The Beeline Broadcast, #1

Meeting My Career Counselor, Part I

I first considered the job search about, uh, a month ago. A number of factors sparked my sudden interest in employment, like deciding to ditch the national conference, or panicking when my classmate confided that Financial Aid positions pay really well (and are in demand too). I felt a momentary sense of anxiety. Financial Aid? Did I have other options? What were my options? I needed to look at options! I had no idea how to do that!

That's how I landed in an office with a career counselor.

I brought my resume, figuring that was a good first step. The counselor liked the content and didn't have suggestions. I tried to take this as a compliment because I do, after all, have an English degree. I should know what I'm doing, right? Suddenly I began to feel very nervous.

The duration of the meeting focused on formatting. I found myself asking weird questions like, "What do you think is more professional, serif or sans serif font?"

Here is a list of learning moments:

- It's normal for higher ed professionals to have a two-page resume.
- A surrounding border makes the content look very tidy.
- I better get a LinkedIn.
- My college has a job listing site.

My career counselor was very friendly and agreeable. We saved a few different files with varying formatting styles. He was, however, very adamant that I change my font. After inquiring further, he finally admitted that it looked a little juvenile. I found this really funny.

Here are the font versions that I used:

The red fox jumps over the fence.
The red fox jumps over the fence.
The red fox jumps over the fence.

Can you guess which is the juvenile one?

Palatino Linotype, size 10
Georgia, size 10.5
Calibri Body, size 10.5

If you guessed Georgia, then you are a winner!

My truth summary: Your resume is a representation of yourself. It's nice to draw from different perspectives, but when it comes to things like borders, fonts, and page counts, you're the one to make that call. 

I only wish that I had had more feedback on the actual resume content.