Irreligious resumes

Posted by admin on Feb 2, 2010 in Academy | 0 comments

“Why do you Christians feel the need to wear your faith on your resumes? It will only make a future employer think that you won’t get along with their other employees who are religiously or ethnically diverse.”

This was the unexpected and unsolicited advice I received from a recruiter at the Career Fair—before I had even shown him my resume.

“I don’t see Buddhists or Hindus putting their beliefs on their resumes, just Christians,” said the blunt exhibitor.

Like many senior students, I went to the Fair to make professional connections, learn about opportunities and ultimately to find a job after graduation. I left with some connections made, but also with the realization that those in the “outside world” may not appreciate the types of leadership and involvement specific to a Christian community.

Mary Ellen Kuehl, Associate Director of the Career Development Office (CDO), says that it is common to see faith-related activities featured on TWU students’ resumes. She admits that this can be a deterrent to secular employers.

Kuehl encourages students to focus on the skills they have developed rather than on the context in which they were acquired. For example, she explains, a Discipleship Group leader has experience facilitating small-group discussion on relevant topics.

Kuehl maintains that it is not an issue of being embarrassed of the Christian faith. Instead, she says it is about students recognizing that “what they are doing here [at TWU] is transferrable to the public workplace.”

“The opportunities at TWU are invaluable,” says Kuehl. Therefore, strategic framing of faith-based leadership experience becomes essential.

“Focus on what you’ve accomplished and skills you’ve developed,” she advises, since “an employer understands that language.” That way, she explains, “you will not get screened out of an opportunity because you still have the skills they are looking for.”

Kuehl encourages graduating students to schedule an appointment through the Student Success Centre for an in-depth resume critique. By discussing with students their desired type of position, Kuehl and the other staff at the CDO can help ensure that employers will be impressed and not distracted by the content of the resume.

Thankfully, the resume I eventually handed to the exhibiting recruiter was free of the Bible study and Sunday school involvement that he had apparently expected. He still had the chance to prickle at the name of the national organization I interned with in Ottawa which included the word “Faith” in its title.

Looking ahead to after graduation, I hope I can make my degree from Trinity Western University sound more acceptable to potential employers.