Applying for Jobs - Frustrated with Resume

Page 1 of 1 [ 3 posts ] 

jkrane
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 10 Apr 2007
Age: 36
Gender: Male
Posts: 737
Location: 39uqlksdj3ujadlskd

08 Dec 2008, 10:59 am

Man, I've got a bunch of applications done, and I'm working on my cover letter and resume. A career counsellor checked over my resume, and he found all these nit-picky little things to correct. I wrote, what I feel is a pretty good cover letter and resume includes all my accomplishments (education, volunteer, interests, references, etc). All of this is properly spaced, good use of headings and subheadings, proper usage of bold, underline, and italics...at least in my opinion.

She added all these corrections with wierd spaces. It's hard for me to understand some of the changes she suggested, so I can't really explain it well. Sorry I'm not being all that specific.

The thing that pisses me off about resumes and getting a job in general, is the fact that managers are big enough pricks to actually deny someone a job or at least an interview, because they didn't f*****g remember the colour of their pen they were using on July 14, 1994. (I'm exaggerating here). I found myself saying, "OMG! Who cares about this sh***y little detail!" For most of these corrections. I don't believe my resume was vague.

For the spacing, It's not cool to have a resume spaced in proper paragraph or jot note format.
It has to be indented on the second, and subsequent lines.
Like this.
With the date on the other side
Why wasn't I taught this in Careers class in school?

I hate filling out applications too. I gotta fill out the same f*****g thing 12 times, in pen, not f**k up, and I'm sick of it! I find I'm intimidated with the whole process of applying for a freakin' job! I wanna be productive for christ sake! I don't want to be discouraged and intimidated from being productive because a manager won't hire me if I make one lousy error on an application, or didn't indent certain lines my resume.

Sorry for the rant.
Am I making a big deal out of things? Are managers really this nit picky?
Does anyone else struggle wit the whole application process?



Prof_Pretorius
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 20 Aug 2006
Age: 66
Gender: Male
Posts: 7,520
Location: Hiding in the attic of the Arkham Library

08 Dec 2008, 11:20 am

The entire job seeking experience is difficult. I sympathize. I wrote three different versions of my resume, and was shopping it around when I got a call from an agency. The young lady found my resume, and mentioned one phrase I had used. She had a job opening, and needed more people to apply for it. Now I'm employed. And it had nothing to do how well written my resume was.


_________________
I wake to sleep, and take my waking slow. I feel my fate in what I cannot fear. I learn by going where I have to go. ~Theodore Roethke


Kirska
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 11 Aug 2008
Age: 38
Gender: Female
Posts: 581
Location: Dallas, TX

08 Dec 2008, 11:24 am

Resumes are one of the most important pieces of paper in our lives. They pretty much are supposed to sum all of your qualifications and who you are on a single sheet. Sometimes though the career counselors have this set way of doing it in their mind. That's probably what happened with the spacing corrections on yours.

In my experience, most employers first glance over the resumes just looking for things like major, GPA, previous jobs, and then later on especially before an interview they'll tear it apart. Every single little detail.

Also in my experience, the boss or person actually making the decision has never really looked at the application. For a big company it's really only for HR's use to make sure you're not a criminal and be able to do a background check on you. The actual boss/employer cares about your resume/transcripts and your interview. In the past there was a problem with one of my applications and the person who contacted me was in HR, not the person interviewing me. By the way I still got that job. What happened was my very first job working at a sandwich shop, the owner had for some reason erased all records of me ever working there so when this company called them up to get some info they said I never worked there :?

Overall, though, I have found that as long as the resume is good enough to get you an interview, the interview itself is hands down the most important part of the whole process. The application is just a technicality. At least this seems to be the way it is in the big corporations I have interviewed with.


_________________
"Shadow, my sweet shadow
to you I look no more"