MLEC
Radio Broadcasting Program
The Resumé
Resumé Links
Your resumé is the first thing a prospective employer has to guage who and what you are. A professional looking resumé immediately sends the message to the employer that you're concerned with appearances, that you pay attention to detail and that you have a professional attitude. On the other hand, a resumé with spelling errors, creases where they shouldn't be, wrinkles, tears or smudges, says you're sloppy and don't really care about the job.
The resumé needs to start with your basic information. Your name, address and phone number need to be right at the top. Display your name prominently. If you can, use a larger font and make your name bolder that the other text.
Follow this with your work experience. For radio, include the stations' call letters, cities of license and frequencies. Let the reader know what you did at each job and how long you were employed at each. Go back in time no less than five years, but go back further if the jobs you've held can demonstrate additional abilities that you posess. Don't limit your experience only to positions you've held in radio. Include other jobs that demonstrate your managerial abilities, work ethic and special skills.
After your work related experience, put your educational background. For the most part, you need only list college or technical schools at which you've taken courses. Feel free to list educational conferences and seminars you may have attended.
Last on the page should be information about yourself. This information should show that you're involved in your community, that you have varied interests, that you have specialized knowledge outside of the radio business and that you're well rounded. You might include that you work with local charities as a volunteer, or sing with your church choir, or are a girl scout leader. Hobbies are a good source of information. If you play golf, are a photography buff or play softball, the reader may have some of the same interests which may give you an edge. If you know how to use a computer and software, have electronic repair experience or have other specialized knowledge, the radio station may need someone with those extra qualities and abilities. In other words, include everthing that you think makes you a desireable candidate. Don't exagerate, but don't omit anything either.
Once you have your basic information compiled, start putting it on paper. Desktop publishing software has made the creation of a resumé at home much easier, but you should endeavor to make your resumé look stylish as well as professional. If you're unsure of your capabilities, it might be best to get professional help in creating your resumé. Once you have a resumé you're pleased with, you can create a duplicate in your computer and update it as needed.
Cramming too much information on a page can be as bad as leaving too much empty space on the page. Remember, the idea of the resumé is to give the prospective employer an idea of what you're like, not every detail about your life since birth. At the same time, a younger person with little experience may need to pad their information, increase the space between lines, or use a larger font. Personal information for the younger or less experienced person may be of more importance than for someone with more experience. Overall, avoid a cramped look or using tiny lettering to make things fit if you have a lot of information. Edit out the less important data. If you don't have much information to put on your resumé, you can increase the space between lines or use bigger lettering, but don't be too obvious about it. You want to keep the "white space", or empty areas, of your page to a minimum, but you don't want the things you do to decrease the white space to point out that you don't have much information on your page.
Spelling and formatting are extremely important. A single misspelled word may stand out in the reader's mind as an example of lack of attention to detail. Have several people that you trust proofread your resumé for any errors. Check any word you're the least bit unsure of in the dictionary. Watch for repetitive use of words and phrases. Get out that dusty copy of the thesaurus and find alternative words that enhance your resumés readability. A good trick is to read your resumé backwards. Start at the bottom of the page and read from right to left. Since you are not used to reading this way and the words will not make sense, it's often easier to pick out errors.
Format the page so that it looks its best. As you enter the information about one station you've worked at, enter the information about other stations the same way. Align the date columns, heading columns and information columns with other columns of similar information. If you have the option of using different fonts, great! But don't go font wild. Use a few, well chosen fonts, usually no more than three. Your text can be of various sizes and some may be bold. Try to stay away from italicized text, unless you are listing a show, program or other title, such as a book title.
References are an arguable addition to your resumé. It has been a habit of many people to place a statement at the bottom of the resumé saying, "References Available On Request." If your references are available, supply them. Don't make the prospective employer ask for them. First, don't make the employer do extra work in their attempt to hire you. Second, you're not likely to list someone as a reference that is going to make negative comments about your capabilities. The prospective employer knows this. By including your references, it is simply a statement that you have people who will back you and verify your information. However, always contact everyone you plan to include as a reference. It's a courtesy that you should extend them. You also want them to be aware that they may be getting a call and that they should feel free to answer questions about you.
Your resumé is part of your job package, along with the demo tape and cover letter. Be professional. Be neat. Be sure that all your information is correct, clear and concise. Send it and keep track of where you send it, to whom and when it was sent. Good luck!
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Lovell Consulting, Miami, Florida, USA.
All Rights Reserved.
This page was created on 3 November 1995 by
John Lovell,
Radio Broadcasting Instructor
Miami Lakes Educational Center
Last updated on 10 April 1998
