Leaving school can be exciting and terrifying at the same time. All of a sudden it is time to think about getting a job. Whether it is a full time job, apprenticeship or a casual job, having a killer resume is vital to securing something satisfying and well paying. This is why I am going to offer some general resume tips for school leavers so they can get started in their careers or jobs sooner rather than later.

In tough economic times it can be difficult to get a job that's why having a resume that stands out is so important. School leavers need to get this right in order to secure an interview and it is the little things that matter. For instance it would be rare for a school leaver to have a resume that was longer than 2 pages. This length should not be exceeded.

It is important to outline some general skills and abilities such as team work, organisation skills, time management and so on which could have been gained through school committees, part time jobs, or community work.

A golden rule of a killer resume is not to embellish. If we start making ourselves sound as if we can do open heart surgery and we get the job then find we can't do the duties because we don't have the skills then you have wasted a lot of people's time. Being honest means outlining strengths and limitations (lets not call them weaknesses).

Another resume tip is making sure we are answering the selection criteria. It's no good saying you can type 200 words per minute and are proficient in UNIX when you are going for a mechanics job. Make sure skills, abilities and qualifications match the job you are applying for.

Be consistent. What do I mean by this? I mean make sure you take care of the little things such as spelling, grammar, font, font size, spacing and so on. Make sure you give your resume to a friend for honest feedback, then read it back yourself, make changes then show it again to them.

Maybe think a little differently. I once had a friend who did a one page resume but the difference was she cut out paper in the shape of hands and at the top wrote "Do you need a hand?" with her qualifications and skills below. Now I would only recommend this for a casual position but my point is think a little differently and stand out.

These are just some resume tips for school leavers to land a great job. But there are loads more, so why not get the edge by reading my guide to killer resume tips for school leavers: http://harrymcg.hubpages.com/hub/Resume-tips-for-school-leavers

Good luck!