1. Level of Experience vs Years of Experience
If you are one with less than 5 years of experience in your industry, you may want to concentrate on level of experience. Control the experience question by displaying your debth and breadth of the job requirements. For example, I mentored a young software engineer who had less than 3 years experience in the field but was a senior level SharePoint developer. Emphasis level of experience if it works in your favor.
2. What was the salary on your last job?
I have always viewed this as a trick question. It may be a way for companies to only pay you what you have historically earned and not what you are worth. Research the market salary for your immediate area and give a salary range. Simply phrasing your answer to state "My current salary requirement is $" is a completely valid answer. If the company presses you to give your last salary, tell the truth and justify your salary increase. Sites such as http://www.salary.com/ are great resources for finding salary benchmarks.
3. The Cover Letter
Never send a resume without a cover letter. The cover letter is very important to completing the resume package. The cover letter should be customized to fit a specific job and company. Actually, so should your resume. If possible, use buzz words from the job description for which you are replying. A great cover letter template can be found at http://jobsearch.about.com/od/coverlettersamples/a/coverlettsample.htm.
4. Job Accomplishments vs Job Description
During my time as a technical recruiter, I was amazed at how much space was used to describe a candidate's job duties than a candidate's accomplishments while doing that job. The experience section of your resume should list the accomplishments you achieved during the duration of your job. List the items in bullets (paragraphs are burdensome on recruiters who are looking at thousands of resumes) and quantify as often as possible ($s, numbers, percentages, etc). For example, "lead team effort to automate software processing reducing the operating time by 90%" tells what you did and how well you did it. Be sure to use buzz words from the job description and action verbs. When companies scan your resume, you want as many hits as possible based upon keyword matches.
5. Create different file formats (txt, pdf, Word)
In the digital age, many companies scan resumes and use keyword searches to find candidate matches. In this case, have a text-only format available. But what if you have an online resume posted and want to create a portable format? A pdf version is great for this case. Mostly, recruiters will request a Word version of the resume. Creating an online resume site will allow you to post a web-based version of your resume and give the recruiter the option to download the format they desire. If an online resume is created, do not forget to add the hyperlink to your resume. There are many free services that will allow you to host free, online resumes including http://www.docstoc.com/docs/2382594/free-resume-hosting.
6. The Email Address
For the sake of peace, create a personalized, professional email address (janedoe@yahoo.com). I cannot tell you how many resumes I have passed over just because the email address was sexually explicit (hot4you@hotmail.com). Also, stay away from cutesy email addresses (ilovekats@gmail.com). If possible, create an email account dedicated to your job search and configure your email account to send an auto thank you message including details of your work experience. You may contact your email administrator for assistance with auto reply email configuration.
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