banking services chronicle review
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services chronicle review Published
this article page no The most common
mistake made by people who attempt to put together their first resume is that
they put in too much information. They want to describe everything that they
have ever done from the moment of conception to the present. The resume ends up
being too long and nobody will read it. The most important piece of information
that you should retain is that your resume no matter how well it is put
together will only get a 15 to 30 second review by the person who does the
initial screening. That person is normally someone in Human Resources whose job
is to look at hundreds of resumes per day. You must create your resume in such
a way that it gives all the information they need in a maximum of 30 seconds.
There is information that under most circumstances should not be in a resume.
This includes Your age or date of birth Religious or political affiliations Reasons why you left your last job Your Social Security Number Health restrictions or physical
limitations Any sentence that has
"do not" "cannot" or "unable" Age or Date of
Birth I repeat you should not put your age or date of birth in a resume. In the
US an employer has no legal right to know your age. An employer can ask you
only if you are over the age of 18 for insurance liability reasons or if local
state or federal law requires that employees be over a certain age. Therefore
if youre concerned that your age will be a factor dont list the date you
graduated from high school or the years that you received any of your degrees.
I received my undergraduate degree in 1962. Can any of you guess my age?
Religious Affiliations or Political Affiliations Its generally recommended that
you stay away from listing a particular type of religion or political party
affiliation. However being active in your community or church can sometimes be
a positive factor in many large companies so you should make general statements
about your participation in activities that support the community. Volunteer
work for a charity group would be a positive example but active support for an
environmental group could raise some eyebrows. Reasons for Leaving Previous
Jobs Weve become a mobile society and longevity in a position is now considered
two years. People accept new jobs for many reasons. If you left your last job
because of differences with your supervisor or company philosophy I dont recommend
that you put that information in your resume. The reader will probably get a
negative impression of you. If you couldnt get along with your last company you
probably wont get along here. If the job application asks you to give reasons
for leaving your last job a safe and truthful answer could be that you were
offered a better position. “Better could mean a pay raise better working hours
better office environment or newer equipment. Your Social Security Number (SSN)
The exceptions to this are federal resumes sent for civil service positions. A
prospective employer can ask for your Social Security Number in an application
- that is normally a requirement for employment. However putting your SSN on a
resume could lead to disaster. Youll be sending out many resumes you wont know
wholl be reading them. It doesnt cost much money to put a small want ad in the
newspaper or on an Internet employment site and a dishonest person can run a
fraudulent ad. If someone knows your SSN he can apply for credit cards or other
important documents such as duplicate SSN cards with the information you
normally provide on a resume. Be alert if someone other than in the civil
service asks for your SSN. Information about Health and Disabilities The
Americans with Disabilities Act has changed the way businesses in the US
recruit and hire an employee. Generally an employer has no legal right to know
your health status. The only health-related questions that an employer can ask
are job related. If the job description requires that you lift 50 lbs the
employer has the legal and legitimate right to ask in the interview if you can
do this. He can also state the requirement in his ad. He cannot ask you if you
have back problems diabetes or have had a heart attack unless the job such as airline
pilot requires perfect health. Find out your legal rights if you live outside
the US. Marital Status Ive added marital status because this is another issue
that can work against you particularly if youre a single parent. I know some
people will disagree but single parents have the highest absentee rate in the
work force. Companies will try to avoid hiring a single parent if at all
possible. However in the US they cannot ask you your marital status or if you
have children. Dont volunteer this information on the resume. If asked this
question in an interview the proper response could be "Can you tell me
what this has to do with the position Im applying for?" That should end
the questioning on this issue if the interviewer does not want to face a
lawsuit. banking
services chronicle review
banking services chronicle review
