Having an effective resume can often be the difference between getting called in for a job interview, or being thrown into the proverbial trash bin. This is especially true when applying for nonprofit jobs, as they are some of the most competitive jobs on the market today. So if you are hoping to break into the nonprofit sector, you are going to have to make sure that your resume writing techniques are solid enough to attract the attention of hiring managers who see thousands of resumes everyday. Luckily for you, I have some effective resume tips that will help you on your way to getting a quality non profit job:
- First off, you should create a resume template; this will be the document that all of your subsequent resumes are based off of. That’s right, you should never be submitting the same resume to multiple nonprofit jobs. Each resume you write should have the basic information in that template (i.e. your contact information, job history, etc) but whenever you apply to a new job, you should tailor it to match the kind of position you are applying for.
- Don’t just list your strengths: back them up. It isn’t enough to say you are good at a specific skill, you have to prove it. Whenever you list a specific skill in your resume, try and connect it with a real life or work experience.
- The same goes when you explain what you did at your previous jobs. Don’t just say you, say, wrote the company blog. Explain how writing that blog drove more traffic to the company’s web site and how that, in turn, improved business.
- Make sure your previous job titles catch the employer’s attention. If you worked in marketing, for example, don’t just list your title as “Marketing.” A better job title to list would be “Product Marketing” or something along those lines.
- Include a list of career goals at the end of your resume. This will give your potential employer an idea of what you want to do with your career, and it will also show that you are a forward thinking individual (which is a huge plus for nonprofit organizations).
- Only list previous jobs that are relevant to the position you are applying for. In the case of nonprofits, listing any previous volunteer experience is a big help.
- Your resume should be no more than a page. Believe me, a hiring manager is not going to have the patience to look through a second page of information. Being concise is always a good thing.
Hopefully you found these resume tips helpful. Resume writing is never as easy as it sounds, but it is also not as hard as it sounds either. If you follow these tips, then you will definitely be on the right track to writing a great nonprofit resume.