Here a good question I found in the comments section of a previous post. ‘Luis’ asks us the question:
My Name3727 West Bellevue Street Apt #210, Not My Address, AZ 85416602-907-3921larubio@gmail.com EDUCATION The University of ….., Somewhere in, AZ Bachelor of Science in Public Management and Policy, May 2012 Minor: International Business EXPERIENCE BJ’s Restaurant and Brewhouse, Service Assistant: July 2011-Present Monitor a friendly organized work environment by completing structured daily assignments Communicate and promote new special offers and deals that the company may be offering Harkins Theatres, Team Member: April 2008-August 2011 Inform all customers of current and new promotions and sales the company had to offer. Trained new staff members in customer service, company policies, and money handling skills. Disabled Resource Center, March 2010-February 2011 Contact professors and students by telephone or email discussing accommodations and services Assist in updating program information on computers when needed. Manage filing, copying, and faxing confidential paperwork and documents. Deliver packages and materials around the university’s campus VOLUNTEER EXPERIENCE AND ACTIVITIES New York Road Runners Organization, New York, New York, July 2011-Present Promoted and raised $2630 for Team for Kids Charity (associated with New York Road Runners Organization) Big Brother Big Sister’s, May 2010-Present Active Big Brother, mentoring and guiding little in many areas of life. Boys and Girls Club, April 2011-Present Coordinate and create proactive activities for children involved with after-school programs. Marathon Runners Club, September 2010-Present Helped lead and promote healthy living through running. Primavera Foundation, Volunteer, September 2009-Present Organized appointments, mail, and distributed food items and toiletries for individuals who were involved with the programSKILLS Professional: written and verbal communication, leadership, analytical, customer service Languages: Advanced Spanish Computers: Microsoft Windows XP, Word, Excel, PowerPoint
Answer: You have sort of a weird thing going on with verb tenses. In some places, you describe your current activities in a past tense (“Helped”, “Organized” under present volunteer activities). In other places, you describe your past and present activities with an infinitive form (“Monitor”, “Communicate” under your current BJ’s restaurant job) and in yet other places you use a past tense and an infinitive form when describing different aspects of the same position (“Inform” and “Trained” under your past Harkens theater job). It’s pretty confusing. I would avoid the use of the infinitive altogether in the experience and volunteer sections, as it makes it sound as though you were/are not the one actively doing those things. Say “Monitors”, etc (present tense) for your current employment, and say “Informed”, etc (past tense) under your past jobs. This makes it clear when these experiences took place, puts you verbally in the driver’s seat with respect to the things you did, and shows a more consistent use of the English language. On a content note, is this a generic resume? It’s fine to have a basic format that you use for all your resumes, as they’ll each include much of the same information, but be sure to tailor each one to the job for which you’re applying in order to maximize your chances of being noticed by any one employer. Perhaps you’ll put a different “objective” statement (in which the infinitive form would be appropriate; “to obtain a position…”) on each resume, but try not to leave it at that. Expand on or omit items in the body of the resume depending on what kind of position you’re applying for.Other than that, it looks pretty good.