By Kathy Keshemberg, NCRW, NCOPE – NRWA Certification Commission Grader
Are you interested in earning your NCRW? There are many ways to prepare for the NCRW process and attending the NRWA conference is one of the best. Here’s why:
1. Earn 10 CEUs. The first step on the path to the NCRW is to earn 10 CEUs and attending the conference will provide you with what you need.
2. You Be the Grader. This is a scheduled session at the conference where I’ll provide participants with a fictitious profile, a written resume, and the test grading form. In small groups, you’ll review the document and grade that test sample just like our graders do. This exercise will give you great insight into what we’ll be looking for with your test submission.
3. Network with other NCRWs. You’ll have an opportunity to meet NCRWs and ask them your questions. How did they prepare? What steps did they find challenging? What advice do they have for you? What has earning the credential done for them and their business?
Having attended dozens of professional conferences over the past three decades, to me, the sessions, while valuable, aren’t the most important aspect of the event. Networking with my peers is where I find the most value. Meeting other writers and career service professionals during breaks, at a lunch table, at dinner gatherings, or even on a shuttle from the airport, is so beneficial.
Personally, I’ve met lifelong friends at conferences. I’ve learned pricing strategies, marketing ideas, general business operational processes, difficult client tactics, and so much more.
In our “regular” lives, our friends and family don’t always understand what we do or the challenges we face. Our fellow resume writers do, however, and it’s a blessing to be able to call on them when we need to vent or ask a question. To me, this is the single best reason to attend an in-person conference. I hope to meet many of you in New Orleans!
Kathy began volunteering with the NRWA as a member of the initial board of directors and continued contributing in various capacities, culminating with accepting the role of Certification Chair in January 2021. For three-plus decades, she has operated A Career Advantage in Appleton, WI. Find her online at LinkedIn.com/in/kathykeshemberg.
