A resume is a summary of who you are professionally. It's a way of collecting your skills and accomplishments that may be relevant to an employer, and presenting them in a brief, organized, and convincing way.
The cover letter is a way to demonstrate your writing skills, and a little bit of who you are as a person.
There are some things you will put on every resume and every cover letter. You may also develop different resumes for different purposes, or modify them to be especially tailored for specific job openings. You should also consider how the resume and cover letter will be submitted. If you know it's going directly to a human, it's important that it looks nice. If you're submitting it in an online form, it might be read by a computer program first. In that case, it's important to include the key words relevant to the job opening that the computer is likely to look for.
This interactive lesson will show you:
- What is required for most resumes and cover letters
- Examples of different ways you can organize your resume and cover letter
Northstar Online Learning (NSOL) provides interactive lessons in computer basics, productivity software, job search skills, and other skills.