Along with job experience, education is very important in getting your foot in the door. Employers tend to look at your education level and success not only because they want high achievers, but those who successfully completed education are obviously trainable.
When writing this section, you want to list your degrees, where you received them and grade point average. Don’t begin your list at elementary school – high school and above are the only listings needed. It should look something like this:
High School Diploma; XYZ High School, Anytown, USA. GPA: 4.0.
Bachelor of Arts – Basket Weaving; XYZ University, Anytown, USA. GPA: 3.5
Don’t make this portion too busy – if you have any awards, honors or certifications, they can be listed separately.
References
Just as your work experience and education, references can either boost you or make an employer indifferent. This is a portion of your résumé; yet, your references should be listed on a separate page just in case you don’t want to attach them with the resume you send in. You can always include a References Available Upon Request at the end of your resume if you want to. Just be careful leaving them off because you never know who the employer knows, and if they see a familiar face in your reference, it could boost your chances even more.
When picking references, try and aim for six people to list. This is a good rule of thumb because employers usually only contact three or four, which usually pans out if one or two of your contacts can not be reached for some reason. But, be sure to ask those people you have in mind if it is okay that you put them as a reference, and how do they like to be contacted. This way they know in advance about the potential call they may receive and have some time to think about what to say.
One other important tip – try and have a three to three ratio – three managers to three peers. If you work with management and they like the job you do, their word is gold to another manager. Remember, you are laying the groundwork for landing a new job, and your potential employer wants to know what management and your peers think, so that should be reflected when they talk to your references.
When listing a reference, always give their name, their title, work address, work phone and e-mail. This is plenty information for the prospective employer, and it gives them a few options on how to contact each reference.