Top 10 Tips for Creating a Military Résumé
The time has come. You’re leaving the military and need to write a résumé. The challenge is how to capture the many skills and talents you’ve acquired in a way that clearly conveys the tremendous value you bring to the table. A résumé is the first stop on the path to post- military employment, and you are well-equipped to write an effective one. Here are the top 10 tips for creating a military résumé.
10. Your résumé is not a biography. Sure, you’ve probably led a pretty cool life up to this point by virtue of your military service. But employers who pick up your résumé have a specifi c problem to solve (and the problem isn’t to locate a fascinating memoir). T eir fi rst priority is to determine whether you are a potential solution to their problem. Resist the urge to include every single detail about yourself, no matter how awesome you are. Stick to skills relevant to what your target employer is seeking.
9. Keep it short. A standard, private-sector résumé should be no longer than two pages, period. Any longer, and no one’s going to read it. Stay within this limit by only going back 10 to 12 years in your professional work history. T is is considered your most recent and relevant professional experience.
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AVOID LISTING EVERY SINGLE DETAIL
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8. Don’t try to make the reader an expert. T ey really don’t care about how the military’s policy on specialized wid- gets changed the nature of combat. T ey do care about how you identifi ed a complex problem, assessed potential options to resolve the issue, and then oversaw implemen- tation of the recommended solution. Give only relevant details to help the reader understand the part you played in a successful outcome.
7. Lose the military jargon. Do you know what CIDBS is? Neither does your reader. Tactical retrogrades, NATO and coalition support, and recommending courses of action during contingency operations is great language if you’re advising DoD. However, it is not great language for commu- nicating with a nonmilitary reader who cannot understand military references and acronyms. Your potential employer is attempting to appraise your specifi c skills based on what you’ve put in your résumé. Assume your reader knows very little about military operations or procedures. Even if the reader is a veteran, they might understand little about your specifi c branch of service. Present facts about your skill set as simply as possible.
6. Skip the fancy stuff. Avoid graphics, special characters, special text or fonts, and (always) lavender-perfumed sta-
KEEP IT SHORT
PROVIDE RELEVANT DETAILS
LOSE THE MILITARY JARGON
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USE A SIMPLE, CLEAN DESIGN
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