Keywords used to be called buzzwords. My clients often ask me about keywords as if there is some clandestine group of human resource managers who secretly devise to trick job seekers by disqualifying applicants who, although meeting the qualifications, are missing the magic keywords. It really is simple to figure out keywords. There are a few ways to do it.

The best way to figure out what keywords you should have in your résumé is to look at the job announcement itself. This is especially true of federal job announcements. You should pay particular attention to the section that describes the duties. As you read, highlight all of the technical terms used. For example, here is an excerpt of a federal government job announcement with the keywords in all caps:

"Monitors progress toward ORGANIZATIONAL GOALS, EVALUATES and makes proper adjustments to IMPROVE THE PROGRAM. IDENTIFIES PROBLEMS, determines accuracy and relevance of information and uses SOUND JUDGMENT to generate and evaluate alternatives and to MAKE RECCOMENDATIONS to improve programming.

If this is the job you have decided to apply for, you need to ensure you have mentioned these skills somewhere in your résumé.  You can find more examples of résumé tips here.

Another Way to locate the keywords that are normal for your career field is to look at one of the following websites: http://online.onetcenter.org or http://www.bls.gov. Both sites are extremely user-friendly and will take you step by step through the knowledge, skills and abilities necessary to perform any job. There is an ample amount of information on these two sites to use for your résumé, you should never again be stumped for words, but if you need help, check out this helpful résumé web site with tons of other tips

One more place to find keywords is on the website of the corporation you are applying to. You may find data about the company that would drive you to add more to your résumé or cover letter. Be especially attentive to the Mission Statement for the organization. This is excellent information to use not only to ascertain if the companies mission statement is parallel your own interests, but to prepare for a telephone interview, should you be chosen for one. It looks great to the employer if you know something about the company during the interview.

It doesnt matter where you find keywords, it’s best to work them naturally into your résumé without using them directly from the source. And, it is NEVER smart to exaggerate your experience in order to make use of the keywords you found. You will feel very silly if you are asked to describe your experience as stated on the résumé and you cannot.

If you need more help with your Résumé or just general advice about it, check out this résumé service web site

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