"What do I say about...?"
Quick Responses to Frequently Asked Questions
Because everyone's goals and experiences are different, it's best to bring questions to the CWS career counselors. Drop-in hours (M-F, 12:30-4pm) provide an opportunity for brief assessments and referrals. For more in-depth attention, please schedule an appointment with a counselor by calling 781.283.2352 or emailing Joni Schneiderman. Meeting with a counselor during a drop-in session is a prerequisite for a private appointment.
Listed below are quick responses to Frequently Asked Questions regarding a resume:
- Should I include a career objective?
- What about time gaps in my resume?
- How should I address my age, religion, sexual orientation, learning or physical disabilities?
- Should I include jobs (especially summer or after-school jobs) that seem irrelevant to my profession?
- What about temporary employment with temporary staffing agencies?
Should I include a career objective?
For most undergraduates, a resume objective can work for or against you. Because the objective states your intentions and focus, if you are 99% certain of your direction or are seeking a highly specialized position, an objective may help you to accomplish your career goals. For Davis Scholars who have a variety of "eras" or field experiences in your backgrounds, a career objective may help to clarify your current direction.
On the flip side, for most undergraduates, a resume objective may also limit you from being considered for other positions that may not technically meet the criteria set forth in your objective. Moreover, a skillfully written cover letter can often communicate your intentions and goals without limiting the possibilities. This way, your resume can be applied to a wider variety of positions, scholarships, graduate school, and other opportunities.
Davis Scholars may wish to summarize years of work experience in a skills summary statement, which is different from a career objective. A skills summary captures the essence of one's qualifications, whereas a career objective states the specific type of position sought.
What about time gaps in my resume?
Specific methods of de-emphasizing dates on a resume include the following: tuck the dates after the job description paragraph so they don't stand alone; list dates by year instead of by month/year; or omit very old experience (e.g., from 20 years ago). One may also use a functional or combination resume instead of a chronological resume. We invite students to discuss their unique situations with a CWS career counselor. To set up an appointment, please call the front desk at 781.283.2352 or email Joni Schneiderman.
How should I address my age, religion, sexual orientation, political affiliation, and learning or physical disabilities?
If you've held a significant leadership position in an organization, if your circumstance is directly related to the position sought, or if your experience reflects a personal value which is important to publicize, you can certainly disclose such information on your resume. Some people choose to wait until a later stage of the interview and negotiation process to disclose; some individuals prefer to have the job in hand before revealing sensitive information; some are compelled to disclose up front. For more information, consult the section on potentially sensitive information. If in doubt, it's probably best to discuss your individual situation with a career counselor or Linda Brothers, Wellesley College Director of Equal Opportunity and Ombudsperson, to determine the most appropriate course of action.
Should I include jobs (especially summer or after-school jobs) that seem irrelevant to my profession?
At some point in their working lives, most people take jobs which are not directly related to their desired professions, perhaps to make ends meet. High school and college students work at the pool, baby-sit, waitress, or clean houses to help finance their education or earn extra cash. In fact, some of these jobs impart valuable, transferable skills, even though the job titles themselves are not directly related to a position sought. For example, waitressing can develop sales and marketing or project management skills. If so, include such a position on your resume and describe it with words that highlight your transferable skills. Jobs or positions which showcase special interests or skills may also be included on your resume.
Of course, students should present themselves in the most professional light possible. Given the choice between volunteer work at a nonprofit or baby-sitting, it is probably advisable to list the unpaid nonprofit work rather than the paid childcare, unless the position sought involves direct work with children. If you have questions about how to present such work in the most favorable light, please speak with a CWS counselor about your individual situation.
What about temporary employment with temporary staffing agencies?
A good way to list work with temporary staffing agencies is to use the job description area to highlight your adaptability to the industries and work assignments in which you were placed. For example, if you spent less than three weeks at a law firm, a university admissions office, and an accounting firm, respectively, you might list your employer as "Temporary Staffing Experts" and describe your adaptability thus: "Effectively adapted office skills to a variety of work environments in the fields of law, university administration, and textile manufacturing." Or to emphasize your application of particular skills, you could say something like, "Worked in a fast-paced, Philadelphia law firm; applied proofreading and editorial skills to the university admissions process; broadened knowledge of textile fibers and dyes for manufacturing purposes."
If you spent more than a month at a temp assignment, you may wish to list the actual place of work (rather than the temp agency) under your experience. Say for example, the temp agency placed you at a women's health foundation for seven weeks. You could list the women's health foundation as the place of work, and a possible description might be, "Managed and completely re-systematized over 5,000 donor files and records during a temporary work assignment."
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