior colleges, and senior colleges like Stanford, Cal, and San Jose State, for instance.

Do any of you put in trade schools into your education section or is that a strict no-no?

Thanks in advance.

 

[abijnk]

If I were you I would include it only when relevant to the job I was applying for.

 

[firestarter]

Put it in the 'skills' section of your resume.

You're right, it's not 'proper' education - but the course you took will have benefitted you, so it should be listed.

 

[63dot]

If I were you I would include it only when relevant to the job I was applying for.

I sometimes get techie PT jobs, and I used to put my unaccredited Microsoft school in the education section, mostly in order to keep the resume to one page.

But I am thinking of adding a trade and/or professional school section, where I have MS, CompTIA, Cisco, and Cal Bar units which can help in the fields of high tech, and PT law firm work.

Somehow, I just don't feel appropriate in listing unaccredited education in my education section of my resume.

I have seen resumes by CPAs or accountants working towards that title, who have attended CPA seminars or prep schools, but they never put that information down in the education section of their resume. I just don't know what the current custom is these days.

 

[63dot]

Put it in the 'skills' section of your resume.

You're right, it's not 'proper' education - but the course you took will have benefitted you, so it should be listed.

You know, that's a great idea. I was thinking of working for a lawyer who has a tax preparing service who is a friend, and I could list my Cal Bar courses I took there in that skills section.

If there is a PT techie job out there, I will list my MS school courses, Cisco Academy courses, and other stuff in that skills section.

 

[miloblithe]

Many of the resumes I've reviewed have "Certifications" or "Trainings" sections in addition to a section for formal education.

I don't see any problem with one or two certifications in an education section, but the last thing you'd want is for the certifications to crowd out the formal education.

I'd reserve "skills" for things that you know how to do but have no training or certification on.

 

[firestarter]

Personally, I would include all skills in your resume whatever job you're going for.

Even if you may think it's irrelevant, your future employer might be impressed by a techie with legal knowledge or whatever. Personally (and I've done a good amount of hiring over the last few years) I like to see that a candidate is interesting and is bringing a range of skills to the job. Multi disciplinary skill sets indicate good flexibility and a willingness to learn - what employer would see this as a bad thing?

Don't get too hung up on formalities. Any hiring manager these days who would enforce a strict 'one sheet of paper' policy is an idiot that you wouldn't want to work for.

 

[abijnk]

Many of the resumes I've reviewed have "Certifications" or "Trainings" sections in addition to a section for formal education.

I don't see any problem with one or two certifications in an education section, but the last thing you'd want is for the certifications to crowd out the formal education.

I'd reserve "skills" for things that you know how to do but have no training or certification on.

I'd say you are spot on here.

 

[63dot]

Many thanks, plus when I was an HR person, but more like a govt clerk, he he, like I used to be, probably only has to look at an email as opposed to a paper resume, so who cares if the word file goes over 1 page, it's probably not noticeable.

I also won't put down my retail experience from '75-late '80s since I probably don't have to put down that I worked at my parent's retail shop. Back then, in my HR days, I was told that relevant information towards any current position was stuff in the past 7 years, much like taxes.

 

[descartes]

Many thanks, plus when I was an HR person, but more like a govt clerk, he he, like I used to be, probably only has to look at an email as opposed to a paper resume, so who cares if the word file goes over 1 page, it's probably not noticeable.

I also won't put down my retail experience from '75-late '80s since I probably don't have to put down that I worked at my parent's retail shop. Back then, in my HR days, I was told that relevant information towards any current position was stuff in the past 7 years, much like taxes.

I think for the most part the 1 page limit is still preferred, no?

 

[miloblithe]

I think for the most part the 1 page limit is still preferred, no?

I think it really depends on the field. If you've done a lot of consultancies and have a long list of publications, for instance, squeezing it all onto one page is not really a good idea.

Also, everyone should tailor their resume for each job they apply for. It's time consuming, but still ideal. Some secondary skills that might be good to mention for one job might be excessive padding for another.