Oh Dan, You have opened my pet-peeve can of worms!  I hire college and
graduate level interns every year and am despondent over the POOR quality
of their resumes.

So, here is what gets read versus tossed immediately:
1) An email from an applicant whom I have never met starting without a
greeting or with "Hi". (toss)
2) Blatantly ignore what I've requested be part of the application. (toss)
3) An email saying "Hi, here's my resume" is NOT a cover letter. (toss)
4) A photo of said applicant front and center on the resume (all sorts of
issues with HR laws). (toss)
5) A well crafted (read: spell checked) cover letter outlining those soft
skills that won't be reflected in the work experience. (read)
6) A thoughtfully formatted resume (work experience first is prefered, but
not a deal breaker) that has been updated and spell checked. (read)
7) If the applicant has never actually held a paying job (which is
generally a deal breaker for me) there ought to be a statement as to WHY.
(read)
8) A reflection of WHY the applicant wants to work at my site (beyond "I
need an internship for class credit") -- either it is reflected in their
cover letter as a career goal, they have family in the area, or they want
to see what is the best fit for them. (read)

The list, to me, seems simple, but I work with a great many students and
some of my high school seniors don't know how to even properly address an
envelope (not making this up) and the college students don't have a clue
how to write a letter let alone an email.  Schools, at all levels, are
FAILING kids when it comes to the business world.



-- 
*Michelle Zupan*
Curator
Hickory Hill & the Tom Watson Birthplace
502 Hickory Hill Drive
Thomson, GA  30824
706-595-7777
FAX: 706-595-7177

Visit us at www.hickory-hill.org or on Facebook
<https://www.facebook.com/hickoryhillmuseum>.
Follow us on Twitter: HHEducation

Historic homes of the Watson-Brown Foundation, Inc
<http://www.watson-brown.org>.

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