roast my resume

[oatlymatcha2002]

Hi folks, I'm a ChemE and I'll be graduating in May 2025. I've been struggling to land an interview for all the jobs I've applied. Please roast and critique my résume with no mercy so I can improve. I've been wanting to get into the semiconductor/pharma industry but so far no luck. Any insights about strategy to land a job interview or just to be better in general would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Snickster]

I think your resume looks impressive for someone still in college. I would gear it more to the type of job you are applying for. I would do this by wording it to highlight skills and experience that is specifically related to the job you are applying for so that it looks like your career path is exactly in line with the job you are applying for. I would word my resume so that when someone reads it they think you are the perfect match for the position and that this is the exact position you have been preparing yourself for by the courses you have been taking in school and your internships - state courses took and experience in your internships directly related to the job you are applying for.

I think possibly the variety of your internships may make it appear that you don't have a definite career path or goals. Word your resume and internships such that it appears to the reviewer that your career path and goals, and what you have been preparing yourself for, is perfectly aligned with the position you are applying for and that it is your ideal job. I think what the interviewer is looking for is someone who really is enthusiastic about the position and is on their career path, not someone who is just trying to get any job someone gives them and is likely to move on when something better comes up. They are looking for very enthusiastic long term employees that will form the future of their companies.

In fact if you are having trouble, it may be because your resume looks so impressive, they don't think you may be really serious about the job you are applying for. For someone still in college that is one long list of impressive internships, and impressive list of programs you are skilled in, and GPA. They may think you are overqualified and not really serious about them.

 

[IRstuff]

I mostly agree with Snickster; I think you've walked the walk. Nevertheless, your resume reads a bit too much job description and not so much accomplishments and learning experiences.

The job market has stiffened a bit recently, particularly in light of uncertainties in the economy, economic growth, etc. Therefore, anyone getting hired is going to need to look like a slam dunk asset, and ultra low risk to the employer.

So, how did your work benefit your employers?

And, as indicated by Snickster, you may need to individually tailor your resume for each job application.

 

[Gr8blu]

As part of the tailoring process, you might want to quantify how good your solutions were for a given issue. As an example - the very first "task" in the most recent job states that you were involved in coordinating internal material specifications with current industry standards and that you also worked with procurement to optimize/reduce material procurement costs. How effective was your (not your team's) efforts at cost reduction: 5%? 10%? more? Be specific in what you managed to accomplish.

You definitely need to tailor the resume to the specific job for which you are applying. The last time I had to run through this kind of process, I had 75 different resumes emphasizing different abilities and projects to better align with prospective employers. By the time I was finished there had been roughly 800 applications made which resulted in over 100 interviews. In the end, I had four firm offers (in writing) on the table at the same time and could pick the one which suited me best.

Take a good look at how each job description is structured; your resume for that application should include several keywords that are used in the description with firm examples of how you and your experience/skills might benefit that employer. Sometimes recognizing those keywords take a bit of effort - but the more you do it, the better you'll get at it.

 

[IRstuff]

This may be apropos to the current situation
I'm an ex-Amazon VP who's viewed 10,000 résumés in my career. Here are the top 6 mistakes I've seen and how to fix them.

 

[GregLocock]

"Without an objective, a recruiter or hiring manager has to guess whether you want the job. "

Well ain't that a load of (politely) tripe. Sticking a job application in is not a zero energy process.

 

[oatlymatcha2002]

the variety of your internships may make it appear that you don't have a definite career path

I agree with you pointing out this, and I honestly think that might be a problem. At first, I thought that internships would provide a range of experience, so I tried out different fields. Should I take any of the experience off so it's less dense?

 

[LittleInch]

Do t take anything off, but what you really need to do is adapt each version of your CV to the particualr job or role being applied for. So the Cathodic protection job isn't really pharma, so list that as say two lines stating what you did. Loo,s to me more like a data management role? Possibly useful and add the trouble shooting bit in.

 

[Snickster]

I agree with LI. Don't eliminate anything but in each internship mention experience directly related to the job you are applying for even if you have to be a little creative and come up with a way to link your experience with the job you are applying for. For those without a lot of related experience give a shorter summary description of your experience, this will prevent the reader from getting overwhelmed trying to understand exactly what you really have the best experience in. In the end you want the reader to think you have the best experience in the type of work you are applying for, because it is was always on your career path to devote your career to this type of work experience and the job you are applying for (rather than just a pile of unrelated experience).

It is the same thing when you work for real and build your resume. If you start your career in a specific field because that is what you like to do you would necessarily keep on that path and have similar jobs but with more and more responsibilities and higher positions, if you go work for other companies. This is a good career path. If all of a sudden you go to work in a totally unrelated field, as a Chem E but unrelated experience, for a few years and then want to come back to the original field, resume reviewers are going to wonder why, like this guy don't really know what he wants to do or maybe if we hire him in a short while he will leave for something unrelated that he really wants to do, and also think you have such a gap that you might have fell behind in your field. You must show a that you have a definite career path and that you are always progressing in that path to stay competitive with people at your same level.

 

[mfgenggear]

OP
Question:
What company's are you targeting.

Research who is the hiring manager
What their product is , obtain the hiring managers email. And contact him or her
Directly. With a copy of your resume.
And as other have tailored for the specific job opening.
Your objective. I once read a book
And it's been a while. Writing resume right.
I would suggest to have some help write your resume. Good luck

 

[oatlymatcha2002]

I agree with LI. Don't eliminate anything but in each internship mention experience directly related to the job you are applying for even if you have to be a little creative and come up with a way to link your experience with the job you are applying for. For those without a lot of related experience give a shorter summary description of your experience, this will prevent the reader from getting overwhelmed trying to understand exactly what you really have the best experience in. In the end you want the reader to think you have the best experience in the type of work you are applying for, because it is was always on your career path to devote your career to this type of work experience and the job you are applying for (rather than just a pile of unrelated experience).

It is the same thing when you work for real and build your resume. If you start your career in a specific field because that is what you like to do you would necessarily keep on that path and have similar jobs but with more and more responsibilities and higher positions, if you go work for other companies. This is a good career path. If all of a sudden you go to work in a totally unrelated field, as a Chem E but unrelated experience, for a few years and then want to come back to the original field, resume reviewers are going to wonder why, like this guy don't really know what he wants to do or maybe if we hire him in a short while he will leave for something unrelated that he really wants to do, and also think you have such a gap that you might have fell behind in your field. You must show a that you have a definite career path and that you are always progressing in that path to stay competitive with people at your same level.

Understood! Thank you!

 

[mfgenggear]

OP
Also the resume should state the name of the hiring manager. Most resumes with out the hiring
Managers name get filed in the round basket.

 

[Ron247]

I agree with multiple comments about tailoring your "standard resume" to the specific job you are applying for. I prefer seeing a "career objective" that may tell me you are a fit for my company. I would want to believe you would stay on because of the cost of training a new graduate. Best to go for a Win-Win situation. Choose the job you are going after, reduce or eliminate info not germane to the goal.

You background is confusing for me to comprehend. You have multiple items with the same time frame. I ask myself, "Why?". I understand you are listing items you have worked on, but it sounds like you are also listing all the tasks you completed solely on your own. If they are, I am highly impressed. If you are describing the project more than your individual accomplishments, make sure it is clear in your communication. No prospective employer wants confusion in communications.

"Un-blurr" all the items you redacted and insert bogus data, it helps the readers of your post following your presentation. I have no idea what is the general data you are redacting.

I applaud you for using 2 decimal points or less in your GPA. Personally, 3 or more decimal points for me is sign of immaturity. No employer is going choose one person over another because they are 0.0004 better in the GPA world.

 

[oatlymatcha2002]

Thanks for the insights, it speaks to me that you might happen to be a hiring manager heavier gravity on those words

 

[Ron247]

I am not a hiring manager but I have seen literally hundreds of first time resumes. Bear in mind, your resume should show your trajectory, outline how you fit with a prospective job, your interest in the job, and be easy to follow. But you also need to begin now preparing for a face-to-face should your resume work. It starts as written, then goes face-to-face for 1 to 2 rounds.

Also, learning to field unexpected questions successfully will help a lot. Employers understand that as an employee meeting clients, those kind of things happen. How do you respond? Let me throw you one. Now before you read the question, remember as a face-to-face, I immediately see your facial expression, body lingo and what you say. Now here is the question. "You have a 3.97 GPA but I do not see where you belong to any honor societies. Why?"

Now, I am assuming honor societies exist in your country like they do in the US.

 

[oatlymatcha2002]

I am actually studying in the US fyi. I didn't join any honor societies because I personally think I didn't need to.
Again, my resume varies because I was just exploring what I wanted to do, however it is now a problem, too since I'm not "specific" enough.
Still, I will try to improve what I show on my resume tho, thank you for such an interesting perspective!

 

[Ron247]

That question was an example of having to think on your feet in a face-to-face. You cannot gear the written resume about what all people may or may not think or notice. Just formulate it based on the situation. It cannot answer and you should not try for it to answer all possible questions. But in a face-to-face, those questions get asked and answered. How smoothly you answer matters. Also, a face-to-face starts something you will run into your entire time practicing as an engineer on a project, it is called "Responding to a Response." They ask, you respond, they respond, you respond an on an on. You first response needs to be your best one, it sets the stage for the next response.

One thing you need to remember is that everyone in this forum have different backgrounds and methods. We are all giving you our best advice and this does not mean pick someone to listen to, it means consider what all of us are advising and absorb as needed. Bruce Lee was also a big philosopher, and he had 2 quotes about learning and teaching that seem to fit your situation:

1. "Absorb what is useful, discard what is not, add what is uniquely your own."
   • This is one of Lee's most famous quotes about learning and self-expression. It emphasizes the importance of taking in knowledge, eliminating what's unnecessary, and personalizing it to fit one’s own unique path.
2. "Use only that which works, and take it from any place you can find it."
   • Lee encouraged learners to be practical and open-minded, seeking knowledge and effective methods from diverse sources, rather than sticking to one rigid approach.