A Resume Questions for Chief Pilots

[Eggbeater]

So, any of you Chief Pilots/HR people have thoughts on the phrase "References available upon request" in a resume? It seems to be a good way to leave more room for an informative one page resume, but I got to wondering if it reflects badly on the applicant.

[500E]

We only look at references if people are on the short list, so it would not put me off s long as the rest came up to our requirements.

References are about the person, work ethic, time keeping, and general attitude to work & the Co.

[r22butters]

There's one thing I've never understood about References.

 

No one is going use a person as a Reference who would say anything bad about them, so what's the point?

 

It seems like References are just a check to see if you have any friends?

[arotrhd]

There's one thing I've never understood about References.

 

No one is going use a person as a Reference who would say anything bad about them, so what's the point?

 

It seems like References are just a check to see if you have any friends?

 

I expect the job candidate to have references that will say nothing but praise. Where the wheat and chaff get sorted is in the consistency of responses. Sometimes I would ask the references the exact same questions to find out the differences, and at other times, similar, but different ques to find out if the candidate has general consistency. As mentioned earlier, by the time the references get called, the list is short and it's usually just verifying certain behavioral or performance characteristics.

 

-WATCH FOR THE PATTERNS, WATCH FOR THE WIRES-

[Miloe]

I know everyone says to keep resumes to one page + a cover letter.

That may work for the younger pilots just starting out but for us older pilots just starting out it seems odd to me to account for the last two years of my life but nothing about the previous twenty.

I'm not saying, send a 10 page novel but 1 page doesn't seem to cover the high points.

Thoughts on this one?

Gary

[permison]

I know everyone says to keep resumes to one page + a cover letter.

That may work for the younger pilots just starting out but for us older pilots just starting out it seems odd to me to account for the last two years of my life but nothing about the previous twenty.

I'm not saying, send a 10 page novel but 1 page doesn't seem to cover the high points.

Thoughts on this one?

Gary

 

My IT resume is 5 pages long. But I've got lots of stuff on it like patents, and software I have developed. I just put a two paragraph summary for the time between the Army and when I went back to flying. Most of the hiring managers in aviation probably wouldn't understand what predictive analytic algorithms are anyway.

 

Regarding the references I think it is perfectly acceptable to put references on request. For two reasons, one this industry is so small it's a good bet the hiring manager can just pick up the phone and call any one of the companies on your resume and get through to the person he/she needs to check you out. Second as someone who is a reference for scores of people (I've had a couple hundred work for me over the years) I sometimes get inundated with calls and have asked people who use me as a reference to withhold my contact info until it really looks like you have the job. In the IT field it is actually considered unprofessional to include actual personal and professional references on your resume.

[rick1128]

I know everyone says to keep resumes to one page + a cover letter.

That may work for the younger pilots just starting out but for us older pilots just starting out it seems odd to me to account for the last two years of my life but nothing about the previous twenty.

I'm not saying, send a 10 page novel but 1 page doesn't seem to cover the high points.

Thoughts on this one?

Gary

 

Gary,

 

I am in the same boat, but I have managed to use a one page resume without any major issues. I go back at least 5 years on my employment section. The reason I use 5 years is that the FAA and TSA require the employer to go back a minimum of 5 years on background checks. In my cover letter I mention how long I have been in the industry, so it doesn't take a potential employer very long to figure out that I have not listed ALL my employers. It has been my experience that if they want more information, they will ask.

[ChopperJ]

One more resume question. Since most resumes are sent via e-mails these days what is appropriate when it comes to the cover letter. Does the e-mail become the cover letter or do you send a short e-mail with the cover letter attached along with the resume?

 

Jon

[kodoz]

WikiRFM has an area for job-related questions--this question, like many others (resumes >1 page, what to wear to an interview, etc) come up often. Lot's of good responses on this thread already, but as time passes, this thread will get pushed into the VR archives and they'll all be lost. The idea behind the wiki is that anybody's words of wisdom can stick around or be updated long after forum topics go stale. I'm adding your question and a quick response there.

 

Another resource to consider is Lyn's eBook on job hunting for helicopter pilots (I co-authored the second edition). It's only $15, and addresses many questions about resumes and interviewing.