I have received many inquiries lately from clients who think it’s a good idea to copy their current job description into their resumes, and/or copy the job description of the position they’re applying for into their resumes.
I STRONGLY recommend against both tactics.
1. Copying current job descriptions:
Your current job description is just a list of job duties. The cardinal rule for resumes in today’s job market is to write your resume as a list of achievements and accomplishments, NOT as a list of job duties! I would go so far as to say that your job description has very little to do with what you actually do and accomplish in your position.
I’ll take myself as an example. The job description for my current position at the University of Wisconsin Law School says that I counsel students on their legal career search. It doesn’t say what my success rate is, or how creatively I work with students’ cover letters and resumes, or that I created a PowerPoint presentation on Resumes for Law Students. It doesn’t mention the 5 job search resource manuals I created for various big cities across the United States. It doesn’t mention the positive feedback I get from the students I work with.
It is my job to put these successes, which are nowhere to be found in my job description, into my resume. They speak much more to what I will accomplish in my next position than that I “assist students with resumes and cover letters.”
Guess what? You don’t need your current job description to write your resume. Just write about the things you’ve really done that will be relevant and impressive to the reader.
2. Copying future job descriptions:
I’m willing to bet that a lot of people make this mistake. If you make it too, you will have a lot of company from people who do not get called for interviews. Copying and pasting requires no creativity and actually makes it appear that you did NOT do the things you claim you did. All it does is show a hiring manager or HR person that you can cut and paste.
Instead, FIRST write your resume to highlight your accomplishments. Create the best document you can create. AFTER you have put together a great resume, THEN see if there are small tweaks you can make to include some of the keywords from the future job description.
For instance, I recently worked with a client applying for a Senior IT Director position. The position description listed “Develop and approve exceptions to policy…” His finished resume did not have the phrase “exceptions to policy” in it, but he worked with exceptions to policy regularly. He was able to add this phrase into an already existing bullet regarding his program management accomplishments.
In general, when crafting a winning resume, truth and honesty are the best policy. Don’t get lazy or think you’re “working the system” by using the cut and paste functions on your keypad. What will get you an interview is your unique accomplishments. Focus on those and you will see success in your job search.
