In today's world, emailing your resume to a potential employer has become commonplace, in some cases even a preferred way, to apply for jobs. Although many employers now welcome and encourage emailed applications, they also may have particular rules about what types of files they accept via email.
- Some companies will accept your resume as an email attachment in Microsoft Word format.
- Some companies will only accept resumes in plain text. They may also stipulate that resume must be in the body of the email, or they may allow attachments.
The thing to be aware of is that while it is true that Microsoft Word allows all kinds of fancy fonts, and layouts, plain text gives you virtually no control over formatting. For this reason you must take care to format your resume in a way that will look good in either file type. The best way to do this is to prepare and maintain your resume in Microsoft Word, complete with formatting, and then use that as the basis for creating plain text versions of your resume. This isn't too difficult, as you can simply convert a Microsoft Word document into plain text by using the following steps:
1. Open the document (your resume) in Microsoft Word.
2. Select Save As... on the File menu.
3. A dialog box is displayed. Choose a name for the file (best practice is to use your name as the file name, and use underscores as spaces), and under Format (or Save As Type) select Text Only.
4. Click the Save button in the dialog box.
5. After you have saved into a text file, you should open that file and review how it has transferred over. You may need to some editing in order to clean-up the layout. Pay particular attention to spacing, tabs and bullet points, as these are the areas which most commonly need attention.
You are now ready to start preparing your email to the employer - but do NOT send it yet.
- If you have been asked to include your resume in the body of your email, you can simply copy and paste the entire text file in.
- If you have been asked to attach your resume, you can attach the Microsoft Word file or the plain text file, depending on the employer's preference.
- You should also write a cover letter as part of your email (preceding your resume if this is part of the body of the email). The cover letter should include your name, address and phone number, as well as the address of the recipient. Of course, just like in the offline world, the purpose of your cover letter is to present yourself in a good light, and highlight those things which make you an ideal candidate for the job.
After you have prepared your email, you need to carefully proofread it. Even then do NOT yet send a copy to the employer; first send a copy to a friend or colleague as well as yourself. The purpose of this is to check it arrives looking like you expected. Once you are happy that the content has been thoroughly checked, and that there are no problems with format or layout, you are finally read to send the email to the employer.
By S. Tanna. First published at http://www.jobpixie.com/resume_tips_emailing.php
Discover more job search and resume tips and tools at http://www.jobpixie.com/
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