Reflection on Workshop: I think it was beneficial. Every single person had a different setup and format for their resume, so not only were you able to see different kids but we also got ideas for what to do for our own resumes after seeing some things we’d like that other did. During workshop there was some great feedback from everyone and we also would ask each other about jobs in general: jobs in certain areas in the person was from that area, advice for how to go about things in general when applying for jobs, asking for how to word things, etc. Overall it was very helpful in many different ways.
One thing I worked on today was making my resume only one page long. This was something that seemed treacherous to me because I feel as though I have already simplified my resume as much as possible but there were a multitude of ways to make it one page. I deleted double spaced lines, got rid of a bullet point to make them all even and condensed works that made some bullet points into one line instead of two. This might seem silly but I had to turn words that were 11 letters long into a word similar that was 9 letters long to condense the line. Also fixing these little mistakes made it possible to add an objective at the top of the page.
I have noticed with the past few peer reviews I have gotten better at giving constructive criticism. I will find something positive to say about someone’s work and they tell them what they can work on. That makes it easier to help people and when you are in that mindset you are more open to have others critique your work.
Something that was also very helpful for me was getting the opportunity to look at other people’s resumes. This opened my eyes to many options of formatting and wording. Something many people going into jobs out of college don’t have the opportunity to do.
This workshop went really well, and I was able to hear feedback that will help me revise my resume. I am going to focus on fixing the formatting of my professional experience, so it is in quick bullet points and not full sentences, so it is easier to skim. I am also going to work on filling up more of the white space I have after deleting some not needed information, which is nice because I have more room to work with and I am not limited now. If needed, I will add my references to fill any extra space that I have left. I plan on fixing the job title I had under where I worked so that it is also bold and easier for the employer to find. Overall, these are minor changes that will benefit my resume in major ways. Lastly, I will just reread over everything and reword anything if needed.
One of the main pieces of feedback I received about my resume was the length. My resume is slightly longer than one page, and my group mates told me it is possible to condense it down to one page. Also, in my experiences that are present, I use the wrong tense, and instead of present, I write the expected end date, which should not be there since it hasn’t happened yet. I could also flesh out my second page and use the whole page with references and skills/qualifications, rather than condensing down.
I found the workshop process for my resume to be especially helpful, and there are a couple of key takeaways which I am working on with the feedback that I recieved from my group. Oftentimes during workshops, I find that the very specific critiques and advice are what the most helpful for me, such as pointing out a very specific word choice which could be changed, or pointing out a specific format which could be adjusted.
As I move into the finalization process for my resume, here are some of the things which I intend to prioritize tweaking. I intend to adjust my objective, either my rewording it into something more succinct, or by removing it from the resume outright. I intend to, for the sake of format, offset my bullet-points so that they are more organized in the resume. I intend to rework my accomplishments section either by placing all of the accomplishments in the education section, or by adding more to that particular section.
I found this workshop process incredibly helpful, as someone who is not very skilled at writing a full-length resume. These workshops are super helpful at pinpointing the exact things that I need to work on, as well as lets me look at a writing piece more effectively. In this workshop, the specifics of what I need to do are what I am primarily going to focus on. For this writing, my actual content and lists of skills is fine, but I need to work on how I format my resume. I need to shorten it to ensure it is not more than one page, and it needs to look more clean and concise, from a professional standpoint. I also need to ensure I stay consistent with my sentences and capitalization as well. If I focus on my formatting skills and find a good template, I can make this work.
The one thing my group recommended I revise on my resume was some of the formatting. One section was missing a period (which sentences in other similar sections had). I also had one section double-spaced, while the rest were single-spaced. Additionally, the format I used for my resume creates a ghost page, which I cannot delete. However, because none of my actual resume dips onto that page, we determined that, as long as I delete that page in the pdf version of my resume, it was not a problem. As a writer, the most effective part of this workshop for me was being able to see what other students did and did not incorporate into their resumes. Becoming more familiar with resumes in general and being exposed to a variety of models helps me determine what I do and do not like/want to include in my resume.
I think what I’m going to focus on the most on my résumé is formatting and organization. The feedback I generally received was to add my responsibilities at the jobs I listed and switch the order of some points in relevant skills and experience to emphasize *the* most relevant ones. Overall, though, I was told my general format was pleasing to the eye and was easy to read. I thought I received and gained valuable feedback. My groups’ résumés had a lot of great information and were formatted well, so I really only had a few minor suggestions. It was good to have sets of eyes on my résumé other than myself to catch the little things I didn’t initially notice, especially as I plan on actually using this over the summer.
Yet again, having the group discussions with our classmates ended up being extremely helpful. I value hearing the opinions of others and my group was more than helpful with providing advice to improve my current resume. I understand that I have one type of writing style and my group mates have another. The different perspectives allow me to improve my documents in ways I wouldn’t have thought of before meeting with them. That tactic is super powerful because that’s exactly what’s happening when you submit your resume to an employer. The specific ways I plan on editing my current resume will be correcting minor formatting errors that didn’t occur to me to begin with, also cleaning up the wording I used that came across in a manner that I didn’t intend for. One major mistake I made was keeping my resume consistent with wording and formatting to keep it clean and nice to look at. It was super helpful to analyze the other resumes in my group as well because I was presented with ideas that I plan on stealing and using on my resume. One major change I plan on making is inserting my same resume into one of the templates offered by word to make it appear prettier.
After workshopping our resumes, I received some positive feedback and helpful suggestions on how to improve my document. While the layout of my resume is neat, there are areas for expansion where I can include greater detail. For example, it was suggested that I dive deeper into my class experience. I can slim the list down, pick three relevant classes, and briefly describe how they would pertain to what I’m applying for. It was also suggested that I further highlight my outdoor experience, I could list my years of camping and any specific skills like pacing a hike or strength ability which are both requirements on my job description. My group discussed how some of our applications held physical requirements and how although that might be a small detail in the overall description, it can have a major impact in the application process. Finally, some smaller changes consist of picking concrete skills that positively represent my work ethic. My group talked about how while being organized and being able to multitask is a necessary skill, it’s very general and could make the employer ‘roll their eyes’. I have been referring to our action verb list which has helped me strengthen my description and condense my skills. Another small thing for my document is correcting and aligning my years and dates. Having consistency with the small things throughout your document shows you put time and effort into it. Overall, I’m pleased with my revisions and believe I have a solid resume for my current application.
I am planning on changing my resume to have an objective section which I don’t have currently. I also had a lot of white space at the bottom to the right of my references so I am planning on adding a skills section to the right of my references to try and get rid of that white space as well as highlight some things that I learned not through paid work experience. I was also told to try and put a bit more detail into the descriptions about my jobs and what I did there. So I will be trying to rework some of my bullet points. I also tried to rework my education section so that it took up less space so I could focus more on the things I’ve done rather than spending seven lines on one section which conveys very little information.
11 thoughts on “JOURNAL # 14”
Reflection on Workshop: I think it was beneficial. Every single person had a different setup and format for their resume, so not only were you able to see different kids but we also got ideas for what to do for our own resumes after seeing some things we’d like that other did. During workshop there was some great feedback from everyone and we also would ask each other about jobs in general: jobs in certain areas in the person was from that area, advice for how to go about things in general when applying for jobs, asking for how to word things, etc. Overall it was very helpful in many different ways.
One thing I worked on today was making my resume only one page long. This was something that seemed treacherous to me because I feel as though I have already simplified my resume as much as possible but there were a multitude of ways to make it one page. I deleted double spaced lines, got rid of a bullet point to make them all even and condensed works that made some bullet points into one line instead of two. This might seem silly but I had to turn words that were 11 letters long into a word similar that was 9 letters long to condense the line. Also fixing these little mistakes made it possible to add an objective at the top of the page.
I have noticed with the past few peer reviews I have gotten better at giving constructive criticism. I will find something positive to say about someone’s work and they tell them what they can work on. That makes it easier to help people and when you are in that mindset you are more open to have others critique your work.
Something that was also very helpful for me was getting the opportunity to look at other people’s resumes. This opened my eyes to many options of formatting and wording. Something many people going into jobs out of college don’t have the opportunity to do.
This workshop went really well, and I was able to hear feedback that will help me revise my resume. I am going to focus on fixing the formatting of my professional experience, so it is in quick bullet points and not full sentences, so it is easier to skim. I am also going to work on filling up more of the white space I have after deleting some not needed information, which is nice because I have more room to work with and I am not limited now. If needed, I will add my references to fill any extra space that I have left. I plan on fixing the job title I had under where I worked so that it is also bold and easier for the employer to find. Overall, these are minor changes that will benefit my resume in major ways. Lastly, I will just reread over everything and reword anything if needed.
One of the main pieces of feedback I received about my resume was the length. My resume is slightly longer than one page, and my group mates told me it is possible to condense it down to one page. Also, in my experiences that are present, I use the wrong tense, and instead of present, I write the expected end date, which should not be there since it hasn’t happened yet. I could also flesh out my second page and use the whole page with references and skills/qualifications, rather than condensing down.
I found the workshop process for my resume to be especially helpful, and there are a couple of key takeaways which I am working on with the feedback that I recieved from my group. Oftentimes during workshops, I find that the very specific critiques and advice are what the most helpful for me, such as pointing out a very specific word choice which could be changed, or pointing out a specific format which could be adjusted.
As I move into the finalization process for my resume, here are some of the things which I intend to prioritize tweaking. I intend to adjust my objective, either my rewording it into something more succinct, or by removing it from the resume outright. I intend to, for the sake of format, offset my bullet-points so that they are more organized in the resume. I intend to rework my accomplishments section either by placing all of the accomplishments in the education section, or by adding more to that particular section.
I found this workshop process incredibly helpful, as someone who is not very skilled at writing a full-length resume. These workshops are super helpful at pinpointing the exact things that I need to work on, as well as lets me look at a writing piece more effectively. In this workshop, the specifics of what I need to do are what I am primarily going to focus on. For this writing, my actual content and lists of skills is fine, but I need to work on how I format my resume. I need to shorten it to ensure it is not more than one page, and it needs to look more clean and concise, from a professional standpoint. I also need to ensure I stay consistent with my sentences and capitalization as well. If I focus on my formatting skills and find a good template, I can make this work.
The one thing my group recommended I revise on my resume was some of the formatting. One section was missing a period (which sentences in other similar sections had). I also had one section double-spaced, while the rest were single-spaced. Additionally, the format I used for my resume creates a ghost page, which I cannot delete. However, because none of my actual resume dips onto that page, we determined that, as long as I delete that page in the pdf version of my resume, it was not a problem. As a writer, the most effective part of this workshop for me was being able to see what other students did and did not incorporate into their resumes. Becoming more familiar with resumes in general and being exposed to a variety of models helps me determine what I do and do not like/want to include in my resume.
I think what I’m going to focus on the most on my résumé is formatting and organization. The feedback I generally received was to add my responsibilities at the jobs I listed and switch the order of some points in relevant skills and experience to emphasize *the* most relevant ones. Overall, though, I was told my general format was pleasing to the eye and was easy to read. I thought I received and gained valuable feedback. My groups’ résumés had a lot of great information and were formatted well, so I really only had a few minor suggestions. It was good to have sets of eyes on my résumé other than myself to catch the little things I didn’t initially notice, especially as I plan on actually using this over the summer.
Yet again, having the group discussions with our classmates ended up being extremely helpful. I value hearing the opinions of others and my group was more than helpful with providing advice to improve my current resume. I understand that I have one type of writing style and my group mates have another. The different perspectives allow me to improve my documents in ways I wouldn’t have thought of before meeting with them. That tactic is super powerful because that’s exactly what’s happening when you submit your resume to an employer. The specific ways I plan on editing my current resume will be correcting minor formatting errors that didn’t occur to me to begin with, also cleaning up the wording I used that came across in a manner that I didn’t intend for. One major mistake I made was keeping my resume consistent with wording and formatting to keep it clean and nice to look at. It was super helpful to analyze the other resumes in my group as well because I was presented with ideas that I plan on stealing and using on my resume. One major change I plan on making is inserting my same resume into one of the templates offered by word to make it appear prettier.
After workshopping our resumes, I received some positive feedback and helpful suggestions on how to improve my document. While the layout of my resume is neat, there are areas for expansion where I can include greater detail. For example, it was suggested that I dive deeper into my class experience. I can slim the list down, pick three relevant classes, and briefly describe how they would pertain to what I’m applying for. It was also suggested that I further highlight my outdoor experience, I could list my years of camping and any specific skills like pacing a hike or strength ability which are both requirements on my job description. My group discussed how some of our applications held physical requirements and how although that might be a small detail in the overall description, it can have a major impact in the application process. Finally, some smaller changes consist of picking concrete skills that positively represent my work ethic. My group talked about how while being organized and being able to multitask is a necessary skill, it’s very general and could make the employer ‘roll their eyes’. I have been referring to our action verb list which has helped me strengthen my description and condense my skills. Another small thing for my document is correcting and aligning my years and dates. Having consistency with the small things throughout your document shows you put time and effort into it. Overall, I’m pleased with my revisions and believe I have a solid resume for my current application.
I am planning on changing my resume to have an objective section which I don’t have currently. I also had a lot of white space at the bottom to the right of my references so I am planning on adding a skills section to the right of my references to try and get rid of that white space as well as highlight some things that I learned not through paid work experience. I was also told to try and put a bit more detail into the descriptions about my jobs and what I did there. So I will be trying to rework some of my bullet points. I also tried to rework my education section so that it took up less space so I could focus more on the things I’ve done rather than spending seven lines on one section which conveys very little information.