February 25th. Geoff Fulton of Fulton & Kozak.
Resume tips:
-Print resumes on high quality resume paper not just white copy paper- this is the first thing
employers will notice and it will make you stand out from the other resumes.
-When employers get hundreds of resumes they’re looking for reasons to get rid of your
resume.
-Be as accessible as possible- provide a home number, cell number, email address etc.
-Include your education and graduation date but don’t put related course work- Employers will
realize that with your degree you would have the basic courses.
-Emphasize the activities you’ve done on campus/off campus.
- Order your resume with education first then work experience, activities, and honors and
awards.
-Activities: Include anything from working with Habitat for Humanity/Church
involvement/coaching positions/big brother or big sister etc. Include anything that will put you
in a positive light. They may not say anything about it in an interview but have something you
can talk easily about.
-Put an objective on your resume but tailor to each job opportunity.
- If you’ve received honors and awards from a job still include it under the honors and awards
section.
-Fulton prefers one page resumes:
You can leave gaps in your resume and explain in an interview rather than listing every
job…especially several temp. jobs.
-If you have retail/restaurant etc experience, don’t put every employer down but put the ones
you’ve been at a while. That shows stability and customer service.
-If your experience is not related to accounting still put it down-what challenges you had etc.
Shows you’re more seasoned/more well rounded etc. Shows you worked in a professional
setting etc.
- If you mail in resumes- find out about the company and the person to address it to and write a
personalized cover letter. Employers may toss ‘to whom it may concern’ cover letters.
-If you go to a job fair, find out which companies will be there, target the ones you want, and do
an individual cover letter for each company.
-Separate yourself out there.
-Cover letter: good grammar, friendly, 3-4 paragraphs, don’t want to know whole life’s story,
just include one or two bullet points about yourself and yourself in relation to the position.
-Don’t email out resumes late/early morning or you will look desperate. Try not to email
between 11pm and 5 am. Some email programs have a setting where you can draft the email
late at night but tell it to send it at a certain time the next day.
Interview tips:
-Be ready to talk about that work experience- have two/three bullet point stories ready that
highlight your qualities for every item on your resume.
-Don’t emphasize bad points or bad mouth former/current employers. Focus on the positives
and the qualities/attributes you can bring to that company.
-Since an employer is hiring you as a person, balance who you are with what you want the
employer to see.
-If you bring up family, they’ll ask about it… but they won’t outright ask you. If taking care of
family is the most important part of your life, bring it up- your firm has to be a good fit both
ways. Do it subtly.
-One of the hardest questions to answer is ‘tell me about yourself.’ You can set the tone of the
interview there. List what you’re doing now, what you did before, include “on the weekends I
enjoy… “ Be prepared to answer it- there’s no wrong answer but it will come up every time.
-Make sure you feel out that employer so you know it’s a right fit for you too.
-Make sure you have 2-3 questions for the employer at the end of the interview. Not
mechanical questions. Good questions include those related to: outsourcing/the company’s
community involvement-something to let them know that you have looked at their company
and are interested in it.
-Don’t bring up questions related to benefits and salary in the first interview.
-Have answers ready for that “what is your greatest strength/greatest weakness” question.
-If you switched majors or studies, explain why you changed. Sometimes previous studies can tie
in to accounting, ex: paralegal with auditing.
Important tips:
-Make sure your cell phone messages are appropriate and you don’t have a song as your ring
tone for employers to hear.
-Be careful if children might answer your phone. You need to have someone who can take
accurate phone messages.
-Make sure your phone is capable of receiving voice messages and any prepaid phones do not
expire.
-If you provide an email address, make sure you check that email regularly.
-C heck what information you display to the public on your Facebook, Myspace, Twitter etc.
Employers will search you and your public info. Also make sure your profile pictures are
appropriate. A good rule of thumb is to not post anything you don’t want to show your mother.
Salary tips:
-Entry level positions run from high twenties to low fifties depending on job.
-$20,000’s- Usually Accounts Receivable/ Accounts Payable clerks.
-Fulton and Kozak pay anywhere from the high 30’s to the low 40’s.
-If you have an MBA and seek a big four job, you can expect somewhere in the low 50’s.
Further education tips:
-Fulton recommends anyone interested in public accounting should get a Masters in Accounting
rather than an MBA. If later on you wish to climb within your company or move on, you may
want to think about getting an MBA.