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Summer is here. The days are long, the city is buzzing with events, and laid back chatter flows from outdoor patios. It's getting harder to focus on the job search, even more so when employers seem to be posting less jobs and taking longer to reply to applications. It's tempting to take a break and restart your job search in September. But is that a good idea?

Not necessarily.

One reason to continue job seeking is precisely because job seekers often opt out of the job search in summer: competition for jobs is reduced and you might be able to snag a good opportunities.

Another reason is that jobs do continue to be posted. Some employers simply need to hire regardless of the season. Often hiring is urgent and employers are quick to grab the next available candidate.

Sometimes, employers are even beginning to line up opportunities for the December holidays.

Another advantage of job searching in summer is that employers are often more relaxed and receptive to chatting about what the next year may bring. Use this opportunity to connect with your targeted employers to gather information about the company, upcoming job requirements. and their hiring process. Having this information before jobs are posted gives you an edge over other job seekers. You will know what jobs are coming up, when they are accepting applications, the hiring process, and who is doing the hiring. If you are lucky and resourceful, you may even secure someone on the inside who can pass your resume on for you. People have a little more time to chat and may be open to longer discussions on potential opportunities.

However, you don't necessarily have to continue job search at the same pace. Everyone needs some time off to relax, regroup, and recharge. Just don’t stop. You may miss out on some great opportunities. So, use this time of year to your advantage. After all, this is your job search and you will get out of it what you put in.

One of the biggest challenges a job seeker can face is a large and growing gap in a resume. You may find yourself out of work for a long stretch of time for many reasons that are often beyond your control, including childcare, caring for an ill family member, or dealing with your own health challenges. Sometimes, people choose to opt out of the job market to travel, go to school, or even immigrate to a new country. Getting back into the workforce after a long absence is often more difficult than you expect it to be, and it is stressful to watch the gap on your resume keep growing.

So how do you deal with the recent gap on your resume?

In the interview

First, think through what you will tell the employer in the interview. Generally, it is better to be as truthful as possible. Employers will often be impressed by an honest explanation, simply told. However, you obviously do not need to disclose personal information that might be prejudicial, such as a health issue, or your family situation. Often the explanation can be told in broad strokes: “I took time off to attend to a family/health issue”. It’s also helpful to mention that the issue was temporary, otherwise the employer might worry that the issue might be an ongoing concern that could impact on your ability or availability to work: “the issue is now resolved and I am ready and excited to get back to work”.

On your resume

Remember that you don’t have to explain every gap. One way to minimize gaps is to eliminate the months from the dates of your jobs and simply list the years. You should be prepared to specify the months in the interview, though, if asked. Also, if the gap isn’t recent, you don’t really need to explain it – employers tend to be more concerned about your recent work history, than what you did more than 5 years ago.

If the gap is recent and longer than a couple of years, consider explaining it briefly. Some people insert a line such as “temporary leave of absence to resolve a personal issue”, “family responsibilities”, or “immigration and resettlement”, with the dates (e.g. 2015-2018). It helps to insert an end date, so that it is clear that you are ready to move on to the next stage of your career.

When you start job searching

Start thinking of what you will tell potential employers, network contacts, and your references regarding your absence. Also, as soon as you can, start getting involved in various activities that you might be able to add to your resume:

Volunteering can be an effective way to fill resume gaps and get yourself back into the routine of work. Any volunteering in the community or at your child’s school can be included in your resume and social media profiles as part of your experience. Add it to your list of jobs on your resume (make sure to specify that it was volunteer work, though – you don’t want to misrepresent your experience). Describe the skills and qualifications that you learned while volunteering, such as “Participated in a planning committee for a fundraising event”, or “set up classrooms and prepared materials”. Ideally, try to find volunteer work in a position or in an organization that is related to your ultimate job goal; that way you can keep your resume and experience fresh, as well as build your professional network. You could also use draw on your volunteer supervisors as a source of references, which is another challenge often facing job seekers with a gap in their resume.

Rebuild your professional network. Most jobs are found through contacts. Once potential employers have met you and been impressed by you (or been told about your assets by a referral), they will be less concerned with your resume gap. Use social media and information interviews to seek out and meet successful fellow professionals in your field. Identify the professional associations, conferences, trade magazines, organizations and events relevant to your career goal. Participate in their activities. Consider seeking out former colleagues, and reconnect with them on LinkedIn (or even Facebook).

Research the labour market. In some sense, you are in the same boat as a new graduate. Learn as much as you can about your field and profession as well as its leaders, the requirements, the shortages and the education required. Assess whether you need to update your skills, recertify or learn new technical skills. Identify target companies where you would like to work, visit their websites, analyze the job openings and speak to as many professionals in your field as possible.

Explore training options. Adding recent education or training to your resume can be a highly effective resume filler. It does not have to even be full time education – you can do it on a part time basis (it isn’t necessary to specify whether a course is full or part time on the resume). Courses may be online, at community centres, local colleges or continuing education courses at the local community college.

A growing resume gap isn’t an unsurmountable barrier. The sooner you realize that there’s a potential gap growing in your work history, start planning your strategies for addressing it. Take initiative to start filling the gap, and think through what you want to tell employers in interviews, on resumes and on your LinkedIn profile.

With a reported 11 million unique jobs posted on the site, LinkedIn has become a key source of opportunities for its over half a billion users. The social media platform provides users a myriad of ways to be noticed by recruiters and potential employers. And if you are going to be noticed, you need make sure that your LinkedIn profile is in as good a shape as possible, especially in these five key elements:

1. Career Headline

Your headline is the first line of text a potential employer reads on your profile. It plays a marketing role -- it's your opportunity to tell them what you want them to know about you, your professional skills and experience.

Avoid simply using your job title as your headline, and don't use the default LinkedIn one. Use this valuable opportunity attract attention and impress the reader. Try adding some relevant descriptive keywords to your job title. You can use multiple short terms to describe yourself, combining professional and personal terms: e.g." Administrative Assistant | Microsoft Office | Customer Service | Committed to Excellence" or "Accounting Clerk | Bookkeeper | Advanced Excel | Detail-oriented".

2. Profile photo

LinkedIn tells us that “great profile photo (…) can get you up to 21 times more profile views”. But profile views are not enough; to make an impactful and positive impression, a photo which communicates information about the your professionalism and confidence is best. There’s no need to pay someone to take a professional photo. LinkedIn offer some good tips on taking your own “work selfie”:

3. Summary

Your LinkedIn Summary is an opportunity to further introduce yourself, explain your employment history, and give potential employers an opportunity to learn what makes you unique. It can be less formal and more wordy than a resume profile — just make sure that the tone is appropriate for your industry.

You can include in your profile:
– your professional title, years of experience and expertise, e.g. “Over 10 years’ progressive HR experience working in the non-profit sector”
– relevant educational achievements and/or professional designations, e.g. “University educated and a Certified Human Resource Professional (CHRP)”
– core skills and achievements, e.g. “Skilled negotiator, having successfully handled and resolved union disputes; knowledgeable on issues regarding payroll; designed and implemented professional staff development training”
– work values and principles, e.g. “Strong commitment to inclusive non-discrimination hiring practices”
– relevant personal characteristics, e.g. “Highly energetic, enthusiastic and confident”
– knowledge such as relevant languages and computer software

For ideas on what to include, read through job postings you are planning to apply for and identify the qualifications listed by the employers. Use them as your guide — try to echo the employers' priorities. 

4. Background photo

A background photo can brighten up a profile. It shows that you’ve made an extra effort to make the profile stand out.

The ideal photo would be of you at your workplace or job – even better if it’s one of you doing your job. Remember that regardless of what photo you use, you should have permission to use the photo. If you search for an image, make sure it is labelled free for re-use. Google offers clear advice on how to find such photos.

5. Media

One of the features that distinguishes a LinkedIn profile from a resume is the ability to add links or media, such as PDFs, videos and slide shows, Word documents or images, to the summary and to each job. Use this function to share video clips or photos of you at work, slideshows that you have produced, newsletters where you were mentioned, or samples of your work.

For ideas and inspiration to spruce up your resume, use the LinkedIn search bar to find profiles of fellow professionals in your field and review their profiles; find the ones that look impressive and look at their photo, headline, summary, media and background photo, and learn what you can from them. Try something new. Remember, you can always change things up if it doesn't feel right -- no one will judge you for trying new things. That's the advantage of social media.

Google has launched a job search feature to help users find job postings without having to leave the search engine. This function has the potential to be much more effective than using a specific website to find jobs, in that it scans for the job title throughout the internet, rather than being limited by known sources. You might even discover new, unknown sources of jobs in your field.

The best part of the function is how simple it is: just use the usual google search bar, by entering a job title and the word “job”.

Here’s how you use it:

1. Search:

Open your Google search page and enter the job title in the search. You can specify a location (e.g. “Toronto”) and/or a level (e.g. “entry level”). If you don’t specify location, it will search near your current location, within a range that you can specify. Google will searches multiple career sites such as Monster, ZipRecruiter, LinkedIn and Glassdoor, as well as agency sites and others.

2. Sort through the results:

Click on the blue box to open a full page and view the search results, and sort through all the jobs. Options are available to narrow the jobs by Title, Location, Date posted, Type (e.g. full time or contract), Company type (i.e. industry) and Employer.

3. Save jobs for future reference:

Next to the job title there is an option to save a job for future reference, and return to it at a later date. You will be able to do so only if you have a Google account and are logged into it.

4. Create an Alert:

If you find that the search results are useful, you can get set up an alert system to email you whenever jobs are posted that match your criteria. (Google Alerts are useful for any topic – you may use them to be alerted whenever their own name or a subject of interest is mentioned anywhere on the internet). Alerts can be edited or cancelled as needed.

5. Apply:

Google will direct you to sites where the job posted and you can take it from there, as you would usually when you find a job online.

My clients often ask me how to connect with recruiters to help find a job, and whether it is worth the effort. There isn’t one simple answer to this question – it depends on the profession, the job seeker and on the demand for their skills in the job market. For some job seekers, recruiters can be very useful when looking for work.

What do recruiters do?

Recruiters work for the employer, not the job seeker. They help collect resumes, screen applicants, and conduct job interviews, either for one company or via an agency. Recruiters are most useful if you work in a field where there’s a large demand for your skills, experience and expertise -- often more senior staff, who might work in larger companies. Recruiters also hire temporary staff.

There are two different types of recruiters: in-house and agency. In-house recruiters are employed by a specific company to hire employees. Agency recruiters work for an employment agency, to help multiple companies find employees; they get paid when they fill a position – often a percentage of the salary paid to the candidate.

Recruiters use multiple methods to find, connect with, and monitor potential candidates, including online job boards (such as this), recruitment agency boards (such as those listed here), company websites (such as this), as well as LinkedIn.

How do agencies work?

To get a job through an agency, applicants need to register either via a posting found on a job board such as Monster.ca or Indeed.ca, or directly on the agency's site. If the agency is a reputable one, candidates who register will be contacted by a recruiter for a brief discussion about their eligibility for the position. Suitable candidates will get called into the agency to be interviewed and possibly skill-tested. References will be called. Candidates might be placed in full-time or temporary jobs, many starting on a temporary basis first before considering them for full time employment.

For candidates, it’s important to treat the recruitment agency interview as you would any job interview: be prepared to speak about yourself clearly, confidently and honestly, to build a trusting relationship with the recruiter. Remember that it is the recruiter’s job to represent you to an employer, so give them the information they need to do so effectively.

Candidates are not limited to only one agency. It is well worth registering with multiple agencies, to access a variety of jobs in your area. Recruiters won’t necessarily refer every candidate to a position, no matter how well qualified they may seem. Recruiters may have their own personal preferences which impact on their choices. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that candidates can’t apply for the job independently, according to some recruiters: “Sometimes a company will be more willing to hire you without the recruiter’s fee attached.”

Connect with recruiters on LinkedIn:

1. Update your profile. LinkedIn reports that adding detailed work experience will result in 12x more profile views; it also makes your profile 36x more likely to be found by recruiters.
2. Signal your availability to recruiters. LinkedIn recently introduced an option for job seekers to quietly indicate their availability to recruiters, called Career Interests. This allows candidates to provide some basic information about their career goals to recruiters privately.
3. Seek them out. LinkedIn offers recruiters and job seekers an easy and effective way to connect. There are two main ways to find recruiters on this platform: Use the search bar to find people who call themselves “recruiter” – review their profile to identify whether they recruit in your field and location, conduct a job search, and look through the job postings for the name of the poster (some job postings include the name and profile of an individual poster)
4. Reach out and connect with the suitable recruiters. Include a brief introductory note, telling them about your employment goals.

Communicate with the recruiter:

1. When the recruiter accepts the connection request (and most will!), thank them for connecting with you.
2. In the next message, briefly introduce yourself and tell them what you want "I saw a position on your website" (share links to the job, if you have)  or "I am interested in a __________ position."
3. Mention if possible something you might share -- like LinkedIn contacts, location or anything else, to break the ice.
4. Tell them what you would like them to do "Can you please pass along my resume to the person responsible for hiring XXX?” or “I recently applied for XXX and I’m trying to get a status update on my application. Would you mind checking for me?”
5. Keep it short and focused.
6. Stay in touch: Thank the recruiter for their efforts on your behalf, follow their instructions regarding the opportunities they provide you. Check in regularly; update them on your job search and availability.

While recruiters can be a source of good job opportunities, don’t rely on them exclusively to find your next job. They are only one tool in a job seekers toolkit. Do what you can to reach out and be available, but keep looking for work independently.

Perhaps you have given some thought to the idea that volunteering is a good way to 'get a foot in the door' of your favourite business, but have you considered it a way to expand your network, meet other like-minded people and boost your resume?

Right now, as summer events ramp up, cities like Toronto are brimming with seasonal events that can connect you to hundreds of other people who are interested in the same causes and activities as you. Also, if you perform well, you may just be considered the next time people are hiring for paid positions.

There are a variety of events that occur throughout the city covering cultural festivals, food and drink events, and various charity fundraisers, just to name a few.

Do you have a passion for a specific cause, or a personal connection to a particular health issue? Why not consider contacting a local organization and asking to be put on their volunteer list? You can find organizations of interest by calling 211 in Toronto, or checking out Toronto 211 online.

Volunteering is also a great way to be exposed to different type of jobs that you may not have previously considered; you might even find that you enjoy doing something that you never thought you’d be interested in before.

Here are some handy do’s and don’ts for volunteering:

Volunteer for something you think you might enjoy: If you’re going to give your time to a cause, try thinking of something that will not only look good on your resume, but is also something that you are passionate about. If you’re happy and fulfilled, it can have a profound impact on how well you do and the references you can gather.

Be punctual: Take your volunteer work as seriously as you would a job. If you show up late for your shift, potential employers will remember this and it may affect your recommendation or chances to be considered in the future.

Dress appropriately: If it’s casual and you’re going to be on your feet all day, wear comfortable shoes and clothing. If it is more formal, dress the part.

Be respectful of everyone: You never know who you’re going to meet -- treat everyone as your next potential employer or colleague.

Be willing to do something you don't enjoy: You may be asked to help with something like clean-up, or perhaps something seemingly unimportant such as inflating balloons. Remember that no one likes to do these odd jobs, but they still have to be done. Your willingness to participate in the less glamorous positions will be noted. Of course, never do something that you think may be harmful to your health or that you really cannot do.

Don’t wait until the last minute to volunteer for events, the most coveted spots are typically grabbed up quickly. Don’t let that discourage you though, there are so many positions you can apply for—just keep in mind you may not get your first choice.

Perhaps the most important advice I can offer however, is that no matter which organization you choose, have fun! You’re bound to learn something new, you’ll meet new people, possibly make new friends and you’ll definitely take something positive out of your experience.

Now here are some websites that offer links to volunteer opportunities:

Volunteer With the City -- Opportunities to volunteer in City of Toronto events and programs

Volunteer Toronto -- This site offers opportunities to apply to volunteer for a wide range of activities

Spark Ontario -- Discover volunteering opportunities and connect with non-profit organizations in Ontario

CharityVillage -- Canadian nonprofit sector's largest and most popular online resource

You know you have successfully passed the interview stage when the employer finally asks for references. It's an exciting moment. And it's a little frightening, as well, because at this point you no longer have influence over the job application; you are dependent on other people being available, willing and able to talk about you convincingly.

Employers' expectations regarding references aren’t necessarily consistent (just like every other aspect of the hiring process). Sometimes, employers ask for them at the end of a good interview, sometimes they call for the reference list after the interview, and other times they don’t want them at all. Sometimes, employers ask for references up front, in the job posting.

So what is a job seeker to do?

It's often said that we spend more time with our colleagues than we do with our families. Working people don't think twice about the benefits of walking into work every day and being greeted by familiar faces, joining colleagues for lunch or a coffee break, or taking a moment for a chat as they walk by in the hallway. They also might not appreciate the value of feeling useful and needed by colleagues, customers or clients. If you find yourself unemployed -- whether by choice (such as retirement), or through job loss or illness -- you might have discovered that losing that social contact and the sense of purpose that comes with work can leave a painful gap, often becoming a barrier in and of itself toward moving forward to find another job.

With Britain's recent decision to appoint a Minister of Loneliness, there has been a lot of discussion about isolation as a public health concern. Professor John Cacioppo, a neuroscientist who studied loneliness (and who sadly died recently at age 66), described it in The Lancet as “a condition that makes a person irritable, depressed, and self-centred, and is associated with a 26% increase in the risk of premature mortality,” where, “in industrialized countries around a third of people are affected (...) with one person in 12 affected severely.”

For those who are unemployed, isolation isn't just a result of losing colleagues and a workplace. People who are not working often find themselves withdrawn from their existing social circles due to the stigma of unemployment, not being in the mood to socialize, or simply having to cut back on socializing because of increased financial pressures. In addition, job seekers often face ongoing and relentless pressure and judgments from family and financial demands to continually job search, which increases stress and reduces their willingness to engage in the kind of self-care necessary to avoid job search burn out.

It’s job fair season. Employers set aside days from work, hoping to meet and talk to candidates with the goal of finding their most important asset and biggest single budget item: future employees. They will set up tables in large halls, with business cards and company information in hand, and excited hopefulness to fill specific job postings with great candidates.

So, employers are ready. Are you?

Job fairs provide job seekers with one of the very few chances job seekers get to meet employers face-to-face; a one of a kind opportunity to impress them with those valuable characteristics that your resume cannot communicate to employers: your interpersonal skills, communication skills, professionalism, and likability. Think of a job fair as a way to build a professional network -- to meet employers in your field, secure job interviews and learn as much as you can about the local labour market (including job openings, workplace culture, and the nature of sector). Sometimes, job seekers can even have an interview on the spot. Though it is unlikely that you will get an actual job offer at a job fair, you can make progress toward getting that job offer, if you do it properly.

How do you prepare?

If you have ever sought job search advice, you are familiar with the age old recommendation to “network, network, network”. Networking for work means strategically reaching out to people with the explicit intention to develop ties that can lead to employment opportunities and referrals.

The process of building a referral network is mutually beneficial for both job seekers and the employers. For employers, a thoughtful referral from a well-respected source can be very useful to help identify a standout candidate with unique skills. According to Jobvite’s survey, 74% of recruiters view referrals as the source of “higher quality” candidates; 51% of recruiters reported that they consider employee referrals the third most important hiring factor, (after previous job experience and culture fit). SilkRoad’s Sources of Hire 2017 Report revealed that employee referrals are the biggest source for hires. This is so effective that some employers have Employee Referral Programs, which offer financial incentives to employees who successfully refer a suitable candidate.

Remember this interview that went viral?

We don’t need to tell you that interviewing for a new job is stressful. The experience of having to sit down in front of an employer and answering unknown questions can raise the anxiety of even the most confident job seeker. Interviewees worry about what they are expected to say, and whether they will mess up and make mistakes. For an already anxious job seeker, online video interviews brings a whole other level of unnerving challenges.

Video interviews, where employers use commonly used video applications such as Skype, dedicated job interview sites such as HireView or other applications, such VenterView, an automated interviewing technology, are becoming increasingly common. Employers use the technology to prescreen applicants or even conduct full interviews with long distance candidates.

Dear Employment Specialist,

I am an experienced bookkeeper who recently left a job that I had held for 7 years, after having a very difficult experience with my boss that lasted years. I have now begun looking for new work, but am unsure how to explain why I left the job without looking bad.

I left because I was feeling bullied by my manager, and was becoming very unhappy at work. For the first 5 years, I was perfectly happy – I enjoyed my work (and am good at it!) and I had a positive and supportive relationship with all my colleagues, including my manager. 2 years ago, the company was taken over by new management, and they replaced many of my colleagues and managers with their own staff. The atmosphere in the office completely changed. My new manager never had a good word to say to me. She wasn’t clear about what she wanted and yelled at me in front of my colleagues. I tried to not take it personally, but I was getting unhappier by the day, going home crying and hating my work.  Eventually, I had to leave, for the sake of my own mental health.

I am now looking for a new job. What do I tell interviewers when they ask what happened to the last job? What do I do about a reference? Do I tell the truth?

Signed: Bullied

We may be in the depths of winter right now, but if you are hoping to find summer employment, it's time to start planning. Employers start early to plan for summer hiring, as staff vacation requests for July and August begin coming in. Summer hiring happens everywhere, in a range of sectors, in positions obviously related to the season such as amusement parks, summer camps, resorts, and camp grounds, as well as seasonal sectors such as landscaping, tourism, and agriculture. Government post jobs for students in a range of departments, on all three levels, including municipal, provincial and federal.

It's not just students who benefit from summer hiring -- some of the jobs are open to anyone. These jobs may even provide opportunities than might turn into full-time permanent work.

Where to find summer jobs

Don't underestimate the obvious: the best place to initiate any online search is still Google. Use suitable keywords such as summer, jobs, a job title (e.g. landscaping), and location (e.g. Toronto). Set up alerts for the searches that produce the best results, so that you can be notified by email every time matches appear.

Use social media -- make sure you  have a decent profiles on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter, and set out to locate employers. For example, the City of Toronto has a presence on Facebook (Employment and Social Services), Twitter and LinkedIn. Search Twitter for keywords such as #summerjobs and #toronto.

Look through specialized student job boards such as JobPostings.ca, Student Times and Talent Egg, which focus on summer jobs.

Governments have excellent summer opportunities. On all levels of government, including the municipal, provincial and federal, special sites have been set up for summer recruitment: The Government of Canada Summer Jobs program through which jobs through a range of employers, including small businesses, not-for-profit employers, public sector and faith-based organizations could start could start as early as April 23, 2018. Students can search for lists of potential employers here. Jobs also can be found on crown corporation sites such as Canada Post or Via Rail.

Provincial governments are also starting plan their hiring strategies. The Government of Ontario, for example, has updated their summer jobs website which directs candidates to various programs. These include:

• the Youth Job Connection Summer for high school students who are dealing with challenges such as poverty, homelessness, a disability or mental health issue, as well as part-time after school job opportunities
• Youth Job Link for those between 15 and 29 years old, including a range of other job search supports
• Self employments opportunities through the Summer Company which provides students with hands on business training, mentoring and awards of up to $3,000 to start and run their own summer businesses
• Opportunities to work for the province through the Stewardship Youth Ranger Program, for students age 16 or 17, to work on local natural resource management projects for 8 weeks
• Students over 15 can work in a variety of summer positions across the Ontario Public Service, through the Summer Employment Opportunities program
• Indigenous youth (15-24, or up to 29 for those with disabilities) can participate in the Indigenous Youth Work Exchange Program, an 8-week summer job for up to 3 consecutive summers, through the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry
• The First Nations Natural Resources Youth Employment Program offers Indigenous youth (16-18 years old) placement opportunities for up to two summers in Northern Ontario to work on forestry and mining projects, receive workplace training and take personal development workshops
• The Articling and Summer Law Student Programs offer first and second year law students opportunities with the Ontario government.

The City of Toronto has its Toronto Public Service Summer Employment Opportunities site, where potential employees can register and apply online. Toronto Parks & Recreation department has a page for recreation jobs. Check for specific programs in the city that might appeal to you — for example, Toronto's Centre Island hire many students for summer.

Check out classifieds listings such as Kijiji, who offer a Summer Job search. Traditional job boards such as Workopolis have summer student searches. Similarly, the vertical job boards such as Indeed.ca have specific summer searches.

Think of which employers are busiest in summer. For jobs in camps, check out Ontario Camps, who list jobs in local camps. In Toronto, some of the larger employers such as The EX  or Canada’s Wonderland are hiring. Ontario Power Generation have created a summer recruitment site, as well.

Remember that you can also create your own business and offer pet sitting, gardening, baby sitting, elder care, house sitting services, for a fee, to friends and family. The provincial government offers support for summer companies, which are offered through JVS Toronto, through our Youth Services.

Keep in mind that temp agencies might be ramping up their hiring to fill positions of employees away for summer. You’ll find a list of job boards compiled by our employment experts.

These are just some of the opportunities. There are more -- think of who else is active in the summer -- companies that deal in promotions and marketing, hotels, restaurants, car rental companies, golf courses and a range of other service sector employers. Search for the companies online, check out their websites and see if they’re hiring. Contact them directly and find out about future opportunities.

As employment professionals, many resumes come across our desks and computer screens daily. We also spend a lot of time speaking to employers and advocating for our clients. Most usefully, we get to track the impact of our clients’ job applications from submission, all the way through to when they get hired. This exposure to the hiring process gives us insights into what works and what does not. In December 2017, I conducted an informal survey of some of my colleagues, the employment professionals at JVS Toronto; I asked them to share what they considered the most common resume mistakes made by job seekers.

We know job seekers tend to forget that employers still have the ultimate decision on their resumes – the ratio of good jobs to candidates is still skewed on favour of employers, who are often swamped with many resumes. To help with the daunting task of sorting through hundreds of resume, employers use many methods, sometimes relying on computerized automated tracking systems (ATS), and other times choosing to review each resume visually, either on a screen or on paper. This makes it very difficult for job seekers to format their resumes, so that they are equally optimized to be read both by a computer and a person.

Resume Layout and Format:

The appearance of a resume is key – not just because of first impressions (which should not be discounted), but also because formatting mistakes can impact on whether the resume is readable by an ATS program.

These were the comments on layout and resume appearance:

• Style: Don't get too creative with fonts, style, images, colours, because you don’t know who is reading your resume and how they feel about taking creative risks; just keep it simple and clean so that no one is distracted by formatting. As one of my colleagues said: “this is not the time to get fancy!”
• Bullet points: Be careful with punctuation; a colleague remarked: “I receive resumes with periods at the end of their bullets -- one line might have one and then the next line will be missing it, and this is usually repeated throughout the document.” If you are want to demonstrate how you value accuracy and attention to detail, such mistakes undermines your claim.
• Spelling and punctuation: “Proof reading is important; leave it and come back, or let someone else read it. No spelling, grammar or punctuation errors are acceptable.”  Importantly: “only using Spellcheck is not really proof reading. I don’t know how many times I have found “Costumer service” but never once actually had a client who worked with costumes”
• Font size: When trying to fit more information into two pages, many job seekers reduce the font to a point at which it becomes hard to read; “you can’t expect the reader to enlarge it.”
• Margins: Resume margins should be even and consistent. Don't make margins too narrow, but “remember that you can change your margins to fit more in -- take advantage of the space available to you.”
• Alignment: Make sure that the document is aligned consistently and neatly across the page.
• Job listings: If you have held more than one job in the same company, show it by listing the company name and then the jobs at that company; "indented, so readers can realize they were all at the same company.”
• Grammar: Keep your tenses consistent: previous jobs should be described in past tense, and the current job, if you have one, in present tense.
• Automatic Tracking Systems (ATS): Computerized systems that are used to read resumes cannot read everything you write on your resume; for example, ATS doesn’t necessarily read headers and footers. So, don’t put important information, such as your contact information, in headers/footers. ATS might not read PDFs, so follow instructions carefully about whether to submit the resume in Word or PDF. The same applies to fancy designs, which might not read well in ATS.
• Format: Remember that recruiters prefer chronological resumes, rather than functional ones, so don't use functional unless you absolutely have to.

Resume Content:

• Your contact information: Remember to make sure that all your up-to-date information includes your name, location (either a street address or at least a city and province), phone number and email addresses. Make sure to use an appropriate and updated email address that sounds professional.
• LinkedIn: Add your LinkedIn URL to your resume. Once your LinkedIn profile is complete, make sure that your profile matches your resume in terms of your experience (job titles, dates, responsibilities).
• Pronouns: The use of first person pronouns (“I”/”we”) tends to make resumes sound too casual. While a resume should be in first person, don’t include the pronouns (instead of “I managed…”, say “Managed….”)
• Individualize: Make sure to tailor each resume to the job, so that employers know you read their job posting and meet their requirements:
  • prepare different resumes for different positions. Target them to each posting and profession.
  • read the job posting clearly. Follow the instructions and apply exactly as instructed.
  • don’t include all your experience in every application. Not all of it is necessarily relevant to the position you are applying for; the experience you share should add value to your application.
  • don’t leave out “basic” skills or experience, because you think people “should know” you have them. Employers want to know that you can do all the aspects of the job.
• Headers: Make sure to include your name, phone number and page number on the second page, of your resume as well (no need for your address on the second page).
• Wording: Don’t use a lot of  buzzwords – if you overuse adjectives such as “excellent” “strong”, “highly skilled”, you will sound less credible. Also, a colleague reminded job seekers: “don’t repeat verbs to describe your duties: performed accounting duties, performed AP and AR, performed journal entries....”)
• CV or Resume? Remember the difference between a CV and a resume. Resumes are two page work histories, whereas CVs are long listings of academic education and research.
• Summary/profile is where all the important information for that position should be listed.
  • keep the resume focused on one desired occupation (you will confuse employers if you say “experienced electronics technologist and network administrator” – they won’t understand why they need to know about both)
  • make sure to include all the credentials you have that are related to that particular position (“for example, for financial positions, list your Canadian Securities Course up front” – don’t expect recruiters to turn to your education list on the second page to find it.)
  • a former recruiter, remarked: “I know from recruiting that we spent more time in this area and it should be the most important information from the job seeker to the employer. We spent very little time on the rest of the resume. It’s always just a quick scan.”)
• Language: If you are translating job titles into English, make sure to choose the correct title (for example, “only registered social workers can call themselves that”)
• Dates: Some employment experts suggested only using years and not months when you are adding dates to jobs; others suggested including months -- especially if it was one of a few short contracts in one year. Either way, be consistent; don’t leave gaps unanswered if possible, in work history dates – rather explain briefly (e.g. “2010-2012 – family responsibilities”).
• Company descriptions: If you want to describe the company you worked in, don’t go into too much detail. You are promoting yourself, not your past employers.
• Job descriptions: Detail what you did in each job, but focus on quantifiable achievements – don’t just list the responsibilities; “Include accomplishments and personalize them, instead of just listing what the job description said.”
• References: There was disagreement between colleagues whether job seekers should include “references upon request”; some said that it is assumed --  “it is a given -- you have to have references”, while others suggested that it’s a good way to end a resume. Either way, make sure you actually have appropriate and relevant references available.
• Additional information: remember not to list your birth date, marital or immigration status on the resume. And no photos, either.

The bottom line from the employment specialists: Seek expert advice (like that of the JVS employment specialists), and be open to making as many recommended changes. One Employment Counsellor said “I like to ask this question -- does your resume excite you? If yes, great. If not keep on going!"

2018 is here and this is the year you want to find that next best job. Are you ready? We have prepared this list to make sure that you have all your job search tools ready to get you to that next job in the shortest possible time. We’ve also linked to our best blog posts for more detail: