The first 20-seconds can make or break your placement.

How to create a winning 3-D Resume®:

A. Quick summary (heads up):

Your first impression will either ‘buy’ you an interview...or bury you. Bet your future on a piece of paper if you wish - but that 1-Dimensional Resume can’t compete with a 3-D Resume® (in fairness, you need to know this).
If you sound and look just like everybody else, you’ll lose. Your video + personality profile + resume will give you a 3-D advantage over everybody that is too lazy or too timid to follow through (hello, real world!).
Don’t buy the party line that all resumes get the same attention. Think about it - if you had 65 resumes to review - after 10 or 11, or so, they all start to run together. That’s when you get sorted out by some arbitrary, cold hearted number like a GPA.
Your potential employer wants info from you straight, fast, and with strong content (no fluff). They have to make a good decision about you because they don’t want to be embarrassed later. Remember, they already have jobs...you don’t (and they intend to keep theirs).
Also, your potential employer is gauging how well you follow through; that is, how quick and how thorough.
Everything said and done, you’re dealing with people; and people are, well, people. If you think of them as nameless, faceless objects to hurdle on your way to success - you’ll lose. You can’t defy human nature and win.

B. Details (Do's and Don'ts)

SummerClerk.com is about marketing yourself and it’s the first realistic step in learning how to put the person you are talking to first, rather than yourself. So what do you do now that you've spent a lot of money on law school? An incomplete education and a resume is not a guarantee of a summer clerk position. The process of getting a placement is yours to "win" (not the employers); they already have other options.

When seeking a job, many people look for something to make them unique, different, to stand out from the crowd. A 3-D Resume® will give the employer enough information to decide whether, or not, you appear to be a good fit for their organization.

Getting an interview is the first cut. That is your goal. And you’ve got about 20-seconds to do it. The video + personality profile will not guarantee you a job! But coupled with the standard resume, it is a far better tool to create a good first impression. Your prospective employer needs to know more about you than they will get from a cover letter and resume. Besides, if the two of you are not a good fit, neither of you can afford to waste the time and money. Getting placed where you don’t fit makes both of you look bad.

Giving too much information (i.e. fluff) on your video or resume can be bad. Check out the section below of "do’s and "don'ts” when you are creating your account on SummerClerk.com.

C. Specific (Do’s and Don’ts)

About your Picture:

Don't tell the employer "I don't have a picture of myself." Everyone has a picture or can create a picture. You can use a camera, right? Surely, you have friends that can a picture of you. That is a lame excuse especially for guys. You most likely have a camera phone. Get a picture!
Don't post a ridiculous picture or try to be cute. Post a normal picture. It does not have to be formal as in a studio but it needs to show your face in a manner that can be easily recognized. A Halloween costume is not appropriate, nor are most beach photos. Make sure your face is well lighted!!
No picture or a ‘clever’ picture is one strike against you. This tells the employer that you can't do a simple task as "producing a good, normal picture as informational content." Have the picture of just YOU. Don’t post a picture that is obviously cropped. Wear nice clothes. A picture of you in shorts and a tank top does not make the right impression nor does one of you with a drink in your hand. Your picture will show how your attitude of “professionalism.” Law firms want professionals. They don’t want to train someone to look professional. This is serious, not a Myspace.com or Facebook.com picture. The picture is for the hiring committee to recognize you before or after the interview. It is a tool to tie a mental recognition to your resume. Ask a 3rd party, “What impression does your picture make?”

About your Video clip:

Keep your video clip under 30-seconds, or less. Nobody will watch any longer; especially when they have 23 more to preview!. (Summerclerk.com limits the video length to no more than 30 seconds).
Make sure your face is well lighted. Don't submit a video clip with poor lighting.
Keep your video clip simple. Don't add a bunch of funny things or shots of your favorite hobby. This is an introduction, not a documentary!
Don't try to be funny on your video clip. Think of it as a news correspondent’s report from the field with a couple of editorial comments. This is not entertainment. If you are trying to be funny then obviously you are trying out for a clown or comedian position. Law firms are not currently hiring them. You don’t want to be a joke on Youtube.com
Don't submit a video thinking "Well, that's the best I can do - it doesn’t matter anyway." Remember, this is your chance for them to see the real you “live”. Watch the "How to make a video" video. Get help if you are having trouble doing this. Pay someone to help if it would make you feel better. Speak clearly and be straight forward. Don't have a background with activity. Shooting the video outside or inside is ok if the background is stationary and not distracting. You want to look good and keep the attention of the viewer, not the background. Have someone look at it before you post it for their opinion.
Wear normal clothes that stand out but are not too flashy. A purple Hawaiian shirt with a tie is probably not going to earn you points. The video will be unique enough. You don't have to look "Hollywood" in your video clip! The video is to make a good first impression for a job interview or as a follow-up tool for the employer to share with the hiring committee. Your video clip helps employers connect your face with your voice and your mannerisms (a virtual in-person first impression) that they can better remember.
The video clip should include your name, school, areas of interest (if you know that), something about yourself and where you want to work. (Use the Hogan personality report to talk about your strengths.) See the sample video clips of Sara and Jim to see how they did it. In targeted videos, tell the employer why you want to work for them.
There are two types of video clips you can create:
1. Generic video that is used for your unique web page.
2. Specific video targeted to a specific employer. In this video you would include specifically the firm's name and why you want to work for THAT firm. (For instance "I am from Nashville and I have several close friends who have worked for your firm." Give reference names).
Practice your video and time yourself. Run the script by other people before you film. And relax.

About your personality profile:

Be yourself. As cliche-ish as it sounds, be the real you. You have everything to gain and nothing to lose here. Otherwise, you’ll come off as a fraud - and that’s not a good thing in the law profession. The Hogan Assessment System is the best in the business - they’ve already compensated for all the tricks people thought they were using to “improve their scores” to look like somebody they’re not. Please, for your own sake, don’t go there.

About your resume:

You already know the drill on resumes. Factual (i.e. truthful) information - if you are not you will be found out! A resume is not the place to editorialize - anything you put in print will likely come off as being self-centric to the point of being too modest, or arrogant. Let your video clip handle the “softer side” of the real you where you have more control of how you say what you say.

An extra point:

When a video clip is available, people will look at it first. Wouldn’t you? Given a choice of reviewing a candidate with a video clip rather than a candidate without one - guess who wins!