A resume is a tool used to market yourself to employers. The main goal of a resume is to attract the attention of recruiters enough to earn you an interview.
Effective Resume Writing
Your resume should clearly and concisely present your education, skills, accomplishments, and experiences as they relate to particular opportunities of interest.
Here are some tips to remember when beginning your resume writing process:
A resume requires numerous drafts and revisions before it is ready for an employer to view.
If you have varied interests and want to apply to different opportunities, it is highly recommended that you develop more than one version of your resume.
Skills and Experiences
When beginning your resume, remember that a resume is not a long list of everything you have done. Instead, a resume is a clear, concise presentation of your experiences and skills.
Effective resumes are readable and visually appealing. Direct the reader by using spaces, bullet points, italics, etc. to emphasize important content. Use bulleted, action-oriented phrases that are descriptive, concise, and avoid extraneous details.
Resume Categories
This section makes it easy for an employer to reach you. Include your name, email, phone number, and LinkedIn URL. It is not necessary to include a street address.
Begin with your most recent educational experience, include degree (double majors do not receive two degrees but choose between the two), majors and minors, graduation date, and location. If supportive of your goal, include sub-categories, such as:
Relevant coursework
GPA (if higher than 3.0)
Honors/awards (scholarships, Dean’s list, etc.)
Study Abroad
Include relevant full-time and part-time jobs, internships, and significant extracurricular and volunteer experiences in this section, or similar sections. Consider dividing the entire section into sub-sections, such as Related Experience, Leadership Experience, Research Experience, etc. When listing the experience, order the introductory content as organization, title, location, dates. Additional tips:
List experiences in reverse chronological order.
Include concise descriptions of responsibilities in the experience with varied verbiage and sentence structure.
Use action verbs (see bottom of the page) and numbers in descriptions.
Utilize the PAR principle to describe your experience: Use an ACTION VERB to start the statement, describe the PROJECT, and tell the reader the RESULT of your action on the project.
Quantify results when possible.
Use action verbs to begin your descriptions, ensuring they concisely illustrate the tasks at hand. Quantify tasks to illustrate the weight of your work. For example, if you were working on a political campaign and made phone calls during your shift, write “called 30 registered voters a day.”
Choose skills related to or transferrable to your desired position. Also consider stating your ability level in those skills (i.e. basic, proficient, fluent). Include language, lab, and technical skills.
Include your involvement in student organizations, athletics, community service, and leadership positions. These will strengthen your resume and display outside interests.
Certifications, Professional Memberships, Publications, and Presentations
