The purpose of a resume and cover letter is to land you an interview. They work as an introduction to your professional qualifications and experience.
ANY mistake in format, mechanics, organization, or logic will cause your resume to look uneducated, careless, and of low quality. In other words, you are being immediately judged by the beauty, clarity, impression, and style of your resume and cover letter. Make sure you get it perfect!

• Paper must be 8.5 inches by 11 inches. Don’t use regular copy paper which tends to be thin. Use a high-quality resume paper.
• Use an Arial or Times New Roman font: 11pt or larger than 12pt, except for your Name and Headings.
• Bold and enlarge your name at the top. Keep the sections lined up and consistent.
• Do not include pronouns such as “I,” company street addresses, salary, or reasons for leaving.
• Two-page resume: be sure to fill the second page at least halfway down the page.
• Place your name and “Page 2” at the top of page two.
• Leave out personal data, photos, and unrelated hobbies
• If you spell out the state in your address, such as New York, spell out the states for your jobs.

Other information
There are many things that you should NOT include on your resume. Never send a photo (unless you are applying for a modeling or acting job of course). Never include your age, marital status, number of kids, reasons for leaving jobs, past salaries, health information, or any information about your ethnicity and race. An employer may ask you if you can legally take a job in the U.S., and they also may ask about your language abilities. You MAY put on your resume any foreign languages you speak, professional memberships and associations, awards, degrees, and honors, publications, licenses, titles, military service, security clearances, and even hobbies if they relate to the job. Keep this extra information limited though, because it may work against you. Most employers will have already decided if you are worth an interview based on education, experience, and the quality of your writing. Do not include unrelated personal interests and hobbies such as “enjoy reading, long walks, music, travel, knitting, and puzzles.

BASIC RESUME WRITING TIPs – FORMATTING RULES
This is the most commonly used resume format is chronological. It is straightforward, and easily traces a candidate’s career path and progression in a given field. Experience and accomplishments are listed in reverse chronological order, with the most recent job positioned first. Because it leaves little to the imagination and makes it difficult to hide employment gaps, the chronological resume is the most preferred format of employers and recruiters.

Below is an example:

Name
Address
Phone

Objective Enthusiastic, knowledge-hungry learner, eager to meet challenges, and quickly assimilate new concepts, seeks to obtain a position as an Administrative Assistant, where I can utilize my skills, education, and experience in a professional business environment.

Work Experience     XXXXX, LLC      Chicago, IL

Executive Assistant & Client Relations            May 2006- January 2009

• Executive Assistant to three C-Level executives and administrative assistant to twelve associates.
• Daily duties of answering phones, faxing, filing, photocopying, preparing expense reports, creating and preparing marketing documents & memos, ordering lunch for meetings, sorting and distributing mail, and greeting guests.
• Maintain schedules of appointments and meetings for three C-Level executives.
• Coordinate domestic and international travel plans.
• Organize and manage the firm’s investor databases and hard copy files.
• Plan and coordinate the RCP Annual Investor’s Meeting.
• Train and motivate new employees within the Fund Administration Department.
• Develop and maintain relationships with investors and intermediaries.
• Prepare minutes and organize agenda for monthly Fund Administration meetings.
• Create training manuals for new employees.
• Prepare and distribute highly confidential investor reports and RFPs.

Future Finance      Oak Forest, IL

Associate Loan Clerk   August 2005- May 2006

• Review loan applicant’s stipulations for funding decisions.
• Fund and organize daily dealer accounts and agreements.
• Train and motivate new employees within the Funding Department.
• Assist in general administrative duties when needed.

Payless Shoe Source    Portage, MI

Sales Associate    May 2001- February 2006

• Direct the efforts of the sales associates toward maintaining the company standards of store presentation and customer’s service, while achieving the store standards of sales, profit, and inventory control.
• Communicate with customers concerning online orders and sales of merchandise, while utilizing suggestive sales techniques to promote transactions

Education:

Point Loma Nazarene University     San Diego, CA

Masters of Business Administration             Current-December 2011

Western Michigan University   Kalamazoo, MI

Bachelors of Business Administration  April 2004

Software:

Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, Access, Outlook, PowerPoint), Microsoft Publisher, SalesForce.com, Investran, Equity Works, Adobe Reader