Hey everyone,
I’m currently refreshing my resume to apply for jobs in the GOM. I’ve never worked in the GOM before, I’m a 3rd mate with full DP cert. Does anyone have any suggestions/tips for elements I should include on my resume to get hired by companies? Any suggestions for GOM companies at all?
Thanks
A resume is nice, but most GoM companies won’t even look at it. Show up in person and they either need you or they don’t. There might be a few exceptions, but generally, don’t bother with the resume.
Search resumes on here. I had mines professionally done by Kim. Went down to the GoM last year and handed them out. Never got a job I wanted then. This year I got two call backs from HR saying they’re looking over my resume and wanted me to come in. It’s hit or miss I guess.
I got the job I have now by knocking on doors.
[QUOTE=bt3579;136605]Hey everyone,
I’m currently refreshing my resume to apply for jobs in the GOM. I’ve never worked in the GOM before, I’m a 3rd mate with full DP cert. Does anyone have any suggestions/tips for elements I should include on my resume to get hired by companies? Any suggestions for GOM companies at all?
Thanks[/QUOTE]
Have a professional prepare a good resume and cover letter for you. Send them out, and had them out as you knock on doors.
With an unlimited license and DP unlimited, the good company paid headhunters like Core Group, Faststream, Flagship, and other will want to work with you. Same with the temp outfits like Oceanwide and C-MAR.
good info thanks
Clearly indicate position applied for in a short cover letter.
Use an agreeable font in black ink on white paper. Never a cursive or script font.
Be neat, concise and make no spelling mistakes.
Indicate clearly all your licenses, certificates including date of issue / expiry / validity, including driver’s license.
Indicate maritime and other relevant training
If your history shows you changed employers every two or three months, don’t bother to apply.
Indicate what maritime tasks / challenges / equipment you have mastered or are experienced with
Indicate the range of vessels you have sailed on. Do not write a book about this. If you get to next stage, you will be asked.
Keep it to a single page for any position below C/M - 1 AE. For higher positions, add a page if you need to add a list of vessels.
Where an HR office is involved, someone will look at all these things and refer to a checklist specific to the position before it even gets to a decision maker.
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If you send a photo, make sure it shows you well groomed, dressed neatly, clean and in a non-distracting professional or very neutral setting. Have a photographer take the photo if need be. We’ve had people apply that sent photos that looked like they were unshaven bums. Not bearded, we mean unwashed. Might be the most qualified guy in reality, but the first impression is along the lines of, "[I]Oh yeah, sure. We’ll give that guy a whack at our equipment and running a department… "[/I]
All good advice.
Generally, in the US it is not customary to include a photograph. The good grooming part would apply to any face to face interaction, of course!
Listing your mariner reference number in your resume: Yay or Nay?
It depends on how you use your resume, and its audience.
It’s probably a good idea to list the Mariner Ref number. That way the employer can use the NMC credential verification tool to confirm exactly what you’ve got.
You are probably going to be attaching MMC copies too. Of course those have your reference number.
Sometimes when a potential employer says “send me a copy of your license,” especially if I’m offshore with low bandwidth. I’ll say “just use the NMC credential verification tool and print a copy.”
I’ve had to walk about 50% of them through how to use the credential verification tool. They were all delighted to find out that they can easily check on anyone that way, especially their current employees.
I just got an email from an employer that I occasionally make a voyage for every once in a Blue Moon. They wanted a copy of my new STCW medical card to keep their Mobile Ops database up to date with current info.
Once upon a time, resumes were a powerful job hunting tool. You could send out a dozen and get three job offers.
Now, resumes are almost worthless. You can send out 100 and no one reads them. Possibly HR software that was programmed by an HR girl that’s never seen a boat might read a few.
Online Applications seem to be the trend. They are a waste of time. Nobody reads them. You might get a call from a desperate port Captain six months later.
There are two reasons that some employers are struggling to crew their boats: (1) inadequate pay; and (2) ineffective HR staff and processes.
Well, the game has changed in a way that’s hard on Mariners. Youre resume needs to be machine readable, and ATS optimized. If you arent using AI to write your cover letters and resumes optimized for each listing, youre behind. You need to add as many skills as you can to your linkedin profile, and even then that’s a two way street. This Crowley job lists “dirt, dust, keyboard, Prince2” as skills, and if it’s set up wrong on their end can auto deny everyone who doesnt have those… “skills”. I saw one tug company that clearly meant to have a “TOAR” as a skill, and ended up having “tour guide” on the actual listing. It’d be a little funny if it auto rejected everyone over that.
It takes a lot of tech savvy research and thinking to get callbacks these days. Most of this 10 year old thread is worthless. It’s a hard game to optimize for everyone.
But yeah your MRN/license is going to end up with the coordinator eventually, youre better off having their exact wording on what license they are looking for.
In my experience, if and when you get called for a live interview, positive reference letters from former employers are extremely influential.
Create a linked in account and fully update it. Mark yourself looking for work and you can generate a good looking resume for free too.