What Does It Take To Get A Job?

[Provost Harrison]

OK Sneak, thanks...

[SuperSneak]

OK...made a very basic change...moved work experience to the forefront. I think you should expand vastly on this. Think of any little thing you did and trump it up mightily. Focus on hard industry skills such as knowledge and performance of standard industry spreadsheets, databases, statistical analysis, etc., etc,. etc. They want to know you can not only analyze, but present analysis.
I also edited out your reason for leaving the facility you were at...they don't need to know that, and, frankly, it makes you look like a quitter. Tell them you wanted to work, felt like there were more practical applications, need to pay off student loans, whatever...don't tell them you were disenchanted and left.
I think that and the perception you have no job skills has relegated your CV to the early slag heap. Give yourself a fighting chance.

[SuperSneak]

Here is my very basic edit...
You need to bullet and flesh out specific job skills related to past experience now, I think.
Your education is already very impressive. I also include a "job goal" or "job objective" statement at the top of my resume. I'll post one in a bit if I have the time.

[SuperSneak]

OK...this is not the best example in the world, but it illustrates a laundry list of applicable skills as well as hitting the reader with some clear goals and objectives right off the bat.
This is not what I send in the post, I have a much more polished res for that, but this is typically what I might send as an electronic submisson.
It is actually just a cut and paste from Monster.com.
*edited out download since I saw 5 people had dl'd it and got paranoid....

[Provost Harrison]

Thanks Sneak. I am interested in how you have done your CV. It seems quite long though, I've heard that employers are buggers for ignoring CVs over 2 pages, unless that is just one of those things over here. You know how these things vary. In France they all have photos on them. Strange isn't it?

[SuperSneak]

Yes...there is a lot of variation here. A lot depends on the industry as well.
Mine is in a large font, and, as I said, I'd never send it out like that unless someone needed it quickly, as is often the case in my field (sales/account management).
In your case, I would want to see you do the same with job experience that you did with education...point by point examination of skills. If you really have to cut down to two pages, tighten up the schooling and expand on the work.
In the job market, there is not a lot of chance taking on promising prospects--as the hiring is directly reflected back onto the hirer.
I don't know if mission statements, etc. will fly over there, but job experience is an essential anywhere. They can get to know you more in an interview. Without the interviews, there isn't a chance to work your magic on a personal level.
Think of your audience, not yourself.

[Provost Harrison]

It's just that a lot of the relevent experience comes into my PhD stuff you see, which would be classed as education, although isn't as such as I was effectively working, hence there is a lot of stuff under my education...

[Immortal Wombat]

First thing that screams is the email address. It sounds pathetic, but the difference between riiiiiich@hotmail.com and something like Richard_Harrison@btopenworld.com is remarkable.

Get a non-Hotmail, non-Yahoo non-Crappy-Free-Webmail address.
Oh, and for goodness sake use your name. It looks really silly when your email address looks like a hang over from secondary school.

[DanS]

I could go either way on the experience versus education first. This is his first job in the industry.

Personally, I wanted to see you lead with your educational accomplishments and a showcase of your skills. Out with the "responsible" and in with the "designed innovative protocol and pilot study to prove that humans can grow three tits, " It's nice to see numbers too. "Managed report writing for three peer-reviewed articles appearing in Dumb Schmuck Science." Some industries are more credential-based, so you have to modify for your industry.

When I got down to work experience, I thought it was pretty interesting. You were a canvasser. No sh!t. Lead with statistical analysis and presentation of findings.

[Bugs ****ing Bunny]

I've no experience in your field, but I spent a lot of time as a recruitment screener/interviewer and I can tell you that this line....

A combination of poor laboratory facilities and university resources in my field of research coupled with a problems with obtaining adequate supervision forced me to resign as a PhD student.

...is a tombstone. Drop it.

Secondly, I'm not interested in your punt.

[Caligastia]

What excuse should he give for dropping out then?

[Bugs ****ing Bunny]

Don't even broach the subject on the CV. If they ask in the interview then he's got a better chance of stating his case convincingly.

[Caligastia]

So he could say something similar if asked?

[DanS]

What do you mean by "punt"? Not familiar with the term.

[Kropotkin]

I know sh!t about CV:s but isn't the so call 'job' as Admissions Officer a bit too much? For my untrained eye it seems like you're desperate to get a few jobs on the paper. less can be more. Why didn't you include a paper-rout at 14 and a short career collecting balls during matches in the english conference on two occuations in october 1992?