Resume Rubric

I got this from school back in 2007. I saved this onto a disk about tips on how to improve your resume. You should take a look:

Resume Rubric

Have you…

o …targeted your resume to the job ad?

o …put the most relevant information in the visual centre of the resume?

o …expressed your experience within the language of your potential employer/industry?

o …organized your resume so that it is easy for the employer to see you have the skills and experience for the job?

o …included your current and correct contact information? (And does your e-mail address sound professional?)

o …carefully proofread and edited your resume? Do not rely on spell check.

o …created a visually appealing and professional looking resume?

o …included relevant information and omitted or briefly summarized dated or unrelated experience?

o …written a targeted cover letter?

o …picked appropriate references? Does the employer want you to include them with your resume or at the interview?

o …researched the company/employer?


Top 10 Proofreading Tips
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Print out the resume.

Read it slowly, one word at a time. Focus on:

Dates of Employment
Phone numbers and e-mail addresses
Spelling of proper nouns
Headings
Consistency of formatting

Mark any changes on the proof with a pen (green/red).

Read it backwards, one word at a time.

Make the changes to the document on your computer.

Print it again.

Read it again.

Compare the proof version with pen marks to the new proof. Check off that each correction was made.

Let it sit overnight.

Ask two other capable proofreaders to read it with a critical eye.





















Top Ten Tips cited from the following:

Whitcomb, Susan Britton. Resume Magic: Trade Secrets of a Professional Resume Writer (3rd ed.). Indianapolis, IN: JIST Publishing, Inc. 2007


Top 10 Resume Strategy Tips
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Write like an advertising copywriter, not an autobiographer.

Zero in on what the employer needs by reviewing position postings or conducting informational interviews.

Substantiate your ability to do the job by including results.

Omit extraneous information—employers looking for a graphic artist will rarely care that your degree is in Home Economics (list bachelor’s degree but not the subject area).

Create multiple resumes for multiple targets.

Position critical information (keyword & accomplishments) in the first third of the page.

Briefly summarize or omit dated information.

Prioritize the sentences that comprise your job descriptions—place the most relevant information first and the less relevant information last.

Spin information to be as transferable as possible—frame your experience within the framework/language of your potential employer.

Use your resume wisely. Whenever possible, deliver your resume in person. Humans make hiring decisions. Get face-to-face with employers to get an edge over your competition.

Top 10 Visual Appeal Tips

21.Be consistent in design treatments:
a. Use the same tab spacing or amount of vertical space between every category heading and between every bullet.
b. If you apply bold and underline to one position title, use the same treatment consistently on all other position titles. The same idea holds for treatment of other headings/sub-headings.

22. Avoid starting too many consecutive lines with bullets; fewer groupings of bullets will help guide the reader’s eye to key information.

23. Add white space.

24. Minimize the space between the bullet position and the text position.

25. Reserve bullets for accomplishments rather than responsibilities.

26. Limit the number of tab stops on the page.

27. Break up lengthy paragraphs - use sub-headings.

28. Balance the resume top-to-bottom and left-to-right.

29. Use one font style, possibly two.

30. Design within a logical hierarchy of font-work (bold, underline, point size of fonts) and case (all caps, small caps, upper and lower case) to provide a sense of order and to control the reader’s eye toward important information.

Remember to place your most important information on the visual centre of the page (fold a piece of paper into three sections – like folding a letter for an envelope – mark a one-inch line from the top fold (top and bottom).