The low-tech paper resume survives.
But in a fast-moving, highly competitive job market, the traditional one- to two-page summary is just a basic start toward getting noticed by employers, say career counseling experts. Social media, of course, is a must-use part of the mix. But just as with ink on paper, the wrong word or emphasis can doom an applicant's prospects at the start.
And in the world of Facebook, blogs and Twitter, the "delete" key doesn't.
"There's no such thing as erasing information once it's out there," said Tammy Craig, director of the Career Development Center at the University of Illinois Springfield. "I always tell students I work with, 'Ask yourself this question: I'm going to post this. Twenty years down the road, do I want the whole world to know this?' "
Social media is crucial in job marketing, Craig said. LinkedIn is considered a basic requirement, she said, but personal websites, online portfolios, Twitter and blogs are increasingly used by employers to data mine for talent. The key is to make sure information is professionally presented and up-to-date.
Resume writing should begin well before students go out into the world, Craig said, and it's an ongoing process of updating and reorganizing. Separate one-on-one counseling sessions for graduate and undergraduate students at UIS — dubbed "Resumania" — go through the basics.
The article was published by The State Journal-Register on January 25, 2015.
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