After a few years of classes and freelancing jobs, Danielle Angeline, of Annapolis, decided it was time to polish up her resume and prepare to start her job search again.
For some extra help, she enrolled in a series of free workshops on resume writing and interviewing skills sponsored by the Anne Arundel Workforce Development Corporation.
“I don?t know if I learned anything new, but there were lots of reminders in terms of having fresh-looking business cards and getting my graphics Web site up,” she said. The resume classes helped her learn how to display her freelance experience “without looking like a job-hopper.”
According to county statistics, about 12,000 county residents like Angeline participated in one of the corporation?s computer and job skills programs. Last week, she attended an interviewing skills workshop, hoping to conquer the nervous giggles and learn how to be concise in her answers.
“[Employers] have been asking the same 10 to 20 questions in interviews since the 1960s, and people still don?t know how to answer them,” said Alison Kelly, the instructor for the resume and interviewing workshops. She provides some general tips on interviewing and then works one on one.
“The biggest thing is, they?re coming in here with a resume they had in the 1980s and think they can just make 100 copies and send it out to everyone they know and don?t know,” Kelly said. “It?s not like that anymore. ? We teach them how to write a resume ? in a language they can relate to and speak to in an interview.”
IF YOU GO
» The next interviewing skills workshop is today at the career center in Glen Burnie. After that, the next resume and interview workshops are Jan. 19 at the community college offices at Arundel Mills.
» For information or to locate a career center: www.aawdc.org.
