SMACS holds resume building workshop

With graduation closely looming, many seniors are looking for help in writing their resumes and preparing for job interviews. 

Therefore, when the Student Members of the American Chemical Society, Mu Epsilon Delta and the biological honors society Tri-Beta hosted the resume writing and interview workshop Feb. 14, many students learned important skills to lead them into the next phase of their life.

“We organized this because the majority of people majoring in the sciences will be going on to graduate school or professional school, so there is a huge demand for good resumes. We wanted to make these students aware of the incredible resources available to them by the university,” said SMACS president Elizabeth DeVlieger. 

The speaker of the event, Student Success Center Coordinator Candace Goad, talked to students about perfecting the tools needed to obtain a job.

Her presentation detailed the ins and outs of writing resumes and how to give an outstanding job interview. 

“The purpose of the resume is to sell yourself,” Goad said. 

Goad explained that this means portraying yourself as the perfect employee for the job, highlighting your skills and downplaying your faults. She also said to make sure to clean up your social media sites before sending out resumes, because one in five employers check social sites.

Goad also talked about doing research on organizations and including some of their key words in a cover letter. If they are looking for a candidate with a skill in a certain area or certain traits, include those key words in your cover letter.  Some companies even electronically search for those key words.

Finally, she said to think outside the job description and add things that aren’t stereotypically associated with a certain job.  Embellish your previous job descriptions to make them pertinent to your new, hopeful job.  However, she emphasized that embellishment does not mean to lie, and she said if you lie, they will eventually find out.

When thinking about future jobs, Goad’s best advice was to find a career that personally fulfills you.

“If you’re not happy, get out of there,” Goad said.