The Business and Entrepreneurship Career Channel held a resume and LinkedIn session on Thursday, February 4 as part of the Career Accelerator and in preparation for the 35^th Annual Econ Day(s) events. We were joined by alumni Lea Krohn’05 and Nate Fair’99.

Lea has many years of experience in human resources and has read thousands of resumes; she is currently Vice President of Partner Programs at Stand Together, a philanthropic organization that assists other philanthropic activities around the country. Because of his job as a financial advisor, Nate is aware of his personal brand, and he has a carefully crafted LinkedIn profile and uses Linkedin to find information. Nate is Associate Vice President of Investments at Hawksview Wealth Management of Raymond James. Lea and Nate provided helpful tips on how to put together a strong resume, craft an effective LinkedIn profile, and also use LinkedIn to search your extended network.

In regards to resumes, Lea had some great advice to share:

• Recruiters only look at a resume for 10 or 20 seconds, so be sure that your information is clear and easy to read. Use breaks between sections (white space) to make it easier to digest. Stick to fonts such as Calibri, Arial, or Sans Serif; don’t use anything smaller than size 9
• “Stretch your imagination about what is related to the bullet on the job description. Maybe this a science job, and I haven’t done that thing in the lab. But have I done it as a barista? In the C-haus? Most employees are looking for skills broadly. I love hiring people who have backgrounds in retail or hospitality. People who have worked in food service are used to a high volume of activity.”

Nate challenged us to think about LinkedIn as a living resume.

• You can also be a bit more creative with LinkedIn. It’s the norm to have several paragraphs for the “About” section. Make it positive, energetic, and accomplishment focused
• As a recent college graduate (or soon to be college graduate!), you need to be able to explain why someone should invest time and money in you. It’s not something that you can write in your resume (which can get you the interview). In an interview, it needs to come through your head and your heart. Consider getting a copy of “Start with Why” by Simon Sinek.

If you don’t already have a resume, start one! Contact the Career and Community Engagement Center to get feedback on your first draft, then share it with your advisor and others. Transfer that information to a LinkedIn profile.

When you search for internships and jobs, be sure to match a stellar resume and Linkedin profile with networking! Use informational interviews to help build a professional network. Linkedin gives you the capability to search for Beloit College alumni who work in a particular area, or with a particular company – reach out to them! A referral will take your application to the top of the pile.

And don’t get discouraged by rejections. As Nate says, “It’s all about when you fail, and we all do, that you turn it into a learning experience.” Every time you fail, you build your bottom higher. You build up resiliency and skills and strengths. That’s where you will hit your stride. If you can do that with clear eyes and a full heart, you really can’t fail.” Also, “Don’t hesitate to reach out for help. No one got to where they are by themselves. Nobody.”