I use my Special Skills section to highlight relevant information (including quantifiable things like numbers of years) and make sure to aim all experience on the resume in the direction I want for my future.

Since at your stage Education is usually toward the end of your resume (although your cover should emphasize any recent experience that shows you are exactly the right person for this new job), you might want to put these projects somewhere in the beginning if they show why you are THE one. But I’m not a trained resume pro, so maybe in your case Education could be up front – not sure. My approach is to put yourself in the eye of the screener and think what would most make you stand out as the person who best fits the job.

Susan Ireland has a wonderful site with all kinds of samples and free info. I think you’ll find some help there. She also might answer this particular question on her blog. I’d trust her on this topic since she really knows her stuff!

Congratulations on your recent degree and best of luck finding a great job, Anna!

~ Ronnie Ann

Also, I see many advisers saying to limit experience to what is most recent. For me, most of my experience is not so recent but I still feel it demonstrates certain qualities and skills. Wouldn’t someone looking at a resume note, for example – “This person has been doing project management for 18 years. That’s a lot of experience.”?

Thank you!

I wish you the best of luck in your career. Thanks again for offering some sound self-marketing advice!

~ Ronnie Ann

I, personally, update my resume for each specific job offering in my industry – corporate communications. There are writing positions, PR, marketing communications, employee communications, public affairs, community relations, change management communications and more that fall under that category.

Therefore, I have a “summary” for each genre and update each resume accordingly. I also save them by category title, month and year so that I always have one I can update.

I do the same thing with my cover letters. Add to that, I try to mention the company’s name in the cover letter to provide a personalization element that should (hopefully) get the reader’s attention. Again, I save each cover letter as above.

I also keep a list of accomplishments per job/company. Like many of the posters, I too have had a very “checkered” work history. Every company I have worked for save one in the last seven years, has either been sold, split or reduced the workforce due to economic or other external issues.

Luckily, I formed my own freelance DBA and have managed to find a few freelance opportunities to provide me with “accomplishment” statements for my resume.

The name of the game is not just “job searching,” it is MARKETING! If anyone ever asks a job seeker what they do (especially during transition) they can truthfully answer – I am a marketing representative or even call themselves a “director of marketing” for the XYZ (substitute their initials) company! Sounds good and it is the absolute truth!

I have to admit this is a bit outside my precise field of expertise, but here goes…

No matter what age you are or what your experience is or isn’t, an employer wants to know she or he can trust you to be responsible and fulfill your commitments. They also want to know you’ll be someone pleasant to work whom they can trust 100%. So your job is to figure out what you have done and what you can offer that proves that – and then somehow show it on your resume and cover letter. At your age they aren’t expecting much more than that.

All this depends on what you’re looking for of course. If it’s brain surgery…you’ll need a bit more experience. If it’s office work…do you have typing skills? Can you file? Can you do data entry? Can you answer phones? Or maybe you want to work in another type of environment like food services or retail. Whatever it is, just try to aim your skills as best you can toward their needs. I’ll leave this up to you to figure out.

The resume itself should have your name and contact info at the top. Then, in your case, an objective that shows you want this kind of job. (Good resumes nowadays get tailored to EACH job.) Then a section of special skills. Then education (or you can put this at the end since you’re not in college yet.) Then talk about how you assisted in your family business, what you did, responsibilities you took on, etc. Also talk about your baby-sitting and how responsible you were and how much they liked you, etc.

For resume samples, go to SusanIreland.com.

And bolster your chances with a GREAT cover letter that really shows all the qualities I mentioned. Hint: You want to aim yourself to their needs and not talk about all your needs.

Don’t worry about what you don’t have – including outside references. Use what you have. Most jobs at your stage of life are learned as you do them anyway. If you show you are determined to be great, they’ll get that.

I wish you all the best, Rachel. Please let us know how it goes, ok?

~ Ronnie Ann

I’m 16 and looking for a job, but I’m not really sure what to put on my resume.

I don’t really have any work experience other than baby sitting my nieces and nephews. I have worked with my parents cleaning and painting houses for about 3 years. I’m homeschooled so I don’t have any grand academic achievments or awards. Any suggestion on how I could utilize my “prior experience”?

One more thing, because I don’t have much experience outside of the family I only have family references. How would that look on my resume?

Thanks a bunch!

Rachel

Been there done that many times myself. Your best approach involves how you present yourself on paper (resume and cover letter) and in person. Hope this helps:

How to Handle Annoying Red Flags in Your Resume

It’s a different world out there now – and the good part is many employers get that people go through what you’ve gone through, Tim.

Good luck!

Ronnie Ann