Resume question(s)

[midjd]

DH has the opportunity to apply for what he would consider his "dream job" with a Fortune 500 company. They are really big on employee referrals; one of my friends' husbands works there (doing the same job DH is seeking - maintenance mechanic) and seems to think he'd be a shoo-in.

Anyway, this position asks for EITHER: an associates' degree + 2 years relevant experience; or technical certificate + 4 years' relevant experience; or 8 years' relevant experience.

DH is a couple of credits away from his AAS, although he's not enrolled for the fall semester. He has 6 or so years of relevant experience at 2 different places. He is also a Chrysler-certified mechanic. So I think, experience-wise, he should be fine - problem is, I'm not sure how to order things on his resume.

I've always done the following:

Name/contact info
Education - blah blah
Experience - most recent job first, then down the list chronologically, with 2-3 sentence descriptions of duties.

But in this case, the relevant experience is from 2002-2006 and 2008-2011 - should the jobs be listed with job length instead of the specific dates? I know he probably shouldn't put his most recent job first, since it's not really related to the job he's seeking... but I'm not too familiar with alternate resume formats, and I don't want to make it look like he has a bunch of gaps or job-hops frequently.

Any other resume tips are also appreciated

[tloonya]

No gaps!
List all jobs but whichevers are related to a dream job - pay attention more to them.
Be specific and right to the point.
Whichever are noit related - find anything that can benefit dream job from unrelated experience and make it stand out!
Resume is important but luck will play a huge role! So Good Luck!
And please do not fail to update us all on how things are going BEFORE and AFTER the interview.

[Phoenix84]

I always did the same as you. Start out with the name/contact info, go over your education (more recent first) then job (most recent first). He really should finish his AAS sometime.

[raeoflyte]

I would recommend a functional resume instead of a chronological resume. So you'll list the relevent job experience together near the top usually without specific dates of when the experience occurred, and then at the bottom list job experience. That can still be chronological so it will show he doesn't have job gaps, but since you've already detailed out experience it will be fairly brief.

[alabamagal]

I've seen function resumes, and personnaly don't care for them. Maybe I just haven't seen a good one.

I would suggest that in the introduction section of the resume, just list it as "An experienced industrial mechanic with xx certifications..."

If I was looking for a certain experience, I would then just skip over any jobs that were not relevent. When reading a function resume with someone who has worked several different places, I always try to piece together their job history.

[midjd]

Thanks Rae! I was thinking a more skills-organized resume would probably be better. And yes, Loony, I will be sure to post hourly updates on the interview process.

Georgia, good point. That's what worries me about deviating from the normal resume format - it might look like he's trying to hide a gap in employment.

He really should finish his AAS sometime.

That's what my mom says. I felt the same way for a while, but IMO Ivy Tech degrees are not worth the paper on which they're printed... his classes were a joke. If he gets this job, they offer tuition assistance and will probably pay for him to finish at IUPUI, but no way are we spending another dime on that degree. Complete waste of time and money.

[thyme4change]

I would recommend a functional resume instead of a chronological resume.

I have yet to meet a recruiter or an HR manager who actually likes these. Unfortunately, most people want to know what you've done lately. Maybe it is just in my world. I've tried to get away with functional resumes before and it has never been successful for me. They sound great conceptually, but people in finance are stodgy and don't want to go searching around to find out that you've had 9 jobs in 4 years and 6 of those weren't relevant, and now you are trying to fool the hiring manager into thinking your 1980's Lotus spreadsheet work will make you qualified for their position.

[raeoflyte]

That makes sense, but is it better to stick with chronological and just have a very brief detail about your current job?

When its a blind resume, you know they're just going to skim it, and I don't want the good stuff randomly in the middle where it will probably be missed. (Not really Mid's dh's situation since he'll have an inside referral).

[thyme4change]

I have a box at the top of my resume with bullets that detail out the # of years experience I have with that particular skill. I change that box to match the job posting every time I submit my resume. The box is a little more than 1 inch tall. Then I list my jobs chronologically, but I arrange the bullets underneath to match the job posting - especially with my current/last job.

[raeoflyte]

That is what I was thinking as a functional resume, although I wouldn't have limited it by space. I like that though. All my good experience is from previous jobs right now.

[thyme4change]

You don't want to submit two resumes - the first page being a list of skills and the second being a list of jobs. The bullets are very concise
- 5 years XYZ
- 6 years ABC

But then in the chronological section I give details about the projects that back-up those skills. So the limited space is a function of catching someone's eye and sending them off looking for those meaty details.

[midjd]

Thanks for the responses - it's very helpful to know how different types of resumes are received by hiring managers (I get a fair number of resumes, but they're all from attorneys and mostly follow the name/education/experience model).

So Thyme, just to clarify, it would look like this? -

Mid DH - contact info
Skills - 4 years fixing machines; 3 years putting up with a naggy wife, etc.
Experience - ABC Company, December 2011 - Present (description)
ZYX Company, August 2009 - November 2011 (description)

... and so forth?

How should he address his (lack of degree)? I was thinking it should be in there somewhere, especially since he took a year off work to go to school, but putting in a separate education section would take up valuable space.

Sorry for all the questions... I just really, really want him to get this job! He is miserable at his current one and this would be a huge jump in pay/benefits (and a much better work environment).

[NomoreDramaQ1015]

I wouldn't address the lack of a degree on my resume. I would only do so when/if asked. The thing is if you bring it up you are going to draw attention to it and that's going to influence whoever is reading it from that point onward. You want them to be focused on everything your DH has to offer, not the fact that he lacks a degree.

[thyme4change]

Yes, that is pretty much the format. As I said, I put a big box around the "Skills" section to kind of call it out.

As for the lack of degree, you might want to highlight how much education he does have, rather than try to hide it. So, say:

- 82 credits of blah, blah at such-and-such institute (degree requires 87 credits)
- Blankety-blank certification from the-other-institute

Here is one that is okay:



I'm not totally crazy about all the boxes, it is a little busy - but it might get you started.

[midjd]

I wouldn't address the lack of a degree on my resume. I would only do so when/if asked. The thing is if you bring it up you are going to draw attention to it and that's going to influence whoever is reading it from that point onward. You want them to be focused on everything your DH has to offer, not the fact that he lacks a degree.

True. I need to check and see exactly how many credits he's missing - he needed 68 for the AAS, I think he had around 55. Also need to double-check the qualifications for the posting - if he can squeeze 6 years of experience + the technical cert, that would be enough experience even without any college credits.

Thanks for the sample, Thyme! ;D

Apparently the process is: submit resume through secret employee referral site, take online skills test, phone interview, in person interview, offer letter ~2 weeks later. I know once he gets to the interview stage he should be fine - it's just getting his foot in the door that worries me.

[NomoreDramaQ1015]

Thyme is right that if you want to address he has taken classes somewhere that are relevant to the job he is trying to get you should put X school: "credits earned". That makes it clear he does not have an actual degree without sounding like you are trying to excuse the fact.