For Candidates

Kishurim's Advice to Job Seekers

Preparing Your Resume

Your resume reflects your level of professionalism. The wording and formatting of your resume testifies to your level of seriousness and thoroughness. A scant resume gives your potential employer a wrong impression of the type of employee you might be.

Remember: Your resume is your calling card. Make sure it is attractive. Have someone else review it. Take a few days to fine-tune it. It is well worth the effort.

The preferred resume format in Israel is the traditional chronological resume format.

Your resume should ideally fit onto one page; maximum two. Use bold fonts for important information and compatible fonts for accompanying information. Use bullets or asterisks to highlight important facts.

Exercise your graphic creativity by contrasting dates, headings and titles with bold and/or italics.

Resumes should be clear and concise. Use parallel construction, state the facts, and don't tell stories.  Ensure that your resume does not look like a standard downloaded format from the internet.

Chronological Format Resume:

Your resume should include the following information:

Contact Information: 
Name, address, home & cellular phone numbers and e-mail address at the top of the page in a clear and bold font.

Optional:
Career objective, either by position or industry. Ensure that your job objective is relevant to your background and experience.

Employment History: 
Present position should be cited first and former positions in reverse chronological order. Each position should include the dates worked and responsibilities required. Honors or citations should be mentioned.

Education:
Names of academic institutions attended  with relevant dates cited in reverse chronological order. Grade-point averages should be noted. Awards or citations should be mentioned.

Military or National Service:
Dates, type of service and army level attained at date of discharge.

Publications: 
If more than three, should be included in an appendix.

Affiliations and Memberships:
Professional or volunteer positions outside of  paid employment position.

Skills:
Language skills, verbal and written. Computer proficiencies. Other.

Personal information: 
Date & place of birth and family status (expected in Israel, but considered non-professional in the US).

References: 
Sufficient at initial resume submission to write: References will be furnished upon request.

What to Leave Out of Your Resume:

• Photographs
• Diplomas and certification documentation
• Reasons for leaving previous positions
• Previous salaries and  present salary expectations
• Names and contact information of references
• Abbreviations unclear to  laymen
• Make sure your resume does not have any spelling or grammatical mistakes!

The Cover Letter:

Your resume provides the facts. Your cover letter sets a personal tone between you and the potential employer. It will interest him/her more than the resume, because it is the real "you" talking.

Your cover letter should not exceed three or four paragraphs. It should state why you are interested in the proposed position and why you think you are appropriate for it. Ask the potential employer, in a non-demanding professional and dignified manner,  to call you in for a personal interview.

The cover letter should be convincing, but not aggressively so. Make sure it is specifically tailored to the position for which you are applying. Your cover letter should not be a copy of a mass mailing that you have sent to all potential employers. Make the potential employer feel that he/she is the only one you are interested in working for and the only one you have applied to.

Sending in Your Resume:

Most employers and recruitment firms prefer that resumes be sent to them electronically.. By e-mailing your resume, you are stating that you are part of the internet era. You will seem obsolete if you submit your resume via fax or snail mail.

Prior to sending your resume via e-mail, print it out to ensure that there are no problems with your graphics. Do not include any heavy downloads. Ensure that your file and software are virus-free.

At the Interview:

• Be punctual. This means not arriving too early as well.
• Make sure you are dressed professionally. Bring a copy of your resume and relevant documentation that illustrates the type of work you do.
• Close your cellular phone.
• Research in advance the potential employer.
• Listen to the interviewer. Look him/her in the eye. Answer his/her questions.
• Ask intelligent questions about the company and the position.
• Do not malign or bad-mouth former employers.
• Thank the interviewer for his/her time and interest.

After the Interview:

Follow up with a letter showing your interest in the position. Do not call until a week later, unless instructed to do so.

Take both acceptance and rejection professionally and graciously. Suppress your excitement as well as your disappointment. There is always a "tomorrow". Your professional reaction will be remembered at future opportunities.

Make sure to specially thank your referral for his/her initiative.

Upon assuming your new position, notify and thank your network of contacts and those who provided your references. You may need them in the future.