Dear Brian:
I need your help. I am graduating from college in December, BBA in Marketing.
My trouble is that it has taken me a good 9 years to finish school.
It has never been my strong point. My GPA is just enough to get out of school.
I don't have alot of experience, in or out of my major field.
I would like to work in my field of major, however, my main experience is with the classes required for the program.
Another problem with my experience is that I have moved alot over my college "career" (another reason for my poor
GPA) and therefore, my jobs are limited in the time of employment.
For example, two of my jobs were summer hire programs.
One for the US Corps of Engineers, where I was a secretary, and one for the US Postal Service overseas where I was a
mail clerk.
Other jobs, mainly clerical positions, include a records clerk for Johnson Control World Services,
Secretary for the Branch Manager at a Telemarketing firm,
and currently I am a part time cashier for a local electric company.
Can you see my dilemma? All of my jobs have only lasted for several months at a time due to the relocating.
I dont know how to list my experience on my resume. I have downloaded the template from your site,
but still not sure how to make this work for me.
Any suggestions would be GREATLY appreciated.
Thank you,
From: Angela Strickland
ANSWER FROM BRIAN KRUEGER:
Hi Angela -
First of all, stop worrying so much about your situation.
While your background is certainly unusual, it's not insurmountable.
It will raise some eyebrows and likely some questions, but as long as you are able to answer the questions directly,
it's not going to be a knock-out factor on its own.
And with regard to your work experience, believe it or not, that will be your strong point.
Your GPA may not be high and it's taken you time to get through school,
but you do have a variety of jobs which you've completed during that time.
Continuity beyond a couple of months is not as important while you are in school (especially due to your reason of moving).
Once you graduate, however, it is important to keep the job moves to a minimum.
And having primarily clerical experience is better than working at McD's, since you're working in an office environment,
rather than flipping burgers.
Look at each of your jobs as an opportunity to relate the experience in some way back to the
field you will be going into.
Look for similarities and experiences which can be applied to your new field. Entry level is entry level.
Although an internship in your field is ideal, it's not a requirement for entry.
You can list each job individually on your resume or group them by area (such as "Clerical").
You do not have to list each job you've had, especially if it is very short (i.e. less than 1 month)
or not of relative importance compared to the other positions (i.e. pizza delivery driver).
With regard to your number of years in school, list only your graduation school and date,
nothing else to indicate the number of years. And if your GPA is under 3.0 for both overall and your major, don't list it.
Although you will definitely have a more difficult time than someone who followed a more "traditional" course,
you shouldn't be too down on yourself.
But you do need to get going with your job search--NOW.
You are just two months away from graduation and many of the entry level jobs for December have already been filled.
Start your job search quickly and keep moving it forward each day between now and graduation.
All my best to you.
Brian Krueger
Author of College Grad Job Hunter
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