Hi all, I applied for a small, part-time job with a company near where I live that requires a BA/BS in social sciences. On the resume' I named my Degree from Thomas Edison State College, however I addressed it as TESC. There is also The Evergreen State College that uses the same acronym. Long story short, the HR guy saw TESC on my resume and the address in New Jersey. While he processed everyone elses applications and called them in for interviews, he decided to write to TESC and find out if I had earned a degree from there. They took a while responding to him and it took about 4 1/2 weeks to get an answer. Needless to say they hired someone else within the time it took TESC to respond. Moral of the story: Put the full name, address, and telephone number of your Alma Mater on your resume'! I now also put which accreditation body my school is accredited by along with web address and phone number for Middle States Assn. as well. That's my Tip! Mike AA Burlington College, NJ BA TESC, NJ MS SMSU, MO PhD. NCU (Feb 04)
I think using the school's full name on a resume is good practice because it streamlines the selection process and is less likely raise questions of possible deception by a candidate. ISU, for instance, could be interpreted by a reviewer as Indiana State University, Illinois State University, or Iowa State University. Would it be reasonable to expect reviewers to check all the possibilities of the acronyms used on a resume? In addition, if one graduated from Harvard, would it be wise or make sense to use HU on their resume? Certainly, Seton Hall and Fairleigh Dickinson are respected and well-known schools, at least to those who have lived in the Mid-Atlantic area, and I wonder why anyone would shorten that to SHU and FDU and possibly jeopardize their job prospects.
Good tip, Mike. Another good idea is to put down the campus of the school if it's part of a larger university system. Putting just "California State University" doesn't do much good, since they have 20+ campuses.
Tsk, tsk, tsk. I have but a mere associate degree, but even I know better. <g> From The Economist: Style Guide "Unless an abbreviation or acronym is so familiar that it is used more often than the full form ... or unless the full form would provide little illumination (eg, AWACS, DNA) write the words in full on first appearance..." See: http://www.economist.com/research/styleGuide/index.cfm?page=673905&CFID=23205265&CFTOKEN=32b7557-edb8f4c2-db28-482f-ac42-c0ec9ac7aed9 Cordially, Richard Kanarek
You should even spell it out here because I have no idea what SMSU stands for. On a serious note, a person should always spell out the full name of the school on their resume. While the acronym may "say it all" to the graduated student -- It may mean nothing to an employer or to someone who has never been affiliated with the school.
Very Good Tips, I always,always,always spell out my school's names. You never know when it might get confusing to those who are reading the resume. Just my two cents
So.... If SMSU is Southwest Missouri State University - Springfield, Missouri, what would you call Southeast Missouri State University - Cape Girardeau, Missouri?
Re: So.... SEMO like its website? http://www.semo.edu/ That is why we need to spell things out. I remember one of Mike's older posts and knew that he was referring to Southwest Missouri State.
Peter Schickle used to broadcast performances of P.D.Q. Bach works from radio station WOOF at the campus of USND at H.
My observations of the above: While I assume the (Feb 04) after NCU indicates the start date, it can easily be confused with a graduation date. Also, I attended Burlington County College from 1982-1985 and then transferred to Brookdale Community College where I graduated in 1989. Did Burlington County College change its name to Burlington College, or is there another college in NJ using Burlington in their name other than Burlington County College in Pemberton?