hi
i am in the process of updating, or should i say creating, an updated resume of mine and was wondering which one is most appropriate to use for the architectural discipline?
most of the resume writing tips site i have stumbled and searched for generally are applicable to most disciplines... but for architecture? is creative type a better solution?
and pardon for my ignorance, but what does a creative resume look like? a stylized personal menu of sorts?
would love to hear all your comments and suggestions. advanced thanks!
As far as everything I've heard, including architecture (and tips from people taking a kind of personal design marketing class), keep the resume simple and fast. Maybe use fonts that are the same as your design sheets and portfolio, but no crazy logos and faded pics in the background and stuff like that. I've heard, imagine someone will give it an initial 30 second look. If they aren't impressed in 30 seconds, it goes in the pile. You have to draw their eye to the important stuff, give the text room to breath and just keep it simple. It's that part that is kind of boring. Make it nice and clean, and in that sense you are designing, but nothing over the top. FAST. I heard one test is to give it to someone, have them read it for 30 seconds, then ask them what they know about you. Also, don't make it one big dense text block. Don't write big long paragraphs about your jobs stating everything you've ever done in detail. Don't make the entire thing 100% uniform, i.e. don't have the education part look just like the awards part and just like the experience part etc.
do you want a creative job? then make a creative resume.
what does a creative resume look like? ...if you can't answer this then you shouldn't be looking for a creative job.
honestly.
what does a creative resume look like TO YOU? YOU are the one designing it. It's all about YOU. Make it whatever the hell you want, that's the whole point. You can't ask anyone else about how to design it.
in my (limited admittedly) experience of participating in the hiring of staff, the main thing was clearness of content. with hundreds of resumes to go through the process was not quite fair, and we did tend to set aside for another look the resumes that were easy to read. might have lost some good candidates in the process, but then again architecture is often about communication, so probably not...
creativity treated as novelty was taken to signal immaturity and we didn't look too closely at over-designed resumes...slightly off normal was what caught the eye. grossly abnormal did too, but not usually in a good way...
which is to say...what hasselhoff said...as for WHAT constitutes creativity, i haven't a friggin clue. but this guy is a graphic designer i like for clarity, though it is a bit tame in some respects. 2x4 is interesting, and of course bruce mau...imagine you can google others for inspiration.
am sure you can figger something out. main thing is to remember who your audience is and make a presentation to/for them...creativity comes in making a prez that pushes their buttons...
I review a LOT of resumes each week - both electronic and hard copy. a few observations:
1. some candidates try to get 'cute' in the guise of creativity - maybe one out of 100 of those actually tee-up the info I need to understand in a clear and concise way. the rest go straight into the 'thanks, but not interested' stack.
2. the vast majority of the other resumes I receive are what most of us would call 'traditional' format - they serve the essential purpose well and help me quickly understand the candidate's education and experience. 'traditional' resumes DO NOT detract from candidates applying for creative positions - we learn what we need to learn about creativity from the interview and portfolio.
3. one of 100 traditional resumes will stand out because of exceptional refinement with respect to fonts, layout and simple graphics. this does get my attention and I always look at those carefully.
4. the basics still apply - focus on what you have done and can do; be concise and factual; use proper grammar; punctuate correctly; and - for god's sake, use spellcheck and have somebody you trust proof it for you.
5. more and more, I really appreciate receiving a mini-portfolio of images, along with the resume. the written word can only take you so far in our field.
i have also looked a lot of resumes in my time. i like the ones that are simple, informative and doesn't test my reading.
be creative with but don't be a self centered design genious by out shining the job offer.
quizical- i appreciate all of your helpful tips in my current undertaking of applying for an internship. i am interested if you could expand upon the mini portfolio you are referring to. i am wondering what is the best format to achieve a mini-portfolio (especially digitally). i was thinking of including a sample of my work as a few pages after my resume that could all be included in one pdf document (for emailing). is this the typical approach you see?
thanks
: for candidates, and for firms, it's often difficult and time consuming to prepare / review a comprehensive portfolio at the time of an initial resume submittal.
I find it very helpful to receive with a resume a smallish portfolio (i.e. 1-3 pages, max) of some images that help me understand the type of work the candidate has been doing. this mini-portfolio either can be printed or submitted in a single PDF file (please note: an e-mail with 15 jpegs attached is very irritating.) i also find it useful when candidates can direct me to a website where a broader assortment of their materials can be viewed.
clearly, this will not be a substitute for the whole portfolio or an interview - but it does help me understand the candidate well enough to decide whether additional investigations are likely to be a good use of my time -- and a good use of the candidate's time.
now that I reread this post, I realize I came off like a bitch. I'm really sorry, I didn't intend my comment to be so harsh. I do feel it is important to find your own creative inspiration inside yourself, however, and on no piece is that more important than your resume/portfolio package.
i remember being really drunk and hearing that song and bawling my eyes out over a girl who was nothing like myriam. if it had been myriam i'd have to defenestrated myself in the springtime.
your comments are very much appreciated and in fact has served as the impetus for me to rethink my resume and consider all the wonderful comments and suggestions from hasselhoff, quizzical, jump, etc.
i dont think you have to be apologetic - truth hurts anyway.
but then i guess it is a good wake up call...
thanks again!
and btw, yeah the thread has somewhat deviated....a bit... ;)
cj w. - this is a topic visited quite frequently here - if you do a search on 'resume' at the main discussion index, you should find many other useful threads as well
hi quizzical
yeah i did a search and it yielded some results however i didnt (or maybe havent) noticed one about formal vs creative types of resume...
many thanks for your advice on the topic though! do you mind if you could have a look at mine and see if it'll be part of the 1 of 100 that you would notice ? just wanted to get some opinions and 2 cents ;)
depends on the purpose of the resume. for example, are you trying to stand out on behance or get an internship at sanaa? or apply for a job at autodesk? it would look totally different and still be creative.
Having a stand out and creative resume is a way to make certain that your resume do not get tossed up by any potential employer. There are some tricks that you can try out to make your resume stand out. Crafting the layout of your resume, showcase your important takeaways, prioritize your information, adding personality and flavor like adding a cover page, using blocks of color, and so on to guide the reader will make your CV stand out from numerous applicants. Well, if you desire to get more creative and professional resume, you can find out some pretty amazing examples on CV Parade, Visualize Me, etc. for better visualization.
Dec 21, 16 1:01 am ·
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formal resume or creative resume?
hi
i am in the process of updating, or should i say creating, an updated resume of mine and was wondering which one is most appropriate to use for the architectural discipline?
most of the resume writing tips site i have stumbled and searched for generally are applicable to most disciplines... but for architecture? is creative type a better solution?
and pardon for my ignorance, but what does a creative resume look like? a stylized personal menu of sorts?
would love to hear all your comments and suggestions. advanced thanks!
As far as everything I've heard, including architecture (and tips from people taking a kind of personal design marketing class), keep the resume simple and fast. Maybe use fonts that are the same as your design sheets and portfolio, but no crazy logos and faded pics in the background and stuff like that. I've heard, imagine someone will give it an initial 30 second look. If they aren't impressed in 30 seconds, it goes in the pile. You have to draw their eye to the important stuff, give the text room to breath and just keep it simple. It's that part that is kind of boring. Make it nice and clean, and in that sense you are designing, but nothing over the top. FAST. I heard one test is to give it to someone, have them read it for 30 seconds, then ask them what they know about you. Also, don't make it one big dense text block. Don't write big long paragraphs about your jobs stating everything you've ever done in detail. Don't make the entire thing 100% uniform, i.e. don't have the education part look just like the awards part and just like the experience part etc.
do you want a creative job? then make a creative resume.
what does a creative resume look like? ...if you can't answer this then you shouldn't be looking for a creative job.
honestly.
what does a creative resume look like TO YOU? YOU are the one designing it. It's all about YOU. Make it whatever the hell you want, that's the whole point. You can't ask anyone else about how to design it.
in my (limited admittedly) experience of participating in the hiring of staff, the main thing was clearness of content. with hundreds of resumes to go through the process was not quite fair, and we did tend to set aside for another look the resumes that were easy to read. might have lost some good candidates in the process, but then again architecture is often about communication, so probably not...
creativity treated as novelty was taken to signal immaturity and we didn't look too closely at over-designed resumes...slightly off normal was what caught the eye. grossly abnormal did too, but not usually in a good way...
which is to say...what hasselhoff said...as for WHAT constitutes creativity, i haven't a friggin clue. but this guy is a graphic designer i like for clarity, though it is a bit tame in some respects. 2x4 is interesting, and of course bruce mau...imagine you can google others for inspiration.
am sure you can figger something out. main thing is to remember who your audience is and make a presentation to/for them...creativity comes in making a prez that pushes their buttons...
I review a LOT of resumes each week - both electronic and hard copy. a few observations:
1. some candidates try to get 'cute' in the guise of creativity - maybe one out of 100 of those actually tee-up the info I need to understand in a clear and concise way. the rest go straight into the 'thanks, but not interested' stack.
2. the vast majority of the other resumes I receive are what most of us would call 'traditional' format - they serve the essential purpose well and help me quickly understand the candidate's education and experience. 'traditional' resumes DO NOT detract from candidates applying for creative positions - we learn what we need to learn about creativity from the interview and portfolio.
3. one of 100 traditional resumes will stand out because of exceptional refinement with respect to fonts, layout and simple graphics. this does get my attention and I always look at those carefully.
4. the basics still apply - focus on what you have done and can do; be concise and factual; use proper grammar; punctuate correctly; and - for god's sake, use spellcheck and have somebody you trust proof it for you.
5. more and more, I really appreciate receiving a mini-portfolio of images, along with the resume. the written word can only take you so far in our field.
good luck!
i have also looked a lot of resumes in my time. i like the ones that are simple, informative and doesn't test my reading.
be creative with but don't be a self centered design genious by out shining the job offer.
hi myriam
quizical- i appreciate all of your helpful tips in my current undertaking of applying for an internship. i am interested if you could expand upon the mini portfolio you are referring to. i am wondering what is the best format to achieve a mini-portfolio (especially digitally). i was thinking of including a sample of my work as a few pages after my resume that could all be included in one pdf document (for emailing). is this the typical approach you see?
thanks
: for candidates, and for firms, it's often difficult and time consuming to prepare / review a comprehensive portfolio at the time of an initial resume submittal.
I find it very helpful to receive with a resume a smallish portfolio (i.e. 1-3 pages, max) of some images that help me understand the type of work the candidate has been doing. this mini-portfolio either can be printed or submitted in a single PDF file (please note: an e-mail with 15 jpegs attached is very irritating.) i also find it useful when candidates can direct me to a website where a broader assortment of their materials can be viewed.
clearly, this will not be a substitute for the whole portfolio or an interview - but it does help me understand the candidate well enough to decide whether additional investigations are likely to be a good use of my time -- and a good use of the candidate's time.
good hunting
hi mdler!
now that I reread this post, I realize I came off like a bitch. I'm really sorry, I didn't intend my comment to be so harsh. I do feel it is important to find your own creative inspiration inside yourself, however, and on no piece is that more important than your resume/portfolio package.
myriam: come back to Boston
Did you mix two songs together? I dont remember it going like that.
It's kinda like a New Urbanist version of "Rockin' Roll Band."
i remember being really drunk and hearing that song and bawling my eyes out over a girl who was nothing like myriam. if it had been myriam i'd have to defenestrated myself in the springtime.
pixel: come to chicago, this town rocks!!!!!!!
also, i thought i saw you on the train today (coincidentally) and did a triple scooby take.
god i talk about defenestrating myself myriam and you are talkin scooby doo...
portfolio
Formal as in formalist? Shape is in these days.
I'm sorry Fogey, I was just curious. But man did this thread deviate from topic.
hi myriam
your comments are very much appreciated and in fact has served as the impetus for me to rethink my resume and consider all the wonderful comments and suggestions from hasselhoff, quizzical, jump, etc.
i dont think you have to be apologetic - truth hurts anyway.
but then i guess it is a good wake up call...
thanks again!
and btw, yeah the thread has somewhat deviated....a bit... ;)
cj w. - this is a topic visited quite frequently here - if you do a search on 'resume' at the main discussion index, you should find many other useful threads as well
hi quizzical
yeah i did a search and it yielded some results however i didnt (or maybe havent) noticed one about formal vs creative types of resume...
many thanks for your advice on the topic though! do you mind if you could have a look at mine and see if it'll be part of the 1 of 100 that you would notice ? just wanted to get some opinions and 2 cents ;)
thanks and much appreciated!
i'd be creative about being formal. k.i.s.s.
hi,
Here you find a good sample of a creative resume:
https://creativemarket.com/Hillvalley/1046646-Unique-Resume-Curriculum-Vitae%28CV%29
Good luck!
depends on the purpose of the resume. for example, are you trying to stand out on behance or get an internship at sanaa? or apply for a job at autodesk? it would look totally different and still be creative.
^you sir have been spam baited into responding to a 9 year old thread.
that was a very nice piece of spam though. also did you just assume my formal title?
Having a stand out and creative resume is a way to make certain that your resume do not get tossed up by any potential employer. There are some tricks that you can try out to make your resume stand out. Crafting the layout of your resume, showcase your important takeaways, prioritize your information, adding personality and flavor like adding a cover page, using blocks of color, and so on to guide the reader will make your CV stand out from numerous applicants. Well, if you desire to get more creative and professional resume, you can find out some pretty amazing examples on CV Parade, Visualize Me, etc. for better visualization.
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