need some resume examples

[Resume Writer]

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Francois M. Botha​

90 Sunset Dr., Beverly Hills, California 90210 – United States​

Home Phone: 618-123-456 Cell Phone: 619-123-3456​

July, 2004,​

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Mr. Pierre Bouche,

I have been following British Airways and I am extremely impressed with the growth occurring in both the expansion of your route structure as well as the possible new equipment that British Airways may purchase and receive in the near future. I have dedicated all of my energies towards achieving the dream of becoming an airline pilot for the last nine + years and would like to be considered for a First Officer/ Pilot Recruitment position with your airline.

I have gained knowledge of this industry on many different levels in pursuit of my desire to become a part of your winning team. I have focused on developing skills over time through all available resources and training accessible to me. I have directed all of my training, job, and life experience towards this goal of working for a respectable and successful airline like British Airways. I believe that if given the opportunity to become a British Airways employee, I can be part of a tradition that is rich in pride while contributing in many ways to make your organization even that much stronger. At 14 years of age I feel and I am also very confident that I can bring a lot more to your flight department than just being a very ‘good’ pilot. As a former Delta Airlines employee (ATL), I am extremely well rounded in aviation from all aspects and I realize that the passenger is a top priority and should always be treated extremely well and respected, and going the extra mile and always giving 110% of yourself is a key in this business. I very strongly feel that I can be a “valuable” asset to British Airways for many years, and I also do believe that the excellent and flawless reviews that I currently receive at my present company will continue at your airline.


I feel that my experience combined with my unyielding desire to realize my dream has helped shape me into a well disciplined, highly motivated pilot. While I want to continuously improve my ability and skills as a pilot, I also hope to continue to grow in areas of team building and upper level leadership skills. I feel that my motivation, dedication, and desires combined with my skills and leadership ability would make me an asset to your company. I would like to be considered to be a part of the excitement that you and your team at British Airways are experiencing, and I am currently available to devote myself at all times for any ground school and training opportunities.



I am sure that you realize that a brief letter and a resume (which I have attached) can convey only a limited sense of a person’s dedication, motivation, and abilities. I would welcome an opportunity to meet with you in person to discuss my accomplishments and experiences, at your convenience. I can be reached at the above number and look forward to hearing from you and possibly meeting with you in the near future.



Sincerely,



Francois M. Botha


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The actual resume itself can be in many forms, I never have bought into spending money for a service to do this since format is not overly important, it is what is on the resume that counts.. The majority of people that I know have been successful on their own without wasting the money.


Your name
Address
Phone number
Cell number
e-mail address

(The above should be centered on the page)

Objective: To obtain a full time pilot position with British Airways



Certificates and Ratings: Pilot certificates and ratings, instructor certificate and ratings, First Class Medical, Ground instructor certificate and ratings, A & P, FCC Radiotelephone Permit, etc. (bobby is right on with this)

Flight Time: (center the total, something like, "Total 4565)
Then break it down into PIC, multi, instrument, cross-country, night, dual given, etc. If you have good turbine, which it appears that you do, put it fairly high. You want to set up nicely-tabulated columns, with the most significant times highest up. ( I agree)

Experience: State your employers and dates of employment. Last employer first. Describe your job duties briefly and succinctly and aircraft flown, e.g. "Trained ab initio Alitalia crews using the line-oriented flight training philosophy. Aircraft flown: PA-44, PA-28-160, MO20." (agree again)

Then, Technical Training. List your school and/or source of training.

Education: Put down your college, degree earned and major. If you graduated cum laude and had a high GPA, put it down. That is a major plus, no matter when you graduated.

Personal info: Date of birth, etc.

Finally, at the bottom:

Availability: Immediate ( I would/did skip this)

I see no need to waste a line by saying that your references are available on request. Everyone has references. They know you have references. ( I included this line but it is really not needed)

As those I have spoken to who review these on a daily basis, most could care less about the "format", what will make you or break you is your experience, and what is ON the resume.

It does not take a brain surgeon to come up with a good resume, use the above format and you should be fine....

good luck on the project,

3 5 0

First, let me ask you something 350. How much time do you think someone would have to read that cover letter? The cover letter should be no more than three paragraphs, with only 3-4 sentences per paragraph. Think about when you read a newspaper. You are scanning for information; same with a cover letter. A cover letter is designed to get them to read the resume, not convey your life story.

Second, there are many things you included on the resume that I strongly advise against. No cell phone number for the reasons that Tony stated. No personal information for EEOC reasons. Putting the availability can work for or against you, depending upon your availability.

I also disagree that the format does not matter. If it is not readable, you bet it matters. Further, if you do not have the correct format for online applications, and you try to just post a regular Word document in the form, you will see what a bad format will do on the other end that gets received by HR. I just did a whole television segment on this very topic.

You are correct that what is in the content of the resume matters. But never assume that "everyone knows what a pilot does." The first people who review resumes are most likely either HR Clerks or Computers. If you do not have the keywords in the resume, and you think the computer or the HR clerk knows what a pilot does, you are sadly mistaken. Remember, never ASSUME. (you know what that means! )

Am I a brain surgeon? Nope. But I will tell you this. I did hiring for many years, 40 hours a week (or more), 49-50 weeks per year. I have HR people come to me to have their resume done. That, to me, speaks volumes.

Everyone has their specialty; this happens to be mine. As you have seen in this thread, I have had a lot of happy people who have gotten interviews. I have done resumes for pilots that are looking for other things and also relatives of pilots who are not even in the aviation business.

I do not consider my services a "waste of money." As I have said before, if people can do their own resume and cover letter, I think that is great. I have had people come to me with documents that were fine the way they were. I do not take people's money if I feel that there does not need to be any improvement.

I recently had a gentleman who was applying for a Postal Inspector position who wanted me to look over his Federal KSA's (Knowledge, Skills and Abilities). Now, that could have meant a LOT of money for me because it takes a great deal of time to put those together. Not only did I tell him they were fine the way they were, but I did not take a DIME from him for reviewing them.

I believe very strongly in integrity in my business. If someone needs help, I will tell them; conversely, if they don't, I will tell them that also.

Kathy

 

[English]

Careful, Kathy. 350driver is never wrong. Just ask him

 

[dash8driver]

Careful, Kathy. 350driver is never wrong. Just ask him

hahaha.. i'll agree with that.. hit the nail on the head.

not that kathy needs concurrance, but.. i agree fully and have used the same concepts whenever i applied for jobs. format is very important, you cant just have stuff slapped onto the page. if you take the time to make your resume easy to read. make the pertinent info that they need in the 30 seconds they look at your resume jump out at them. when they are rifleing through who knows how many resumes, they spend a short time looking at it before they kep it or can it. you dont want yours to have all the right info in all the wrong places and get canned accidentally.

the main formula i've used for putting information on my resume is just the information that they need to determine that you're employable, they want you and where to find you. that means contact info, qualifying experience (flight time, education, work history, etc), and maybe some extra RELATED stuff that supports your qualifications, dedication, etc.

cover letters.. if you do a search online you can find a lot of example of cover letters and they are going to tell you exactly what kathy said. 3 short paragraphs. the formula usually is 1st paragraph is a short intro to yourself and what you want, why you're writing, etc. 2nd paragraph is to highlight the most important information about you, stuff thats going to compel them to want to read your resume. 3rd paragraph is all about sewing it up, thanking them and the other standard protocol lines are thrown in there.

advice for the original poster...go to the ERAU career development center. they have very good resources for finding a job, including stuff on how to write a pilot resume and copys of ones from people who have been hired by airlines.

 

[TonyC]

I played like a HR guy as I read this "Cover Letter."

I stopped reading the second paragraph halfway through, skipped the third, and read enough of the last to realize that I, as a hypothetical HR hiring guy just got insulted. OF COURSE I know the limitations of a cover letter, and I KNOW why you put the phone number up there, and you WILL NOT be hearing from me.


My 2 cents...

 

[dash8driver]

I played like a HR guy as I read this "Cover Letter."

I stopped reading the second paragraph halfway through, skipped the third, and read enough of the last to realize that I, as a hypothetical HR hiring guy just got insulted. OF COURSE I know the limitations of a cover letter, and I KNOW why you put the phone number up there, and you WILL NOT be hearing from me.


My 2 cents...

wow tony! you have some real patience! i think you get the award for reading the most of that letter. i didnt even get that far...heh

 

[350DRIVER]

First, let me ask you something 350. How much time do you think someone would have to read that cover letter? The cover letter should be no more than three paragraphs, with only 3-4 sentences per paragraph. Think about when you read a newspaper. You are scanning for information; same with a cover letter. A cover letter is designed to get them to read the resume, not convey your life story.

Second, there are many things you included on the resume that I strongly advise against. No cell phone number for the reasons that Tony stated. No personal information for EEOC reasons. Putting the availability can work for or against you, depending upon your availability.

I also disagree that the format does not matter. If it is not readable, you bet it matters. Further, if you do not have the correct format for online applications, and you try to just post a regular Word document in the form, you will see what a bad format will do on the other end that gets received by HR. I just did a whole television segment on this very topic.

You are correct that what is in the content of the resume matters. But never assume that "everyone knows what a pilot does." The first people who review resumes are most likely either HR Clerks or Computers. If you do not have the keywords in the resume, and you think the computer or the HR clerk knows what a pilot does, you are sadly mistaken. Remember, never ASSUME. (you know what that means! )

Am I a brain surgeon? Nope. But I will tell you this. I did hiring for many years, 40 hours a week (or more), 49-50 weeks per year. I have HR people come to me to have their resume done. That, to me, speaks volumes.

Everyone has their specialty; this happens to be mine. As you have seen in this thread, I have had a lot of happy people who have gotten interviews. I have done resumes for pilots that are looking for other things and also relatives of pilots who are not even in the aviation business.

I do not consider my services a "waste of money." As I have said before, if people can do their own resume and cover letter, I think that is great. I have had people come to me with documents that were fine the way they were. I do not take people's money if I feel that there does not need to be any improvement.

I recently had a gentleman who was applying for a Postal Inspector position who wanted me to look over his Federal KSA's (Knowledge, Skills and Abilities). Now, that could have meant a LOT of money for me because it takes a great deal of time to put those together. Not only did I tell him they were fine the way they were, but I did not take a DIME from him for reviewing them.

I believe very strongly in integrity in my business. If someone needs help, I will tell them; conversely, if they don't, I will tell them that also.

Kathy

Kathy,

With all due respect to you and the time that you have invested in this side of the business, I simply just disagree with you on a few minor issues. I can think of many different types of formats, resumes, cover letters, etc, etc, that I have seen used with the desired outcome being achieved. . The above example has worked extremely well for myself and quite a few others that have used it. I used to screen, review resumes with hr to bring interview applicants in (part 135) so I tend to think that I am somewhat well versed in this area, not just my opinion with no prior "experience" to back it up. I also knew some pretty senior people within Delta hr and they pretty much said the same from.

I could care less on the format they used as most of the other hr people and captains on the board, it did not matter (plain and simple) nor did it make or break that person when called in for the 2 on 1. The important factor(s) were what was on that piece of paper they call a "resume", ex> (flight times, experience, multi-engine time, turbine time, accomplishments, etc, etc.) You can put lipstick, perfume, or whatever else you so choose to put on the resume but without the areas of substance as in flight times, experience, work history, etc, it will not matter much. I have seen some very impressive resumes that were great, only problem was that the applicant really was lacking in the credentials area.


Not to be a smart a$$ but a resume no matter how nice and "proper" that it may be isn't going to do anyone a whole lot of good if they don't have the times, experience, work history, etc, to put down on that piece of paper. The resume is only as impressive as the applicant.

First, let me ask you something 350. How much time do you think someone would have to read that cover letter? The cover letter should be no more than three paragraphs, with only 3-4 sentences per paragraph. Think about when you read a newspaper. You are scanning for information; same with a cover letter. A cover letter is designed to get them to read the resume, not convey your life story.

The majority of cover letters that we received surely were not limited to 3 paragraphs or less and needless to say HR, myself, and most all others took the time to fully read the entire cover letter.


Ask 10 different people and you will get many different responses so take your pick.


many ways to get the interview, a resume format/layout is only a small factor in getting the call to come in and interview.

The cell number is a given, I and most everyone else includes it on the resume and will continue to do so for many reasons.

Kathy,

In no way was I trying to point fingers at you, I can only wish you the best of luck and hope that you continue to prosper in this business. I was merely giving my perspective, point of view, opinion to some extent which hopefully not everyone will buy into.

personal preference



3 5 0

 

[Resume Writer]

I agree with what Tony and Dash8Driver have said.

The sentence that I found ironic was the "brief" letter. That letter was anything but brief!

Dash is right on with what goes into the paragraphs. I have a degree in Technical Writing and Journalism. If you think about the 5 W's and H of journalism, (who, what, where, when, why and how), you can write a good letter.

Who you are
What qualifications you possess
Why you would like a job with their company
When you would be available or would like to speak with them
Where or How you can be reached

There you have it. I spent thousands of dollars for those 6 words!!

Kathy

 

[350DRIVER]

I agree with what Tony and Dash8Driver have said.

The sentence that I found ironic was the "brief" letter. That letter was anything but brief!

Dash is right on with what goes into the paragraphs. I have a degree in Technical Writing and Journalism. If you think about the 5 W's and H of journalism, (who, what, where, when, why and how), you can write a good letter.

Who you are
What qualifications you possess
Why you would like a job with their company
When you would be available or would like to speak with them
Where or How you can be reached

There you have it. I spent thousands of dollars for those 6 words!!

Kathy

Different strokes for different folks...

The original poster wanted a few examples and that is exactly what he got, like it or not.


3 5 0

 

[bobbysamd]

Writing your own resume v. Resume Writer

Everyone has their specialty; this happens to be mine. As you have seen in this thread, I have had a lot of happy people who have gotten interviews. I have done resumes for pilots that are looking for other things and also relatives of pilots who are not even in the aviation business.

I do not consider my services a "waste of money." As I have said before, if people can do their own resume and cover letter, I think that is great. I have had people come to me with documents that were fine the way they were. I do not take people's money if I feel that there does not need to be any improvement.

I can write my own resumes and cover letters and I do feel a professional in any field needs to be sufficiently competent and capable to prepare his/her own resume, but maybe doing so is like doing your own taxes with Turbo Tax as opposed to going to an accountant. I've done that as well - even prepared my taxes myself manually for twenty years (my B.S.B.A. is in Accounting). Both ways work, but which yields better results?

I essentially copped Kit's format and incorporated ideas I had seen in books and on associates' resumes. I did get interviews. Maybe if Kathy had worked up my materials, I would have had more interviews. Hindsight is 20/20, but learn from those who walked the same path before.

 

[dash8driver]

Kathy,

With all due respect to you and the time that you have invested in this side of the business, I simply just disagree with you on a few minor issues. I can think of many different types of formats, resumes, cover letters, etc, etc, that I have seen used with the desired outcome being achieved.

i dont think she means (and i dont mean) there is one magic format and thats what you have to go with. anyone will admit there are many possible formats. the idea is to use one of the many possible good formats. a good format is one thats not cluttered, easy to read, you know.. make sure the good info is easy to find.

"good format" does not include stuff like whether use a thick or thin line across the top, a choice between two perfectly good fonts (well, ya dont wanna use the dingbat font thats for sure), etc.

to some people having it presented well, etc (in a good format) is common sense.. but its not so common. there are people out there who dont see that their sloppy resume is just that, sloppy. which some employers may or may not use to determine that they dont want a sloppy person at their company.

350, you're right..he did ask for help and he's getting it. not only in examples of resume, but in commentary about the examples. this is all help for him.. i'm sure he's taking all the points everyone is making and learning what he needs to from it....like the commentary or not.

 

[TonyC]

...(well, ya dont wanna use the dingbat font thats for sure), ...

Especially those Zapf dingbats!


LOL

 

[350DRIVER]

dash,

Good points and hopefully he is able to use some of this information to help with his project. My only objective was to provide him with "examples" for use during his project work, not a "mine is better than yours" debate.

If I had to do it again I would have just pmed it to him, less problems that way.. lol


3 5 0

 

[dash8driver]

If I had to do it again I would have just pmed it to him, less problems that way.. lol


3 5 0

but it wouldnt have been nearly as fun....

 

[Resume Writer]

Not to be a smart a$$ but a resume no matter how nice and "proper" that it may be isn't going to do anyone a whole lot of good if they don't have the times, experience, work history, etc, to put down on that piece of paper. The resume is only as impressive as the applicant.


The majority of cover letters that we received surely were not limited to 3 paragraphs or less and needless to say HR, myself, and most all others took the time to fully read the entire cover letter.


Ask 10 different people and you will get many different responses so take your pick.


The cell number is a given, I and most everyone else includes it on the resume and will continue to do so for many reasons.

Kathy,

In no way was I trying to point fingers at you, I can only wish you the best of luck and hope that you continue to prosper in this business. I was merely giving my perspective, point of view, opinion to some extent which hopefully not everyone will buy into.

personal preference



3 5 0

350,

Let me address a few things that you said. First, you cannot "make a purse from a sow's ear." Of course the candidate has to be qualified. One thing that you do not know is that I spend a great deal of time with my candidates, both aviation and other, asking about their goals. If their goals are unrealistic, I tell them so. I also counsel them on the correct path to take for their specific career.

Second, I disagree about the cell phone on the resume. I teach my clients to control when and where a telephone screen happens. Several of my HR friends have said that they will not even call a cell phone. My opinion of this was backed up by Carol Kleiman, who is a syndicated columnist for the Tribune newspapers and an HR expert, when she wrote a column based upon my press release that was sent out on this very issue.

Third, I never said that a cover letter should be "less" than three paragraphs. When I was screening candidates for an aviation employer last fall, one cover letter said, and I quote:

"Here are my qualifications, call me if you are interested."

Where do you think his stuff went???

Fourth, how big was the operation that you worked at reviewing resumes? How many candidate resumes did you review?

Employers now are getting between 200-500 resumes for EVERY position they post. That does not include the "broadcast" letters they get for positions they do not post. I was just speaking at a Career Expo that had over 6500 candidates in attendance. There were 108 companies. Do the math. How much time do you think was given for the "once over" of the resumes? About 15-30 seconds. Just like in a regular hiring situation.

350, while I do not doubt that you have some experience in this field, I must defer to the research I have conducted over 18 years of being a resume writer. I am the Career Expert for 5 job boards in 5 different states, 2 more job boards in the Tech field, one in the aviation industry, and one located overseas for the hospitality industry. You do not get to that status by not knowing the hiring industry.

In addition, I write on a contract basis for Monster.com. Believe me, you do not write for Monster unless you KNOW what you are doing and are successful. If their candidates are not successful, you do not work for them very long. I have been writing for them for over two years. Recently one of my resume writing colleagues was turned down by Monster to write for them. They only take the best writers. I also write resume for candidates across the country and world for recruiters.

I know you are not trying to be disrespectful to me or my business. However, I do not do this business "part-time" or for kicks. I spent a great deal of time and money knowing everything that is going on in many industries. That is the perfectionist part of me that wants to make sure my clients have the best information possible.

Just my two cents on this topic.

Kathy

 

[paid4training]

First of all thanks for ALL the replies. I have taken all the information from each reply and also used all critiques and comments regarding this issue. This is why I believe the "creators" of this site developed and maintain this site for this purpose. To assist those who are trying to access the wisdom from the aviation community. Thanks again to everyone responding…