It’s never too early to start planning. In my opinion, we should be checking our current position against our plans and goals for the future. Making corrections where necessary. I’m currently a Senior in the MIS program at WSU. I won’t be graduating until the summer semester; even so, I think that now is the perfect time to start looking at employment opportunities.
As such I’ve spent quite a bit of time looking at job postings lately. There are many, many websites out there for job seekers to find open positions. One of my favorite places to look for job openings is at my University’s career center. I was recently looking through available positions and found a posting that I felt was a good match for me. So, I set about preparing my resume to send to the company.
One of the best pieces of advice for job seekers is to pay attention to what employers need. When looking through a job posting, pay attention to what skills the employer asks for. If the skills asked match what your strengths are, make sure that you put those strengths forward in your resume. Here’s an example.
I found this job posting on the WSU Handshake website. The requirements for the position list several technologies and skills that applicants should possess. After looking through the post I created a list of ten keywords that I should make sure I have prominently placed in my resume:
- SDLC (Software Development Life Cycle)
- Agile Development
- Information Systems
- Problem-Solving
- Analytical
- C#
- C++
- MSSQL (Microsoft SQL)
- Team Player
- Business Communication
While making this list I wanted to make sure that I was able to highlight my ability, or experience, with those topics. In this case, I felt that I would be able to do so.
My next step was to group these keywords into categories. This way I would have a plan for what parts of my resume I needed to update to show the person reviewing resumes that I was a good fit for the position. In this example, several of the keywords listed relate to technologies that I have used, or technologies that I have studied in class. The rest of the keywords relate to personal skills and work experience.
The next step was to update my resume. I made sure to mention the classes I’ve taken covering SDLC, agile development and Information Systems. I also listed some projects that I have worked on using the programming languages listed (C#, C++, MSSQL). Then, under my work experience, I made sure to list projects that I have participated in that required Analytical, Problem-Solving skills. I also highlighted the parts of my work experience that demonstrates being a Team-Player and using Business Communication techniques effectively.
In the end, I feel confident that when my resume is received it will present the image of a candidate who is worth the time investment of an interview.
Thanks for reading! Hopefully, you’ll return for the next installment of this blog. Until then, keep communicating professionally!
Professionally Speaking 