Hello, I have written resumes in the past but they have always been for a specific position (generally advancing forward in school or a small resume to just a part time job or job in the food industry (in which I have a lot of experience) but I am now looks for help doing a general resume in which I can put out there for different employers and I'm having trouble on length and what to put on there because I'm unsure exactly what to include given my skill-set to make myself seem more desirable as an employee for an actual career.


Background:
Associates Degree in Secondary Education with focus in Mathematics.
BS in mathematics
1 Year of MS in mathematics completed

Experience (Jobs wise)
3 Years Employee at Pizza place (cook-now assistant manager)
2 Year Employee of another pizza place (head cook)
3 Years Employee of another pizza place (assistant Manger)
All these jobs were left on good terms and only left them due to graduation from schools and moving to another town for more education at a different school.

2 Years working as office assistant in Mathematics department while finishing BS in Math
1.5 Years as undergraduate Teaching assistant in mathematics department
1 Year as Graduate Teaching Assistant in mathematics department
All of these jobs were also left on good terms when I finished my degree and just recently had to leave the school due to family medical issues.


The problem I'm having is I have a BS Degree in Math completed and a partial MS in Math started and I'm looking for a CAREER if possible. I do not have a state certified teaching certificate though because I decided to go the graduate school route to begin with and had to recently drop out (take a break for a year or a couple) while some family health and financial issues are handled. This is why I need a new job or career so I can actually make a living but I'm not quite sure what jobs and experience to include when making a general application because I'm not even quite sure of all the jobs I can even apply for and be considered. If anyone has knowledge in my specified area and can help me finish a solid resume I will compensate you in FG for your time. I'm really over and trying to get out of the restaurant business because even as a manager I don't make enough money.

I'm not sure career wise, but I think you should put all of it on your resume.
you've basically got 2 jobs for experienc. all of that can fit nicely on a 1 sheet resume
post or pm resume if you'd like

I'd put your educational background as well as your experience working with your department and teaching.
If you are applying for relevant positions, the pizza places are not really all needed. The most recent one where you are now assistant manager would be sufficient.
No sense in putting for one where you just cooked pizzas. You have some pretty decent experience to report about yourself that seems much more important.

Whenever I had to makes resumes, I tailored them individually to the job I was applying for.
Mention your skills that are applicable to the job and how they make you a good candidate. A generalized resume isn't always the best idea if you are looking for a career.
It could work, but honestly if you want a real career, your resume should be specifically made for the job that you are applying for.

as mentioned above, keep it absolutely under 1 page and only use relevant information. in your case this would be your undergrad degree/relevant coursework pertaining to individual jobs/any completed projects, research etc. this is all standard advice.

before reading the rest of my post, bear in mind i do not know how far along in your MS 1 year got you.

you have to make a decision regarding how to handle postponing grad school on your resume. i would not suggest writing a partial MS (since that really isn't a thing), so if you wish to convey that you did some GTA/grad level classes/started(?) on thesis work that is up to you, but it will raise some flags as employers read it since it wasn't completed (regardless of your situation), and there isn't a particularly professional way to address the reasons for dropping out on a resume.

you want to find the most ideal place to alert them that you have done some MS work, but would need an appropriate forum to explain the reasoning for not completing it. i'm not entirely sure what the best approach would be, as you obviously would want to have employers know you both 1) have some graduate level education completed and 2) show an interest in furthering your education. without having seen any specifics of your resume, i would say it would be most appropriate to address it in a cover letter, as you can briefly mention both the ms experience you have accrued and quickly justify dropping out. this portrays the information early in the process to employers which may help you get access to more interviews where you can describe in more detail what you had accomplished in 1 year of your MS program, without taking your resume off-course with non completed thesis work which may land you in the do-not-call pile, fair or not.

pm me if you'd like to discuss anything further, and good luck!

This post was edited by eighty6 on Dec 26 2014 12:03am

I recommend making the resume look aesthetically pleasing. Once you get it all to 1 page or there-abouts, start ensuring all the formatting is the same and that is is spread to cover the entire page. I would condense all your pizza work experience into one "job" under your work experience.

I guess the biggest issue is going to be the summary at the top, what are you looking for? what field?

Every single resume you send in should be different. It's perfectly acceptable (and a good idea) to have a strong template to work off of so you can just change little things, but it should ALWAYS be different.

Most big $$$ corporations/businesses (and even smaller ones these days) are not even reading your resume- they're sending it through a machine. What that machine does is look for keywords in your resume that match up with words in the job listing. Always always ALWAYS pick out those important words from the listing and be SURE to include them in your resume.

As far as your work experience... If you're applying to be a financial analyst for me I DO NOT care that you delivered pizza in High School 10 years ago. In fact, I don't care if you delivered pizza at all, and I don't want to hear about it. Managerial experience? Sure, include that. That said- if your idea of a career is something in the pizza industry, sure, list all that stuff.

This will probably come off as harsh, and I apologize for that... In the real world your work experience isn't very desirable outside of the food service/service industry. Build your resume off of your education history. DO NOT list that you've dropped out- list that you're pursuing. Even if you're taking a break. If you've completed some credits and plan to finish, you're pursuing. Save the details until you're hired.

I have been up staring at a screen for about 9 hours so this is just a jumble... If you have a baseline resume worked up I'd glady look it over for you and give you some pointers. Shoot me a PM.


Lastly... Where are you from? If you're in the Seattle area I could put you in touch with some folks.

Burton's advice is spot-on. Personalize each resume to the job you're applying for. Applying for a job IS a job! Show them you're serious and do not take your resume lightly. It's the difference between you getting the interview or some dweeb that had his dad write his resume for him.

The keyword advice/facts Burton gave are also correct. If it's a bigger company that you'd expect a lot of people to be applying with, chances are a human being doesn't even touch that application until it's been screened by a computer. Sometimes twice. It works on a point system as far as keywords and phrases go. You don't meet the mark? Computer throws it away.

You're likely not going to find a career outside of the food service industry that is relevant to your degrees, so branch out. There are tons of niche industries that no one even thinks about. (I work in corrosion prevention... Yeah, that's a thing) So get on the indeed website and literally just put in your area.... not a specific type of job. Sort through. Sometimes just HAVING a degree is the nudge some of these guys need to bring in someone green that they have to train. It doesn't matter what the degree is - the fact that you got it says something about you.... more than Joe-Blow who's just been hopping job to job since he was 18. Even if this type of thing doesn't turn into a career, it could keep you on your feet and then some until you're able to finish your original planned path.

/e There are TONS of free resume templates out there that allow you to build a great looking one-page resume (which is all you need) and give you ideas on how to take up a little more space.

This post was edited by Shiner on Jan 16 2015 10:21pm