resume advice

[English]

I'm not Resume Writer, but I just gotta give the general pilot populance some advice - please don't put personal information on your resume! Here's an example;

Single, 5 children, age 58, fluent in Vietnamese, smoker, height 5'1", 280 lbs.


Or my favorite...

Member of XXX gun club. Hobbies include hunting and shooting clay pigeons.


Each of these descriptions paint a picture that doesn't need to be there. All that your resume should display are your qualifications. Let the picture of you come out in an interview. Don't shoot yourself in the foot before you even get through the door.

I see no reason whatsoever to put your marital status, age, number of children you have, or a list of hobbies. Why give someone a reason to discriminate? And the few people that are still putting their social security numbers on their resumes - what are you thinking? Ever heard of identity theft?

 

[ATR-DRIVR]

Good post. Kathy, want to chime in?

 

[semperfido]

good advice....what prompted this sponaneous, out of the blue advice? see some really good resumes?

 

[EatSleepFly]

People actually put that stuff on their resumes???

 

[Flying Illini]

soooo, what about putting down your sign, You know, Capricorn?
I know I'm young and all, but seriously, I thought everyone knew that you kept to your qualifications and didn't include any personal info.

 

[English]

good advice....what prompted this sponaneous, out of the blue advice? see some really good resumes?

I don't know if I'd call the resumes I've seen "really good". I've seen a ton of spelling and grammatical errors as well. When I see a resume with several spelling errors, I toss it. Who wants to have an employee that doesn't pay attention to details? It's one thing to make spelling mistakes on a message board (hey TonyC, where are you?) but it really shows something about a person who doesn't spell check a resume or cover letter.

 

[semperfido]

was joking....i would toss em as well.

......unless they were from a fellow jarhead

 

[wrxpilot]

English,

I agree about the personal stuff, not necessary and unwise. But a short list of interesting hobbies is good for a variety of reasons.

1)It helps your resume standout. The interviewer may see that I ride mountain bikes or fly airplanes. They may find that interesting to talk to me about.

2)Outside interests show what you do outside of the job. For example, I'm an engineer. I have some hobbies (Formula 1 auto racing, aviation, etc.) that indicate I have technical interests outiside of engineering. This makes for a more well rounded person which is what a company wants.

I too used to believe in keeping hobbies off the resume, but I brought the subject up with a couple of my managers when I was an intern and they thought it was a great idea. I have since had interviews and my interests were brought up in a positive light. Obviously leave the controversial stuff out though. Don't mention your taxidermy hobby, fight club manager, etc. Just common sense though.

 

[Gulfstream 200]

English,

I agree about the personal stuff, not necessary and unwise. But a short list of interesting hobbies is good for a variety of reasons.

1)It helps your resume standout. The interviewer may see that I ride mountain bikes or fly airplanes. They may find that interesting to talk to me about.

2)Outside interests show what you do outside of the job. For example, I'm an engineer. I have some hobbies (Formula 1 auto racing, aviation, etc.) that indicate I have technical interests outiside of engineering. This makes for a more well rounded person which is what a company wants.

I too used to believe in keeping hobbies off the resume, but I brought the subject up with a couple of my managers when I was an intern and they thought it was a great idea. I have since had interviews and my interests were brought up in a positive light. Obviously leave the controversial stuff out though. Don't mention your taxidermy hobby, fight club manager, etc. Just common sense though.

Not sure about engineering, but on a pilot resume leave EVERY hobby off.

90% of the time "standing out" means you look like an idiot.

Just the facts, your qualifications. People hiring pilots are looking for ratings and your job history. period. Dont care if you like Indy racing or knitting (maybe the guy screening hates it?)

State the basics very cearly. One page and brief. Get the interview/phone call. Then asnswer the questions and show your winning personality!

.

 

[wrxpilot]

Not sure about engineering, but on a pilot resume leave EVERY hobby off.

90% of the time "standing out" means you look like an idiot.

Just the facts, your qualifications. People hiring pilots are looking for ratings and your job history. period. Dont care if you like Indy racing or knitting (maybe the guy screening hates it?)

State the basics very cearly. One page and brief. Get the interview/phone call. Then asnswer the questions and show your winning personality!

.

Point taken. Now I'll have one less thing to make me look like an idiot 2 yrs from now when I fill one out!

 

[AIR2MUD]

was joking....i would toss em as well.

......unless they were from a fellow jarhead

Isn't English a second language for most Leathernecks? It's a close second to barking at an ungodly volume and a series of 'OORAHs'.

 

[semperfido]

Mud-- most of us are just content to grunt when we absolutely have to communicate.

 

[Resume Writer]

I agree with English and the others who have posted about leaving personal information off the resume. I still see it on resumes I receive. Keep the age, marital status, etc., off your resume.

If you belong to associations, they should be related to your profession. If an association is not related to your profession, such as Habitat for Humanity, and you know the employer is heavily involved with that charity, it is a good thing.

I usually tell people to stay away from "taboo" subjects, such as politics, religion, and abortion. There is a 50/50 chance that someone who is a democrat will land on a republican's desk or vice versa. Same principle applies to religion and abortion. You just do not want to have a point of contention. What you do or believe in your personal life should not be brought into a hiring situation.

Employers are not hiring you because of your extracurricular activities. They are hiring you for the job that you can perform. Some employers do not want you to split your loyalties between the company and your activities.

There can be "for" and "against" responses to what I have said, however, just use common sense.

Kathy

 

[pkober]

Single, 5 children, age 58, fluent in Vietnamese, smoker, height 5'1", 280 lbs.

No more visuals, please.

CLAMBAKE

 

[ksu_aviator]

Also, don't be stupid enough to put your ssn on your resume. You have no idea who is getting it. Anyone can post that they need pilots on a job board and get 100+ resumes with ssn's on them. Talk about easy ID theft.

Even if you know who you are sending it too, still don't include the ssn. You could dial the wrong number on the fax machine or their computer could have spy ware on it if you e-mail it. When they need it they'll have you write it on a piece of paper. That is when it is ok.

 

[Flying Illini]

here's an honest question for you people who look at a lot of resume's.

I'm an Eagle Scout. It took a significant amount of time and dedication for me to achieve that rank. Is this something that I should put on a resume or not (under the title of Honors?)? I've had one Dir. of Ops. and CP tell me that it should be on there. But they both understand what it means to achieve that rank and they were very impressed by it.

I'm very curious what others think.

Thanks for the replies,
FI

 

[semperfido]

i would leave it off a resume at this point in your career as it seems more like a boyhood achievement (it may not be and you have every right to be proud of it...i don't really know as i never made it past tenderfoot). as you progress you will have achievements that will overshadow that one. i would stick with professional, academic and military achievements. however, i would mention it in an interview if the opportunity came up.

 

[Flying Illini]

i would leave it off a resume at this point in your career as it seems more like a boyhood achievement (it may not be and you have every right to be proud of it...i don't really know as i never made it past tenderfoot). as you progress you will have achievements that will overshadow that one. i would stick with professional, academic and military achievements. however, i would mention it in an interview if the opportunity came up.

I've been thinking along the same lines that you are. The part I highlighted above is my main thinking for not including it. It really was a "life achievement" but having it on my resume felt the same as listing organizations that you were involved in from High School on your resume.

Thanks.

 

[TonyC]

Once an Eagle...

i would leave it off a resume at this point in your career as it seems more like a boyhood achievement (it may not be and you have every right to be proud of it...i don't really know as i never made it past tenderfoot). as you progress you will have achievements that will overshadow that one.

Few people will appreciate the significance of the achievement, and since it's more likely that they will consider it a "boyhood achievement", I'll agree that's it probably best to leave it off a resume. The reality is you must cater to perceptions.


The good news, though, is the experience that you gained reaching that goal will have a farther reaching advantage than including it as a line on that critical piece of paper. Congratulations.

Same advice goes for Spaatz.





.

 

[Ailerongirl]

Few people will appreciate the significance of the achievement, and since it's more likely that they will consider it a "boyhood achievement", I'll agree that's it probably best to leave it off a resume. The reality is you must cater to perceptions.

English Girl Guides have something along the same lines as the Eagle Scout Award. It's called the Baden Powell, and is presented to you by a member of the Royal Family. HUGE deal when you're a Guide, and something that I was very proud to have achieved. It's no longer on my resume however, due to exactly that fact, which is really sad.