Resume questions

Reznik

1. References. A place wants 2-3 professional references. I've only really had one relevant job and the rest of my time has been in college. Should I use multiple references from the same place, or have 1 work 1 professor? Also, are you still not supposed to put references on your resume or has that changed?
2. I've worked at the same place multiple times in several interrupted stretches. Am I going to have to keep adding separate entries for what amounts to the same job on my resume because they were different contracts, or is there an acceptable way to group it all together but indicate that I wasn't working there steadily for 2 years? To clarify, I was there for an 8 month co-op. Then I went back and finished my last term of school. Then I returned to work for a 6 month contract. Then I went back for a year of school. Now there's a possibility I could return to work there again. So that would look really weird on the resume...

davidsdurions

For the work history stuff, I recommend pulling your full credit reports and see how it shows up there. When your prospective employer runs a background check this is how they will see your previous employment. You'll want to either have your resume be very close to this or be able to succinctly explain gaps within your resume and in person. It sounds like you can do that just fine, you just don't want to make it look like you are padding your resume.

davidsdurions

Oh also, did you do the same work on each stint or was it radically different?

Gaslight

1. Either two references from the same job, or one from the job and additionally a reference from a professor you know well and studied with extensively would be fine. I used the professor who I took most of the courses for my major from as a reference when I was applying to jobs right after college. Don't put references on your resume, and don't bother putting "references available on request" on your resume either as this should just be assumed.

2. I would list the place you worked, and then I would list each stint/position below that heading separately with the beginning/end dates (month and year) for each, with appropriate bullet points for duties and accomplishments for each.

Something like:

Place Reznik worked

(Job Title) (Co-Op), April-December 2013

• Awesome stuff Reznik did.
• More stuff Reznik did.
• Even more stuff Reznik did.

Contract (Job Title), June-December 2014

• Reznik continuing to be awesome.
• Reznik is on a roll.
• Stuff that makes you want to hire Reznik.

I run into a similar problem myself because I had a full-time internship in college two summers in a row, so on my work history it looks like June-August 2008 and then June-August 2009. On a resume it's fairly easy to make this clear, unfortunately in online job applications that just want you to fill your work history in boxes it's more troublesome.

Reznik

Alright, cool.

I pretty much did the same stuff each time, but there were enough minor differences based on new projects/changing tech that I can change up the bullet points a bit.

Also, @davidsdurions how would I go about pulling my credit report? I'm in Canada so I'm assuming it's different here.

davidsdurions

Hmm well, this article is saying you can write the credit agencies for a free one but have to pay for it instantly online. Which is crap, in 'merica we can do it online for free once a year from each agency. How does Canada have fewer rights than us???

Equifax Canada, costs ~$15.

Trans Union Canada, looks like $16.95 monthly charge with monitoring and all that jazz.

Do you have a credit card or a friendly bank that can pull the report for you? Does CreditKarma work for Canadians?

I'm trying here, but I don't see many choices.

So, if you can make a good resume with all the info on there, I wouldn't worry about the credit report stuff, since you should have it all covered anyways. It was just something I've run into on both sides of the hiring process before anyhow.

Kilgore Trout

I'm trying to figure out why you need to pull a credit report if you already know your work history. To my knowledge, a prospective employer running a credit check isn't typical in Canada (the only exception I know of is the armed forces).

From what I gather, the suggestion was to run a check to get an idea of how to structure your work experience. If you already have an idea how to do this, I wouldn't waste the time and money unless they ask for one.

On a side note, if you are really concerned, you can always talk to a career councilor. Many colleges and universities in Canada will provide services to students and alumni, and if you don't have access to one there, there may be a non-profit in your area that can help. If you're in Ontario, check out the Employment Ontario website to see if you can find a service centre that does resume help. (If by some huge coincidence you're in London, send me a PM and I can put you in touch with an agency that I work with).

davidsdurions

Yeah I didn't know it was so terribly difficult and expensive to get a credit report in OP's location. Here in the U.S. , it's just an easy thing to do so you can be prepared during the whole process. A credit report is part of a background check because it shows aliases, previous addresses, work history, as well as credit usage which isn't relevant to the hiring process but the other stuff can be.

But since it's such a pain in the butt to get your hands on your own credit report in Canada, I wouldn't even bother until and unless the hiring company raises any conflicting information.