Career Advice

The key to jump starting your career after graduation is to show how your education, internships, volunteer work, paid employment, involvement in associations, extracurricular activities, honors or awards relate to and support your career goals. Most resumes don't do this effectively.

With employers receiving up to 400 resumes for each advertised position they spend as little as 10 seconds glancing at each one. Therefore, your resume must sell your top skills at a glance.

Tim wants to use his education and background to enter the field of Investment Banking. To test the effectiveness of his before resume, glance over it very quickly. Do any skills and abilities grab your attention and convince you that Tim is a good candidate for a Management Training Program in this industry? Now, take more time and read through the content of his resume. What items are the most impressive? Which information illustrates that Tim already has personal investment, banking industry and management experience, and that he has been actively involved in his university's finance, economics and marketing associations? Is this information buried and hard to find?

Objective	Seek a position utilizing my analytical, quantitative and creative skills
Education	Masters of Business Administration University of Washington 1998 B.S. and B.A., Emphasis in Finance University of Washington 1997 Coursework Concentration: Quantitative Methods of Business, Business Calculus, Financial Management, Securities Analysis, Business Writing/Professional Communication
Employment History	Independent Contractor, Smith's Contracting, Inc. 1984-Present Teller/New Accounts Representative, Bothell Bank 1992 - 1995 Store Manager, Bothell Blockbuster 1989 - 1992
Achievements	Completed Workshops, Profit and Loss Statements, Loss Prevention, Time Management, Delegation, Communication, and Sexual Harassment Manager of the Year, Blockbuster Video 1991 Commendation of Loss Prevention, Blockbuster Video, September 1991 Self-financed education through investments
Affiliations	Executive V.P., UW Bothell Marketing Association (Largest student organization) Member, American Marketing Association and UW Finance & Economics Club Student Representative Hiring committee for MBA Director Coach for youth baseball
Experience	Excel under strict deadline schedules with attention to detail Submitted bids on various projects (saved 40% in costs) Achieved revenue goals of $1,000,000 plus annually Supervised all store operations including: budget forecasting, cash management, profit and loss determination, inventory control, purchasing, merchandising, scheduling, hiring, and training entire staff of 14 employees Opened 8 Blockbuster Video stores

Now take a quick glance at Tim's after resume. Does your impression of Tim's experience and what he has to offer go up dramatically? Does this resume do a much better job of marketing Tim as an excellent candidate for a Management Training Program with an Investment Banking firm? Which resume has more visual impact? Which one would you pick out of a large stack of resumes? Which one do you think will generate Tim a higher starting salary? Which one will generate more interviews and better job offers? And finally, which resume will help to "jump-start" Tim's new career and maximize the many years he has taken to obtain his MBA, BS and BA degrees?

Seek an Investment Banking position utilizing over 10 years Management, Banking Industry, P&L Responsibility and Personal Investment Experience: Providing Investment Banking services for 1,200 new accounts, working directly with VP of Banking. Successfully funding 75% of $60,000 university tuition through market research and personal investments. Managing marketing and business operations with revenues in excess of $ 1.4 million annually with responsibility for directing up to 3 departments and supervising staff of up to 14. Overseeing budget forecasting, cash management, profit and loss, inventory control, purchasing and merchandising - achieving a 50% inventory reduction and a 90% theft reduction. Holding a Masters in Business Administration coupled with B.A. and B.S. Degrees in Finance from the University of Washington, Bothell 1997, 1998.

BUSINESS -- BANKING -- FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT

Business -- Financial Management, Smith's Contracting, Inc. 1984-Present Developed and managed this residential remodeling firm, building sales to over 500 accounts and providing services for properties valued to $4.3 million. Marketed services to commercial remodel contractors as well as to affluent clients managing all aspects of bid preparation and submittal, project scheduling, license and permit coordination, and hiring of subcontractors. Achieved up to a 40% savings in costs by thoroughly researching and selecting most cost effective vendors - which resulted in winning over 90% of all bids. Held full financial management responsibility including profit and loss, annual sales, state and federal tax reporting, purchasing and inventory control. Investment Banking -- New Accounts Representative, Bothell Bank 1992 - 1995 Served as New Accounts Representative for 1,200 personal, commercial and investment accounts with annual deposits in excess of $1.5 million. Worked directly with Vice President of Investment Banking to counsel clients in appropriate investment accounts, and coordinated wire and account transfers as needed. Operations Management -- Expansion, Blockbuster Video 1989 - 1992 Managed store operations generating sales of up to $1.4 million annually, overseeing 3 departments, employing up to 14 staff on 3 rotating shifts, being awarded "Manager of the Year" for outstanding performance. Selected to open 8 Blockbuster Video stores for achieving targeted revenues goals of $1 million annually. Directed store setup, training of management staff and implementation of all reporting procedures until each store was up and running for a one month period. Oversaw budget forecasting, cash management, profit and loss determination, inventory control, purchasing, merchandising, scheduling and hiring. Implemented new methods that reduced inventory recording time by 50% and systems that reduced loss due to theft by 90%.

EDUCATION

Masters in Business Administration Finance Concentration - Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Arts Degrees University of Washington, Bothell 1996 and 1997 Extensive Coursework in Quantitative Methods of Business, Business Calculus Financial Management and Securities Analysis

FINANCE / MARKETING ASSOCIATIONS

Executive Vice President, University of Washington Marketing Association Treasurer, University of Washington Finance & Economics Club