Originally Posted by fethahed what do you mean by PAD your resume?
The expression "padding your resume" means to lie or to exaggerate things on your resume to make yourself look like a more qualified than you really are. While few people actally tell ourright lies, many people exaggerate a few things in an attempt to make themselves look good.
For example: Someone might spend 1 afternoon doing some volunteer work and then list it as if it were a long-term activity. It may seem like an innocent exaggeration, but it IS a form of lying -- and when a potential employer sees that sort of thing on a resume, it makes them question the applicant's trustworthiness. If they're not being "up front" about these sorts of things, will they also be a sneaky and "borderline honest" as my employee?
Another common example is the listing of school clinicals as if they were jobs. There is a big difference between spending a little time somewhere as a student and actually having a job there. If you don't think so, read some of the threads about being a new grad! If students feel that they should list student experiences on their resume, they should clearly identify that they are student experiences, not jobs.
About putting student experiences ... I suggest only putting those student experiences that are particularly relevent to the job for which you are applying within the body of your resume -- clearly identifying that they are student experiences, of course. Then, if you want to list ALL of your student experiences, do so on a separate sheet of paper. In the body of your resume, you can say something like, "Please see the attached list of student clinical experiences." That way, the reader can look them over, but they don't bog down the reader with a bunch of irrelevant experiences.
Remember: EVERY nursing student spends at least a few weeks in med/surg ... peds ... OB .... psych ... community health ... etc. The prospective employer knows that anyone who went to nursing school has done these things. What the reader wants to know are things like,
"What has this applicant done that is unique and/or particularly relevant to the job they are seeking?" "Is there anything in the applicant's past that shows that they have a special interest in the type of work they are applying for?" So, that's the kind of information you want to highlight in your resume.
Make that type of information stand out and get noticed. Don't cover up your uniqueness with by burying your special qualities within a long list of routine, typical experiences that are irrelevant to the job.
If you don't have any special qualities ... have never shown any interest in the type of work you are applying to do ... and/or have never gotten any experience that is at all relevant to the job you are applying for .... then THAT is what you need to focus on before you apply for the job.
Good luck everybody,
llg
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