[Working Holiday Prep] How to Write the Resume You Need for Two-Country Study and Job Hunting!

Hello everyone. I'm Tina!

Remember how I said last time, when I talked about the money side of two-country study, that I would introduce resumes? Here is the previous blog post!

As part of your two-country study preparation, this time it is **Operation: Make Your Resume in Cebu and Arrive in Australia Fully Prepared!**

I will walk you through how to write one and more!! This may be information from 2016, so I am sorry if things have changed since then...

By the way, I planned to look for a job once I moved to Perth, so I made my resume in the town where I stayed first, the Sunshine Coast! I started job hunting on the very day I arrived in Perth! (lol)

The Sunshine Coast is super laid-back, so there were not many places to work.

Perth feels like a real city, and there were plenty of places to work!

Now then, let me introduce it all!! ↓↓

A resume is what Japan calls a rirekisho (CV). It may be labeled Resume or CV.

However, English resumes do not have a fixed format like the Japanese one (see image above). You write in English on a plain white A4 sheet. Once you have filled in your basic personal details and your visa expiry date, the rest is a free-form self-promotion. Very overseas-style (lol)

How to Job Hunt

**Hand out the resume introduced above everywhere** Apply through job listing sites Work at a shop run by a friend or acquaintance

There are lots of sites, so check which ones are commonly used in the city you are going to too. ♪

Companies and internships may be a different story, but when you want to work at a restaurant or similar, **just hand it out first**.

Walk into the shop and hand it over. It is **easy**. First, ask whether the owner is there. If not, tell a staff member to pass it on to the owner. That's it!

**If the owner is there**, shout like Chihiro from Spirited Away: **Please let me work here!!** (*Please do not actually shout.)

But, like Chihiro, you must **absolutely keep a strong mindset**.

Why? Because...

Even if you hand out loads, **you often do not hear back**. The reason is that they are **not even looking at** the resume in the first place. Even if you give it to a staff member, it **gets thrown away** before it reaches the owner. That is how it goes.

Harsh (lol) But don't give up and keep handing them out. Someone will contact you eventually.

Wages

There is a difference of about 10 dollars between Japanese restaurants and local restaurants.

Japanese restaurants vary by location, but generally pay low. Chinese restaurants also pay low wages. Even so, it is about 13 to 16 dollars, which feels high compared with Japan, but at local restaurants I was getting about 25 dollars!

My friend M, who worked at a local gelato shop ↓

That said, local shops require a high level of English.

But rather than thinking you can't do it, I think taking on a local shop is a great learning experience too! ^^

Item

**1. Introduction** - Name - Address - Phone number - Email address - Visa type and expiry date **2. Objective** - Self-introduction - Self-promotion - Reason for applying **3. Education** In my case: - University - Language school in the Philippines - Language school in Australia **4. Work experience** - Part-time job history - Volunteer history **5. Availability** - Days of the week and time slots **6. Skills** - Language skills - Personal skills

(These are the basic items, so feel free to adapt them!!)

Tips for Writing It

What my teacher at my school in Australia told me was **exaggerate everything, no matter what!** (lol) Resumes are often thrown away unread, so don't put too much heart into them! (lol)

Isn't that advice amazing? (lol) But it really is true.

I even padded the length of my part-time work experience and my language skills a little (lol) I don't know if I should be saying this (lol)

Suddenly unrelated to resumes, but here is my class in Australia (lol) There were tons of Arabic speakers (lol)

In Japanese job hunting you pour your heart into writing a huge amount on your resume, but if you do that in Australia it will not be read in the first place, and if you get rejected after writing all that and your spirit breaks, well... it stops being fun.

Of course, it is a different story if you want to work at a company and plan to join that company in the future.

You can find examples by googling, but it is easier to make your own if you see ones that were actually used, right? So I have decided to share them!!!!

I asked my friends from my study abroad days and myself to send them over! (>_<) I am grateful...

Mine ↓ Super simple (lol) I made it with the help of an Australian.

My friend N ↓ N is the friend who got me started speaking English, and I am super grateful. ♡

My friend A ↓ A is loud and noisy, but I have nothing but total respect for everything A does. ♡

As you can see, since there is no fixed format, there are many different ways to write one. ♪

So, what did you think?? I like having no plan too, but **preparing in advance is important**!!! A photo at Uluru ↓

While you are at 3D, it is also a good idea to make one while getting advice from Filipino teachers and native teachers!

You can make copies at 3D, which makes it even better! By the way, **black-and-white copies cost 2 pesos and color copies cost 5 pesos**!

Even if you do not actually make one, I would be happy if you come away knowing that this kind of thing exists. ♪♪

Goodbye with a photo from the Halloween party at my school in Perth~ (Looking at the photos, I can't stop feeling nostalgic lol)