Video RÃ©sumÃ©

Public

Discussion:

Hi Vanessa,

I hear what you are saying and I personally think that it may be a simple matter of practicality. In other words, do you even have time to train students to do video resumes given there are so many other things to teach them and help them with that have greater priority? I know the reality is that it can often take quite a bit of time to work on resumes, cover letters, and other traditional marketing collateral let alone online profiles and video resumes. One must prioritize. However, there are many benefits to video resumes that have less to do with the final product and more to do with the process and the educational experience for the student. For instance, creating a video resume can help students refine how they communicate their brand, improve their ability to articulate their qualifications, demonstrate their communication skills, and allow students to review themselves on video for self-reflection and analysis in conjunction with coaching to improve. A video resume is only detrimental if the final product is poor quality AND it is published and shared. However, this is no different than saying resumes wouldn't help students because the final product wouldn't present well - that'e precisely why career professionals train students and guide them - to help them get to a point where they present well. Thus, I wouldn't agree that video resumes would have no benefit but definitely see if it is an additional learning exercise that is simply not practical due to limited resources and time. In an ideal world, in my opinion, students would have an opportunity to learn all forms of career marketing. Career coaches would then have much more to work with, students would have learned a great deal from the experiences and would likely present better and improve their interviewing. At the end of the day, even if a student had a resume, video resume, presentation resume, etc. - we could then advise on what materials they should use and which they should not based on our evaluation of quality just as we do when we advise students to edit their resumes before sending to employers. Does that make sense?

Robert Starks Jr.

Hi Vanessa, I hear what you are saying and I personally think that it may be a simple matter of practicality. In other words, do you even have time to train students to do video resumes given there are so many other things to teach them and help them with that have greater priority? I know the reality is that it can often take quite a bit of time to work on resumes, cover letters, and other traditional marketing collateral let alone online profiles and video resumes. One must prioritize. However, there are many benefits to video resumes that have less to do with the final product and more to do with the process and the educational experience for the student. For instance, creating a video resume can help students refine how they communicate their brand, improve their ability to articulate their qualifications, demonstrate their communication skills, and allow students to review themselves on video for self-reflection and analysis in conjunction with coaching to improve. A video resume is only detrimental if the final product is poor quality AND it is published and shared. However, this is no different than saying resumes wouldn't help students because the final product wouldn't present well - that'e precisely why career professionals train students and guide them - to help them get to a point where they present well. Thus, I wouldn't agree that video resumes would have no benefit but definitely see if it is an additional learning exercise that is simply not practical due to limited resources and time. In an ideal world, in my opinion, students would have an opportunity to learn all forms of career marketing. Career coaches would then have much more to work with, students would have learned a great deal from the experiences and would likely present better and improve their interviewing. At the end of the day, even if a student had a resume, video resume, presentation resume, etc. - we could then advise on what materials they should use and which they should not based on our evaluation of quality just as we do when we advise students to edit their resumes before sending to employers. Does that make sense? Robert Starks Jr.