Part 1 – 9 tips for creating a kick arse folio
Part 2 – A brief guide to writing a killer resume
Part 3 – Job Hunting, Research and the Cover Letter that sells.
Part 4 – The Interview
You’ve just spent 3 to 5 years at university studying for that degree. You get up on that stage, collect your piece of paper and after getting over the traditional shock of finishing uni and confronting what I like to call “now what?” syndrome, you think “hmm I think maybe I should get a job”. Unfortunately for many design graduates this is a harder road than uni and many experience more than their fair share of job hunting pain. It is also tough for those who are changing jobs or returning to the industry after a bit of timeout. The following four part series is by no means a guarantee that you’ll get your dream job, but hopefully the advice, tips and tricks that follow will help.
Part 2 – A brief guide to writing a killer resume
So you’ve put together your kick arse folio which you are going to use as a strategic tool to show potential employers. To complement your folio you are going to need a killer resume.
The purpose of a resume is to supply employers a standard set of information including your name, contact information, work experience and education.
It is important to remember that the resume is a business document that, in most cases, is the first contact you have with a prospective employer. This means that it needs to be laid out and written in a professional style that captures the interest of a potential employer. You need to grab a potential employers attention in the first 2 paragraphs or they are unlikely to even bother reading the rest.
When writing your resume, much like your folio, you need to keep in mind that for each position you apply for you will need to tailor it to that position. The best way to do this is to create a master resume, the master resume serves as a basis for you to quickly pull information out of and create customized resumes for each position you apply for.
Resume Formatting
Like your folio, the layout and formatting of your resume needs to be minimal, clean, effective and professional. It also needs to be in a format that is easily editable so that you can update it easily. Remember, even though you are a designer, you do not need to create a graphically flashy resume. But you also don’t want to have one that makes it look like you can only use word.
Information you will need to include on your resume
Personal details – Name & contact details
Education – Tertiary (Degree, University, Years attended, relevant subjects to the job you are applying for. Some employers may ask for an official transcript of results.) & Secondary (Year and name of school).
Vacation Work/Internships/Course Placements related to the position – where, how long, responsibilities and achievements.
Employment History – full-time, part-time, casual, self-employment and voluntary employment details.
Skills – skills related directly to your profession and the position you are applying for.
Extra Curricular Activities/Interests – community or university involvement, hobbies and sports.
Referees
Optional Information
Career Objective
If you decide to include a Career objective at the top of your resume it serves as an advertising headline, letting a potential employer know what services are being offered.
Professional Memberships
eg: DIA (Australian Institute of Design), IDSA (Industrial Designers Society of America).
Awards & Exhibitions
Include awards or exhibitions that are directly relevant to the job.
Resume Do’s
1. Make the format of your resume clear.
2. Proof Read.
3. Keep your resume concise – not more than two pages.
4. Get someone to proof read your resume for you.
5. Always send a cover letter with your resume.
Resume Don’ts
1. Don’t write your resume in the first person.
2. Don’t list personal information such as health, age, sex, race, marital status.
3. Don’t put too much information on your resume — leave some white space on the page.
4. Don’t make any spelling mistakes.
5. Don’t lie on your resume.
Resume Resources
There are hundreds upon thousands of resources on writing resumes both online and offline. So I have included a quick list of the best.
The Rita Sue Siegel Resources Resume Guide
The Seek Resume Guide
Writearesume.org
Hopefully you have found a small droplet of advice or information in this article that will help you get that dream job. If you did please be generous and share this article and/or subscribe to the design droplets RSS Feed to keep up to date on the following articles in the series and other free tips, tricks, articles or advice on design droplets.
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