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Keywords
by
ResumeEdge.com - The
Net's Premier Resume Writing and Editing Service
As discussed in step four of the resume writing
process, using the right keywords for your particular experience and education is critical to the
success of your resume if it is ever scanned or e-mailed into an electronic resume database. Without
the right keywords, your resume will float in cyberspace forever waiting for a hiring manager to find
it. If your resume contains all of the right keywords, then you will be among the first candidates
whose resumes are reviewed. If you lack only one of the keywords, then your resume will be next in line
after resumes that have them all, and so on.
Remember, your keywords are the experience and
skills that come from the specific terminology used in your job. For instance, operating room and ICU
immediately classify the experience of a nurse, but pediatric ICU narrows it down even further. Don't
try to limit your resume by using fewer words. Recall, however, that you only need to use a word one
time for it to be considered a "hit" in a keyword search. Try to use synonyms wherever possible to
broaden your chances of being selected.
You should also understand the difference between
a simple keyword search and a "concept" search. When a recruiter opens an electronic resume file in MS
Word and sends the computer on a search for a single word like marketing—which you can do in any word
processing program with a few clicks of a mouse or function key—he or she is performing a keyword
search. You are also performing a keyword search when you type a word or combination of words into the
command line of a search engine like Yahoo or Excite.
A concept search, on the other hand, can bridge
the gap between words by reading entire phrases and then using sophisticated artificial intelligence to
interpret what is being said, translating the phrase into a single word, like network, or a combination
of words, like project management.
The software that allows scanners to read your
paper resume and turn it into an electronic resume is able to do just that. Resumix, one of the most
widely used applicant tracking systems, reads the grammar of noun, verb, and adjective combinations and
extracts the information for placement on the form that will become your entry in a resume database.
Its expert system extraction engine uses a knowledge base of more than 120,000 rules and over ten
million resume terms. It even knows the difference between Harvard Graphics (a computer software
program) and Harvard (the university) by its placement on the page and its relationship to the header
that precedes it (Computer Skills or Education). Aren't computers amazing?
Because of this complicated logic, and because
companies and hiring managers have the ability to personalize the search criteria for each job opening,
it is impossible to give you a concrete list of the thousands of possible keywords that could be used
to search for any one job. For instance, in one high-tech company I interviewed, a keyword search
included the following criteria from two different hiring managers for the same job title:
Financial Analyst / Senior Accountant
REQUIRED
- BS in finance or accounting
with 4 years of experience or
- MBA in related field with 2
years of relevant experience
- certified public accountant
- forecasting
| REQUIRED
- BS in finance or accounting
with 4 years of experience or
- MBA in related field with 2
years of relevant experience
- accounting
- financial reporting
- financial statement
- Excel
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DESIRED
- accounting
- financial
- trend analysis
- financial statement
- results analysis
- trends
- strategic planning
- develop trends
- financial modeling
- personal computer
- microcomputers
- DCF
- presentation skills
- team player
| DESIRED
- ability
- customer
- new business
- financial analysis
- financial
- forecasting
- process improvement
- policy development
- business policies
- PowerPoint
- Microsoft Word
- analytical ability
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You can see why it is so difficult to give
definitive lists of keywords and concepts. However, it is possible to give you samples of actual
keyword searches used by recruiters I have interviewed to give you some ideas. Let me emphasize again
that you should list only experience you actually have gained. Do not include these keywords in your
resume just because they are listed here.
Business Manager (Central Archive
Management)
REQUIRED
- BS in engineering or computer
science
- 10 years of related engineering
and/or manufacturing experience
- strategic planning
- network
- product management
- program management
| DESIRED
- business plan
- line management
- pricing
- team player
- CAM
- marketing
- product strategy
- vendor
- general management
- OEM
- profit and loss
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Business Operations Specialist
REQUIRED
- bachelor's degree
- 4 years of related experience
- production schedule
- project planning
| DESIRED
- ability to implement
- CList
- data analysis
- off-shift
- team player
- automation
- ability to plan
- customer interaction
- VM, CMS, JCL
- REXX, UNIX
- MVS
- analytical ability
- customer interface
- network
- skills analysis
- automatic tools
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Senior Software Engineer
REQUIRED
- BS/MS in engineering, computer
science or closely related field
- 8 to 9 years of experience
| DESIRED
- C++
- customer
- hiring/firing
- prototype
- structured design
- code development
- DASD
- methodology
- real time
- supervision
- communication skills
- experiment design
- problem solving
- software design
- testing
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Secretary III
REQUIRED
- high school education or
equivalent
- 5 years of experience
- typing skill of 55–60 wpm
- interpersonal skills
- oral communication
| DESIRED
- administrative assistance
- clerical
- data analysis
- file maintenance
- material repair
- PowerPoint
- project planning
- reports
- screen calls
- troubleshoot
- answer phones
- communication skills
- document distribution
- mail sorting
- Microsoft Word
- presentation
- publication
- schedule calendar
- secretarial
- appointments
- confidential
- edit
- material
- policies and procedures
- problem solving
- records management
- schedule conference
- telephone interview
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From Designing the
Perfect Resume, by Pat Criscito.
Copyright 2000. Reprinted by arrangement with Barron's Educational Series, Inc.
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