{"id":455,"date":"2016-06-07T16:47:09","date_gmt":"2016-06-07T16:47:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/richmondlawcdo\/?p=455"},"modified":"2016-06-08T18:15:15","modified_gmt":"2016-06-08T18:15:15","slug":"dos-and-donts-of-resume-writing-for-legal-pros","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/richmondlawcdo\/2016\/06\/07\/dos-and-donts-of-resume-writing-for-legal-pros\/","title":{"rendered":"Dos and Don\u2019ts of Resume Writing for Legal Pros"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Linda Tancs in Ms. JD Blog<\/a><\/p>\n

A resume is not a \u201cone size fits all\u201d proposition.\u00a0For instance, the terms and formatting that may resonate in one industry do not necessarily work in all industries.\u00a0Learn the dos and don\u2019ts of resume writing for the legal profession to enhance your career development.<\/p>\n

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\nDon\u2019t<\/strong> use an \u201cobjective\u201d section.\u00a0Your objective is, after all, to get the job. Make better use of that white space by beefing up the skills and qualifications in the main section of your resume. That\u2019s what will ultimately set you apart from other candidates applying for\u00a0the position.<\/article>\n

\nDon\u2019t<\/strong> fuss over fonts.\u00a0Despite what you may have heard, there is no general rule on the appropriate font for a resume.\u00a0Any commonly recognized business-style font (such as Arial, Verdana, or Times New Roman) using a 10- or 12-point setting is acceptable unless the employer gives instructions otherwise.<\/article>\n

\nDon\u2019t <\/strong>exceed one page in length\u2014that is, unless you\u2019re a senior-level\u00a0candidate.\u00a0Although page length conventions have eased in recent years, most employers do not expect to see multi-page resumes from junior-level candidates.\u00a0So unless you\u2019ve founded and sold a few companies by the age of 25 or so (and the experience gained in doing so is relevant to the job you\u2019re seeking), hold off on increasing the size of your resume with every accomplishment you\u2019ve earned since year one.\u00a0If you must use more than one page, then make sure your best credentials or career highlights appear on the first page.<\/article>\n
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\nDon\u2019t<\/strong> use a childish email address.\u00a0Although hunnybunny007 may have enormous significance to you and your loved ones, do not under any circumstances use such an appellation as your calling card.\u00a0Similarly, avoid using baby Jake\u2019s cooing and gurgling as a backdrop on your answering machine message or else provide a different phone number for callbacks.<\/article>\n

\nDon\u2019t<\/strong> use the same resume for different career tracks.\u00a0Suppose, for instance, you are a highly-skilled paralegal with training in both general corporate housekeeping matters and commercial real estate.\u00a0Along comes an ad seeking a paralegal with substantial experience in commercial real estate matters.\u00a0Your current resume speaks to both your experience in corporate and in real estate transactions.\u00a0Should you use your current resume? No. Revise it to relate solely to the experience you\u2019ve gained in the employer\u2019s area of interest. Chances are, you\u2019ve left out some of your qualifications in each area of expertise to squeeze both sets of skills into one document.\u00a0Now is your opportunity to dig deep into your experiences in commercial real estate and make those qualifications shine all the way through.<\/article>\n

\nDon\u2019t <\/strong>put extraneous information on your resume.\u00a0Of course, you\u2019ll provide references if requested to do so. So don\u2019t state it on your resume.\u00a0And observe the same rule for personal information such as religion, political affiliation or vital statistics.<\/article>\n

\nDon\u2019t<\/strong> put salary history or requirements on your resume.\u00a0 One notable exception relates to applications for government employment (e.g<\/em>., Form OF 612), in which event this information is required.\u00a0Of course, at times employers will request salary requirements or histories on a resume. If that is the case, you can choose to comply or else mention a ballpark salary range for the desired position in your cover letter (or an average history over the past three years) with a suggestion that your requirements are negotiable.<\/article>\n

\nDon\u2019t<\/strong> copy an employer\u2019s job description into your resume without support.\u00a0Sure, it may seem like a no-brainer to copy your prospective employer\u2019s keyword-rich advertisement (more on keywords later) into your resume to show what a perfect fit you are for the job.\u00a0However, if you can\u2019t back up those five or six sentences (or bullet points) of superb qualifications with representative experience, your resume will be heading for the trash bin.\u00a0You must be able to match your own personal qualifications and experiences, point by point, with the requirements in the advertisement.<\/article>\n

\nDon\u2019t<\/strong> write in the passive voice.\u00a0Remember what your 9th grade English teacher taught you about the passive voice in exposition?\u00a0You guessed it\u2014don\u2019t use it.\u00a0Your resume is your marketing tool, your branding statement.\u00a0Therefore, pack it with powerful, action-packed verbs that define your superior skills.\u00a0 Using our commercial real estate example given above, consider the difference between \u201cresponsible for title review\u201d and \u201canalyze title and surveys and report thereon in large dollar, complex commercial real estate transactions.\u201d\u00a0Which statement better relays the value you bring to the table?<\/article>\n

\nDon\u2019t<\/strong> lie.\u00a0Increasingly, employers are retaining background investigation companies to check the data provided by applicants. Any misstep, however insignificant you think it to be, can cost you an interview or could be grounds for termination should you secure the job.\u00a0In some cases, lying on a resume or an application could result in criminal prosecution.\u00a0Consider Washington State, for instance, where embellishment of academic credentials for job-seeking purposes is a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail and up to $5,000 in fines.<\/article>\n

\nDo <\/strong>take stock of your experiences and accomplishments and understand how they relate to the position being advertised.\u00a0To succeed in getting an interview, you must be able to \u201cconnect the dots\u201d and show the prospective employer how your unique promise of value relates to the qualifications being advertised.\u00a0Get into the habit of journaling your accomplishments on a weekly (or even daily) basis so that you don\u2019t overlook any milestones in recapping your career history.<\/article>\n

\nDo<\/strong> give your electronic resume an extension that includes something to identify you.\u00a0More and more resumes are transmitted electronically.\u00a0Don\u2019t let anonymity impair your ability to stand out.\u00a0How many resumes have you named \u201cresume.doc (O1, 02)\u201d?\u00a0Let your identity shine in your transmission.\u00a0Get into the habit of naming your resumes more clearly, like \u201cLarry Jones resume corp atty Dewey firm.doc.\u201d\u00a0Add the calendar year for even more organization and clarity. You’ll be more visible to your prospective employer by displaying your organizational skills\u2014a desirable trait for any job.<\/article>\n

\nDo<\/strong> use keyword-rich text.\u00a0With the advent of electronic transmission of resumes comes scanning software that helps recruiters screen resumes for keywords used in their advertisements.\u00a0Optimize your resume for those scanners, human or otherwise, by saturating your document with as many of the keywords in the ad as possible, supported by your achievements.\u00a0The increasing use of keyword scanning is one reason why generic resumes don\u2019t work in getting you in the door.<\/article>\n

\nDo<\/strong> use sections that are clearly labeled with\u00a0headings (work experience, education, professional affiliations) for easy reading. You have about 20 seconds to make a good impression.\u00a0Make sure that your education is clearly separable from your work experience and that each work experience is distinguishable from another. Use bold typeface to signal a change in employers, for instance.\u00a0<\/article>\n

\nDo<\/strong> quantify achievements with numbers or percentages where appropriate.\u00a0Which sounds more impressive: \u201cexperience working in fast-paced environments\u201d or \u201cconducted 360+ real estate closings in previous 12-month period\u201d?<\/article>\n

\nDo<\/strong> choose the correct resume format. For most candidates, a chronological\u00a0format (listing the most recent employer first) is the appropriate choice. In the event of a long absence from the workforce, a functional (skill-based) resume might be more appropriate although recruiters tend to view them warily.\u00a0Another alternative is a combination of the two formats, leading with career highlights or a skills summary followed by a traditional work history.\u00a0This alternative may be particularly effective for those changing practice areas or making other leaps such as from practice to administration.<\/article>\n

\nDo<\/strong> email your resume to yourself or to a friend to check for formatting issues.\u00a0Have you ever wondered what your document looks like when the recipient clicks on it? Make sure your documentation doesn\u2019t offer any unwelcome surprises that are easily fixed beforehand.<\/article>\n

\nDo<\/strong> use bullets to emphasize key points. Don\u2019t let major accomplishments or high-volume deals go unnoticed in a sea of prose.\u00a0Highlight your representative experience with bullet points or other symbols, ideally tying each experience to a qualification in the employer\u2019s advertisement.\u00a0However, be sure not to overuse this feature.<\/article>\n

\nDo<\/strong> list relevant professional affiliations, activities and publication credits.\u00a0The key here is relevancy.\u00a0Your leadership position in the International Guild of Knot Tyers is not all that likely to impress an employer (unless, of course, your resume gets in the hands of someone sharing your affinity!).\u00a0Obviously, any professional affiliations (especially leadership positions), speaking activities and publishing within your area of expertise or relevant to the area in which you\u2019re applying should be noted.\u00a0You can elaborate on these activities further in your cover letter.<\/article>\n

\nDo<\/strong> proofread your resume.\u00a0Proofreading a resume is essential in any occupation and especially so in a detail-oriented profession such as law.\u00a0Don\u2019t let careless errors torpedo your job opportunities. Pay special attention to verb tense and the interplay between dates and activities.\u00a0For instance, if you speak in public frequently and list your speaking engagements in terms of \u201cspeaker\u201d for past engagements and \u201cengaged to speak\u201d for future engagements, be sure to adjust the terms accordingly once the event has taken place.\u00a0 Again, attention to detail is paramount, a practice you should illustrate painstakingly from the first contact with an employer.Keep this list of dos and don\u2019ts in mind the next time choice or circumstance has you updating your resume.<\/article>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Linda Tancs in Ms. JD Blog A resume is not a \u201cone size fits all\u201d proposition.\u00a0For instance, the terms and formatting that may resonate in one industry do not necessarily work in all industries.\u00a0Learn the dos and don\u2019ts of resume writing for the legal profession to enhance your career development. Don\u2019t use an \u201cobjective\u201d […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2177,"featured_media":207,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[29915],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-455","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-application-materials"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/richmondlawcdo\/files\/2015\/11\/email-communication.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/richmondlawcdo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/455","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/richmondlawcdo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/richmondlawcdo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/richmondlawcdo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2177"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/richmondlawcdo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=455"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/richmondlawcdo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/455\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/richmondlawcdo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/207"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/richmondlawcdo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=455"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/richmondlawcdo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=455"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/richmondlawcdo\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=455"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}