Generic+Resumes+(Why+You+Should+Avoid+'Em)

At some point in your life, someone may have suggested that everyone needs a generic resume saved on file to be ready for any job opening that happens to appear. The generic resume advice usally begins with a warning such as, "You never know when that perfect job will come along, so you should be prepared." But a generic resume will NOT get you a perfect job, especially in a tight job market, and a generic document may not ever get anyone a job. Why? Generic resumes are not targeted for specific jobs, purposes, or readers, so they usually fail to present the writer's abilities in the best light, while other resume writers in the same application pool have offered non-generic resumes.
 * GENERIC RESUME**

Generic resumes often read more like job applications than like a persuasive documents that has attempted to focus the image of a writer'sbackground. Generic resumes are created with little insight about a real reader, they often fail to include vital information, and they almost always fail to include vital information specifically for the targeted reader.


 * Generic Resume Example:** //A// generic resume entry for writers who have been receptionists in the Department of English and now want to try for a 10th grade teaching and college search advising position at Wellington Academy, a private school, may list the receptionist information as the following writer chose.

//**Receptionist, Department of English, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI Aug 2005 - May 2007**// >
 * ADDITIONAL EXPERIENCE**
 * Answered questions on the telephone and in person; took and delivered messages
 * Made copies and filed documents
 * Handled confidential information
 * Tailored Resume Example:** Writers who have been receptionists in the Department of English and want to tailor their resume for the 10th grade teaching and college search advising postion at Wellington Academy will try to show their receptionist experiences or skills in a way that will connect with the needs of the Wellington Hiring Committee.

//Receptionist, Department of English, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI Aug 2005 - May 2007//** >
 * ADDITIONAL EXPERIENCE
 * Learned what professors value in prospective students by performing clerical tasks for five English major advisors
 * Answered questions from students and others when possible and routed questions to administrators as needed
 * Handled confidential information and performed various clerical support duties