Expert Resumes for Military-to-Civilian Transitions

290 Pages·2009·143.369 MB·English

by  Wendy S Enelow, Louise M Kursmark

Expert Military Cover:exres-miltociv2e 10/1/09 11:41 AM Page 1
Careers/Resumes E
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EXPERT
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E SECOND
EXPERT RESUMES™ ORF MILITARY-TO-CIVILIAN TRANSITIONS R EDITION
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SECOND EDITION
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This Book Is for You If… The BEST Resumes from the
RESUMES
(cid:129) You’re retiring from the military. Top Resume Writers! E ™F
Hundreds of the top resume writers submit- S
(cid:129) Your tour of duty as a reservist or full-time service member is
ted resumes for this collection, and only the
coming to an end. U
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very best were chosen. The resumes repre-
(cid:129) You’ve been passed over for promotions and realize it’s time to sent a wide diversity of style, design, and
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pursue new career opportunities in the civilian work world. technique. This collection is the best ever
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(cid:129) You’ve been offered an outstanding career opportunity outside the assembled for people starting new careers
outside the military.
military. E
To transition to the top private-sector jobs, you must develop a powerful, S MILITARY-TO-CIVILIAN TRANSITIONS
Sample Resumes for
performance-based resume that communicates your military qualifications
Transitioning to a Civilian
in a strong and effective written presentation that civilian employers can
Career ROF
understand and appreciate. This book shows you how!
Excellent resume writing and career advice
Resume Writing Secrets from the Pros plus a carefully chosen collection of sample M
resumes, including resumes targeted to new
For most people, the hardest part of writing a resume is getting started. In
I
this book, professional resume writers Wendy Enelow and Louise Kursmark careers in… L
(cid:129) Administration, accounting, and I
give you the help you need to start—and pull together a stunning resume T
finance
with ease! A
(cid:129) Technology
(cid:129) The top nine resume strategies for getting noticed and getting R
(cid:129) Management
interviews; plus format and presentation standards Y
(cid:129) Operations, purchasing, and logistics -
(cid:129) Step-by-step writing instructions, with examples every step of T
(cid:129) Sales, communications, and training
the way O
(cid:129) Federal, state, and local government
(cid:129) Techniques for choosing the best resume type for your situation (cid:129) Health care and social services -
C
(cid:129) Tips for writing effective cover letters, including expert examples (cid:129) Law enforcement
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(cid:129) Hints for effectively creating scannable and electronic resumes (cid:129) Skilled trades V Professional resume writers share their SECRETS and SAMPLE
(cid:129) A extensive directory of job search Web resources relevant to …plus resumes for advancing your career I RESUMES for MOVING INTO CIVILIAN CAREERS in
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people transitioning from the military after your transition! I Nearly 170 pages
A (cid:129) Health Care and Social Services
N of SAMPLE RESUMES
(cid:129) Technology
About the Authors

Wendy S. Enelow is a lifelong entrepreneur who spe- Louise M. Kursmarkis the founder and president of Best T and COVER LETTERS (cid:129) Federal, State, and Local Government
cializes in executive career coaching, executive resume Impression Career Services, Inc., and a founding member of R
writing, and executive job search. She is a Credentialed the Career Management Alliance. She is a Master Resume A designed especially for (cid:129) Management and Executive Positions
Career Master, Master Resume Writer, and Certified Job Writer, a Certified Job and Career Transition Coach, a Certified N
(cid:129) Education and Training
service members
and Career Transition Coach who speaks to audiences Employment Interview Professional, and Credentialed Career S
nationwide. She is the author or coauthor of more than Master. Louise is the author of 30-Minute Resume Makeover, I (cid:129) Legal, Law Enforcement, Security, and Intelligence
T leaving the military!
25 career books, including all nine in the Expert Resumes Best Resumes for College Students and New Grads, andSales
I (cid:129) Skilled Trades
series. and Marketing Resumes for $100,000 Careers,and coauthor O
of Cover Letter Magic, 15-Minute Cover Letter, Executive’s (cid:129) And more!
N
Pocket Guide to ROI Resumes and Job Search, Directory of
S Includes a carefully selected gallery of resumes written by the
Professional Resume Writers,and the eight other books in the
Expert Resumesseries. top PROFESSIONAL RESUME WRITERS.
SECOND
EDITION
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800-648-JIST | www.jist.com
Wendy S. Enelow and Louise M. Kursmark
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Wendy S. Enelow and Louise M. Kursmark
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Expert Resumes for Military-to-Civilian Transitions, Second Edition
© 2010 by Wendy S. Enelow and Louise M. Kursmark
Published by JIST Works, an imprint of JIST Publishing
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Phone: 800-648-JIST Fax: [phone] E-mail: [email protected]
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Printed in the United States of America
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Enelow, Wendy S.
Expert resumes for military-to-civilian transitions / Wendy S. Enelow and
Louise M. Kursmark. -- 2nd ed.
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN 978-1-59357-732-2 (alk. paper)
1. Résumés (Employment)--United States. 2. Career changes--United States.
3. Retired military personnel--Employment--United States. 4. Veterans--
Employment--United States. I. Kursmark, Louise. II. Title.
HF5383.E47885 2010
650.14’2--dc22
2009038500
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any
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We have been careful to provide accurate information in this book, but it is possible that
errors and omissions have been introduced. Please consider this in making any career
plans or other important decisions. Trust your own judgment above all else and in all
things.
Trademarks: All brand names and product names used in this book are trade names, ser-
vice marks, trademarks, or registered trademarks of their respective owners.
ISBN 978-1-59357-732-2
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T
ABLE OF
C
ONTENTS
A T B ...................................................................vii
BOUT HIS OOK
I .......................................................................viii
NTRODUCTION
PART I: Resume Writing, Strategy, and Formats ......................................1
C 1: R W S M - -
HAPTER ESUME RITING TRATEGIES FOR ILITARY TO
C C T .......................................................3
IVILIAN AREER RANSITIONS
Resume Strategies ................................................................................4
Resume Strategy #1: Who Are You and How Do You Want
to Be Perceived? .........................................................................4
Resume Strategy #2: Sell It to Me…Don’t Tell It to Me ..............6
Resume Strategy #3: Use Keywords ..............................................7
Resume Strategy #4: Use the “Big” and Save the “Little” .............9
Resume Strategy #5: Make Your Resume “Interviewable”...........10
Resume Strategy #6: Eliminate Confusion with Structure
and Context .............................................................................11
Resume Strategy #7: Use Function to Demonstrate
Achievement .............................................................................11
Resume Strategy #8: Remain in the Realm of Reality ..................11
Resume Strategy #9: Be Confident .............................................12
Resume Standards ..............................................................................12
Content Standards ......................................................................12
Presentation Standards ................................................................16
Accuracy and Perfection ..............................................................19
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Expert Resumes for Military-to-Civilian Transitions
C 2: W Y R .............................................21
HAPTER RITING OUR ESUME
Recommended Resume Strategies and Formats for Military-to-
Civilian Career Transitions ...............................................................21
Insider Advice for Military-Transition Resumes ...........................23
Choose the Right Format and Paint the Right Picture ................23
Step-by-Step: Writing the Perfect Resume ..........................................29
Contact Information ...................................................................29
Career Summary .........................................................................30
Professional Experience ...............................................................34
Education, Credentials, and Certifications ...................................39
The “Extras” ..............................................................................41
Writing Tips, Techniques, and Important Lessons ..............................46
Get It Down—Then Polish and Perfect It ...................................46
Write Your Resume from the Bottom Up ...................................46
Include Notable or Prominent “Extra” Stuff in Your Career
Summary ..................................................................................47
Use Resume Samples to Get Ideas for Content, Format, and
Organization ............................................................................47
Handle Dates Effectively .............................................................47
Always Send a Cover Letter When You Forward Your
Resume ....................................................................................49
Never Include Salary History or Salary Requirements on
Your Resume ............................................................................50
Always Remember That You Are Selling .....................................50
C 3: P , S , E , W
HAPTER RINTED CANNABLE LECTRONIC AND EB
R ........................................................................................51
ESUMES
The Four Types of Resumes ...............................................................51
The Printed Resume ...................................................................51
The Scannable Resume ...............................................................51
The Electronic Resume ...............................................................52
The Web Resume .......................................................................54
The Four Resume Types Compared ...................................................58
Are You Ready to Write Your Resume? ..............................................60
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Table of Contents
PART II: Sample Resumes for Military-to-Civilian Transitions ..................61
C 4: R C A ,
HAPTER ESUMES FOR AREERS IN DMINISTRATION
A , F ..........................................................63
CCOUNTING AND INANCE
C 5: R C T .....................77
HAPTER ESUMES FOR AREERS IN ECHNOLOGY
C 6: R M E
HAPTER ESUMES FOR ANAGEMENT AND XECUTIVE
C ........................................................................................85
AREERS
C 7: R C O ,
HAPTER ESUMES FOR AREERS IN PERATIONS
P , S C , L ...............................105
URCHASING UPPLY HAIN AND OGISTICS
C 8: R C S , C ,
HAPTER ESUMES FOR AREERS IN ALES OMMUNICATIONS
H R , T , T ..........................127
UMAN ESOURCES RAINING AND EACHING
C 9: R C F , S ,
HAPTER ESUMES FOR AREERS IN EDERAL TATE AND
L G ....................................................................143
OCAL OVERNMENT
C 10: R C H C
HAPTER ESUMES FOR AREERS IN EALTH ARE AND
S S ..........................................................................159
OCIAL ERVICES
C 11: R C L , L
HAPTER ESUMES FOR AREERS IN AW AW
E , S , I ..............................173
NFORCEMENT ECURITY AND NTELLIGENCE
C 12: R C S T ...........193
HAPTER ESUMES FOR AREERS IN KILLED RADES
C 13: R C C A
HAPTER ESUMES FOR ONTINUED AREER DVANCEMENT
A S M T ...................................207
FTER UCCESSFUL ILITARY RANSITION
PART III: Cover Letters for Military-to-Civilian Transitions ....................231
C 14: W W C L .....................233
HAPTER RITING A INNING OVER ETTER
Six Steps to Writing Better Cover Letters .........................................235
Step 1: Identify Your Key Selling Points....................................235
Step 2: Preplan .........................................................................237
Step 3: Write the Opening Paragraph ........................................237
Step 4: Write the Body .............................................................238
Step 5: Write the Closing ..........................................................239
Step 6: Polish, Proofread, and Finalize ......................................240
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Expert Resumes for Military-to-Civilian Transitions
Authors’ Best Tips for Writing Winning Cover Letters .....................241
Don’t Reinvent the Wheel ........................................................241
Sell It to Me; Don’t Tell It to Me.............................................242
Get Over Writer’s Block ...........................................................242
Answer the Employer’s Most Important Question: “What
Can You Do for Me?” ............................................................242
Cover Letter Checklist .....................................................................243
C 15: S C L ..........................................245
HAPTER AMPLE OVER ETTERS
A : I C R ..................................253
PPENDIX NTERNET AREER ESOURCES
Dictionaries and Glossaries ...............................................................253
Job Search Sites ...............................................................................254
General Sites .............................................................................254
Military Transition Sites ............................................................255
Career-Specific Sites ..................................................................256
Company Information .....................................................................259
Interviewing Tips and Techniques ....................................................259
Salary and Compensation Information .............................................260
I C ............................................................261
NDEX OF ONTRIBUTORS
I ..........................................................................................265
NDEX
vi
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A T
BOUT HIS
B
OOK
Whether you’ve been in the military for 2 years, 4 years, 10 years, 20 years, or
more, making the transition from a military to a civilian career can be quite a chal-
lenge. To begin with, you have a number of very important decisions to make:
• The type or types of positions you want to pursue
• The industry or industries in which you are interested
• The type of company you would like to work for
• Your desired geographic location(s)
Once you have made those decisions, the next step in your job search will be to
develop a strong, achievement-focused resume that clearly communicates your
skills, knowledge, expertise, and record of performance. The critical challenge you
face is to translate those years of military experience into language that “corporate
America” understands. Acronyms, abbreviations, and initials that may be a rou-
tine part of your vocabulary (for example, FORSCOM, AFB, ECM, DoD, and
TRADOC) will most likely not be recognizable to these companies and their hir-
ing managers (unless you’re targeting your job search to companies that do busi-
ness specifically with the U.S. government or U.S. Armed Forces).
Learning to write a powerful resume that uses civilian language and positions
you as a competitive candidate in the employment market is what this book is all
about. As you read through the early chapters, you’ll learn that a resume is much
more than just your job history, academic credentials, technical skills, and awards.
A truly effective resume is a concise, yet comprehensive, document that focuses on
your achievements, contributions, and value you bring to a company. Read this
book and review the scores of samples, and you’ll have the tools you need to cre-
ate your own winning resume.
Once you have written your resume, this book will instruct you in the methods for
preparing resumes for e-mail, scanning, and Web site posting, as well as the tradi-
tional printed resume.
By using Expert Resumes for Military-to-Civilian Transitions as your professional
guide, you will succeed in developing a powerful and effective resume that opens
doors, gets interviews, and helps you land a great opportunity!
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I
NTRODUCTION
Unlike some of the other books in the Expert Resumes series, which focus on very
specific career areas, this book addresses a large and diverse audience: specifically,
military personnel who are now pursuing civilian jobs and careers. This unique col-
lection of people represents just about every profession and industry imaginable—
from aerospace engineering to logistics management, from airfield operations to
software design, from housing to recruitment, and so much more. The only thing
that each of our readers has in common is the fact that they have decided to leave
(or retire from) the military. Beyond that, the range of experiences, qualifications,
skills, and expertise that each of our readers has is vastly different.
But that’s okay. This book was not written to teach you how to write a resume for
a specific industry, profession, or job skill. Rather, this book was written to guide
you in translating your military experience into terminology that hiring managers
in the corporate world can easily understand. In essence, we want to provide you
with the insights you need to translate your military experience into the functions,
responsibilities, and skill sets required for a successful career outside the Armed
Forces.
To help you use this book wisely, we divided into three parts:
• Part I contains three chapters of critical importance to every reader. These
chapters outline important resume-writing strategies, provide instruction on
how to write a resume, and explain what you may need to change on your
resume depending on how you plan to submit it.
• Part II breaks down the resume samples into chapters based on your current
career goals and objectives.
• Part III addresses the critically important document that accompanies your
resume just about every time you send it: your cover letter.
Before you start writing a resume, you need to ask yourself some key questions,
identify your career objectives, and consider how you will conduct your job search.
The What, How, Which, and Where of Resume Writing
There are four critical questions that you must ask yourself before you ever begin
writing your resume:
• What type of position/career track are you going to pursue? Your current
career goals dictate the entire resume writing and design process. If you’re
looking for a position where you will have responsibilities similar to what you
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Introduction
did in the military, you’ll approach your resume one way. On the other hand,
if you’re now looking to transition your skills into a new career field, your
resume should be entirely different.
• How are you going to paint a picture of your skills and qualifications
that will make you an attractive candidate in the civilian world? What
types of information are you going to highlight about your past experiences
that tie directly to your current objectives? What accomplishments, skills, and
qualifications are you going to “sell” in your resume to support your new civil-
ian career objectives?
• Which resume format are you going to use? Is a chronological, functional,
or hybrid resume format going to work best for you? Which format will give
you the greatest flexibility to highlight the skills you want to bring to the fore-
front in support of your transition into a civilian career?
• Where are you going to look for a job? Once you have decided what type
of position and industry you are interested in, how do you plan to identify and
approach those companies?
When you can answer the what, how, which, and where, you’ll be prepared to
write your resume and launch your search campaign. Use chapters 1 through 3
to guide you in developing the content for your resume and selecting the appro-
priate design and layout. Your resume should focus on your skills, achievements,
and qualifications, demonstrating the value and benefit you bring to a prospective
employer as they relate to your current career goals. The focus should be on the
“civilian” you and not necessarily what you have done in the past in your military
career.
Review the sample resumes in chapters 4 through 13 to see what other people
have done—people in similar situations to yours who faced similar challenges.
You’ll find interesting formats, unique skills presentations, achievement-focused
resumes, project-focused resumes, and much more. Most importantly, you’ll
see samples written by the top resume writers in the United States, Canada, and
Australia. These are real resumes that got interviews and generated job offers.
They’re the “best of the best” from us to you.
Finally, review chapters 14 and 15 for best-in-class cover letter strategies and
samples. As you’ll read, your cover letter is an essential partner to your resume,
and that’s why we have expanded this edition of Expert Resumes for Military-to-
Civilian Transitions to include the guidelines and templates you will need for a
complete job search campaign.
Determining and Reaching Your Career Objectives
Before you proceed any further with writing your resume, you’ll need to begin by
defining your career or job objectives—specifically, the types of positions, compa-
nies, and industries in which you are interested. This is critical because a haphaz-
ard, unfocused job search will lead you nowhere.
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