Do’s and Don’ts
Do I need a summary or objective or both? The general rule is to have either a summary or objective. Use an objective if you have limited experience in the field which you are pursuing. For example, if you have quality assurance experience, but you want to get into product development, use an objective to state this. Student resumes should use objectives as well. For all others, summaries are the best option.
Should I include the years I graduated college and graduate school? Yes. It makes things clearer to the reader. Don’t make the reader guess.
But if I include the dates of graduation, the reader will know how old I am. Isn’t that a bad thing? No. Fudging dates is a bad thing. Telling the truth never is.
Should I talk about myself in third person; i.e. “Mr. Scientist did this…”? Never.
Is a one page resume long enough? If you are a student, with little to no industry experience, one page is long enough. If you have more than 5 years of experience, or more than one job, your resume should be 2 pages.
Do I include my publications and patents in my résumé? No. Publications and patents should be a separate document. They should be presented when requested, or at the interview.
How detailed should I be? The details included in the résumé should be more accomplishment driven rather than job description driven. Briefly state what you do, and elaborate on what you have achieved. Ask yourself “Why should they hire me?” and answer that question in the resume for each position you have held.
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