PREPARE YOUR RÉSUMÉ A résumé summarizes your education, experience, and credentials as they relate to your employment goals. The résumé’s primary purpose is to convince an employer, in a very short period of time, of your relevant qualifications and create a first impression that motivates the employer to contact you. Building an effective résumé is an ongoing process. It usually takes a few reviews to catch format inconsistencies, typos, and grammatical errors. Always have your résumé reviewed by a career coach before sending it to potential employers. REQUIRED ELEMENTS Heading Use your full name centered at the top. Under your name, center your contact information and URL to your LinkedIn profile or your online portfolio. Please be sure that both your email address and voicemail messages are professional and appropriate. Education Starting with the most recent, list the name(s) of the college(s) attended, location, degree or certificates received, expected date of graduation (month and year only), and major(s). Do not include high school information. Work/Relevant Experience This section shows how your experience relates to your target position. Include relevant experience from any of the following: full-time, summer, part-time work; internships; field work; research projects; volunteer work; or extracurricular activities. High school activities and achievements should be eliminated unless they are directly relevant to the job. For each experience, indicate your job title, name of organization, city, state, and dates of employment or service. See the “Writing Success Statement Descriptions” page for assistance articulating your responsibilities for each position. OPTIONAL ELEMENTS Additional Experience/Activities This section can add depth by reflecting highly desirable skills, commitment, and involvement outside academic coursework and employment. Include leadership positions, memberships in clubs or organizations, volunteer experience, professional development, and athletics. Include your position title, organization name, city, state, and dates of involvement. Related and Additional Skills Use this section to emphasize skills applicable to your field of interest. Skills could include, but should not be limited to, foreign language fluency, computer/technical applications, scientific/laboratory, and/or special certifications. Achievements, Awards, Publications, or Honors List only those received while in college and that are of particular relevance to your field of interest.
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HINTS AND TIPS E-Résumé Formatting Most companies use Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) for job applications. Your résumé must be formatted to be easily scanned and read by the system. Include key words from the job description for which you are applying to optimize your fit for the position. Keywords are nouns and phrases that describe your knowledge and experience. The keyword summary can be the most important part of the résumé.
DO… • • • • • •
Put your name first, followed by your contact information. Keep text aligned to the left (except your name and contact information) Use a standard font such as Times New Roman, Arial or Helvetica in 12 pt. font size Align dates to the right of the page using a right-aligned tab to preserve formatting When printing your résumé, use standard résumé paper, not card stock Customize your résumé for each opportunity
DON’T… • • • • •
Be too lengthy. Keep your résumé to one page if at all possible. Rely on spellcheck. Spellcheck does not catch all errors. For example, the word “lead” and the word “led”, will both pass the Spellcheck test, but have very different meanings. Be sure to have your résumé reviewed by others. Use graphics or pictures, etc. Unless you are in a design field, steer clear of graphics. Keep your résumé uncluttered and easy to read. List references. References should be kept in a separate document and not included on the résumé. Also do not add the line “References Available Upon Request” to your résumé. Use personal pronouns. Do not use “I, we, or my” statements. $MJDL PO 0QUJNBM 3FTVNF UP CVJME ZPVS SFTVNF CFMPX
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TYPES OF RÉSUMÉS Chronological (Recommended for College Students) This type of résumé consists of a reverse chronological list of education, job experiences, and accomplishments, typically condensed to one page only. Start with your current or most recent experience and end with your earliest position. As the most common type of résumé, it is recommended for college students, professionals staying in the same career field, and for those working in a field where traditional job search methods are utilized.
Functional (Recommended for Experienced Professionals) This type of résumé highlights the professional skills you have gained throughout your career. The content is similar to a chronological résumé but presented around skill clusters. This format is recommended for professionals with a variety of work experience, individuals interested in a career change who do not have direct job experience in the new career area, those who have changed employers frequently and those who have been absent from the job market or have gaps in employment. The functional résumé is typically 1-2 pages long.
Curriculum Vitae This is a specialized résumé within the academic community to highlight work experience as well as research interests and professional development within an academic setting. The format is recommended for graduate students and those pursuing teaching or research positions in a college or university.
Infographic Résumé or Présumé (Recommended for Creative Fields) An infographic résumé uses pictures, graphics, and sound for employers to click through to review your qualifications. You can create an infographic résumé using tools such as wix.com, Prezi, Piktochart, or Flipboard.
Chronological
Infographic
Functional
Présumé
Curriculum Vitae
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RÉSUMÉ CHECKLIST Appearance and Organization Visually pleasing and easy to read Print on résumé paper Limit to one page, if possible Should not be too text heavy, nor have too much white space If more than one page, do NOT staple Content Use descriptive action verbs Emphasize marketable skills Stress achievements Be honest Minimize use of repetitive words Current job is in present tense Past jobs are in past tense NO typos, grammatical or spelling errors NO first person such as “I”, “me’, “my” NO abbreviations except states and GPA Update on a regular basis so it is current
Education School, city & state Degree(s), major, minor, concentration Honors and awards (unless listed in separate section) Study abroad and/or thesis Relevant certificate programs Work/Relevant Experience Any experience related to your field; paid, volunteer, part-time, full-time, internships, jobs Your title, organization name, city and state Experiences are listed in reverse chronological order Dates of employment are consistently formatted Position description with bullet points highlighting skills and accomplishments, not just duties Use action verbs to qualify responsibilities where possible Explain how your tasks contribute to the organizational objective
Format/Layout Font size should be between 10-12 Choose a font style such as Arial, Helvetica or Times New Roman Use bullet points to separate items Print only one side of page Use right-aligned tab setting for dates on Additional Section(s) Sample categories: Community the right side of the page. DO NOT tab or Service, Volunteer Experience, space over Leadership, Activities and Athletics, etc… Objective/Profile Statement (optional) Offices held (including title, Objective: Describes type of work sought organization and dates) Profile (Recommended): Uses descriptive Pertinent memberships and words to show strengths you bring affiliations Certifications such as EMT, CPR, etc….
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Sample Action Verbs for Success Statements ACHIEVEMENT ANALYSIS
COMMUNICATION
COORDINATION CREATION
DEVELOPMENT EFFICIENCY GROWTH LEADERSHIP MANAGEMENT
ORGANIZATION REDUCTION SALES SUPPORT TRAINING
Achieved, Awarded, Earned, Elected, Maintained, Mastered, Performed, Salvaged, Saved, Solved, Started, Succeeded, Utilized, Volunteered Allocated, Analyzed, Appraised, Ascertained, Assessed, Calculated, Clarified, Conducted, Determined, Discovered, Estimated, Evaluated, Forecasted, Identified, Integrated, Interpreted, Investigated, Pinpointed, Planned, Probed, Projected, Researched, Revised, Selected, Solved, Studied Addressed, Argued, Authored, Clarified, Collaborated, Communicated, Composed, Consulted, Corresponded, Counseled, Debated, Explained, Interacted, Interpreted, Marketed, Moderated, Motivated, Negotiated, Persuaded, Petititoned, Presented, Promoted, Published, Recommended, Reported, Synthesized, Translated, Wrote Activated, Arranged, Assembled, Controlled, Coordinated, Directed, Facilitated, Harmonized, Maintained, Orchestrated, Presided, Scheduled, Shaped, Steered, Systematized Animated, Authored, Composed, Conceived, Conceptualized, Created, Defined, Designed, Developed, Engineered, Fashioned, Formulated, Founded, Illustrated, Initiated, Invented, Mapped, Originated, Pioneered, Reproduced, Visualized, Wrote Analyzed, Converted, Cultivated, Designed, Developed, Devised, Engineered, Established, Evaluated, Examined, Explored, Improved, Improvised, Installed, Planned, Refined, Researched, Updated, Upgraded Combined, Converted, Eased, Expedited, Facilitated, Mobilized, Remodeled, Reorganized, Repaired, Reshaped, Restored, Revitalized, Simplified, Streamlined Accumulated, Advanced, Amplified, Augmented, Broadened, Concentrated, Condensed, Consolidated, Doubled, Enhanced, Enlarged, Expanded, Gained, Heightened, Increased, Intensified, Maximized, Reinforced, Saved, Strengthened Administered, Advocated, Appointed, Arranged, Controlled, Directed, Envisioned, Explained, Governed, Guided, Managed, Orchestrated, Presided, Recruited, Scheduled, Stimulated, Supervised, Trained Accomplished, Administered, Analyzed, Approved, Arranged, Consulted, Contacted, Contributed, Coordinated, Determined, Directed, Discussed, Established, Facilitated, Formulated, Fostered, Handled, Maintained, Marketed, Organized, Planned, Prepared, Prescribed, Promoted, Recommended, Reviewed, Supervised, Trained Arranged, Catalogued, Classified, Collated, Collected, Indexed, Itemized, Organized, Revised, Scheduled, Specified Alleviated, Curbed, Decreased, Diminished, Divided, Lowered, Minimized, Reduced, Simplified Distributed, Energized, Generated, Marketed, Obtained, Penetrated, Promoted, Recruited, Sold, Stimulated Assisted, Augmented, Boosted, Participated, Provided, Relieved, Represented, Strengthened Advised, Briefed, Coached, Counseled, Educated, Enhanced, Enlightened, Groomed, Guided, Instilled, Instructed, Motivated, Oriented, Stimulated, Taught, Trained
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CREATING SUCCESS STATEMENTS Success statements are NOT a list of duties or responsibilities. They are a bulleted list of statements explaining your accomplishments achieved through the performance of the duties. Success statements are results-oriented, providing measurable results, if possible.
Sample Success Statements Use strong action verbs to describe specific facts regarding your responsibilities, and accomplishments, instead of general verbs and adjectives. Doing so will strengthen your resume and make it stand out. Below are some typical examples and ways to expand and strengthen them. Poor: Customer Service Better: Provide customer service for bank clients. • What were the bank services? • Were there policies/procedures? • What was the result? Best: Resolved customers’ problems, explained bank services and policies, and communicated knowledge of financial planning, resulting in greater customer satisfaction. Poor: Made Policy decisions. Better: Collaborated in making policy decisions. • How did you make policy decisions? • With whom did you collaborate? • Who was affected by the decision? Best: Collaborated with other club members in evaluating and establishing policy indicatives brought to the council by students, faults, and campus administrators. Poor: Worked with children with special needs. Better: Organized and initiated group activates for children with special needs. • What Duties? • What was the result? • How did they fit into working with special needs? Best: Organized and initiated craft activities for groups of 8-12 children with special needs to enhance peer interaction and develop motor skills. Poor: Duties include research. Better: Conducted research on issues pertaining to presidential administration. • What were you topics of research? • What was the purpose of your research? Best: Conducted research on congressional, political, and economic issues that assisted Strategic Initiatives staff policy recommendations to presidential administration.
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YOUR NAME HERE 1949 ACU Drive Abilene, Texas 79602
[325-555-5555] admin@acu.optimalresume.com
SUMMARY Dedicated Global Studies student with extensive leadership and international experience seeking an internship utilizing bilingual skills and an opportunity to make community and cultural connections.
LANGUAGE SKILLS • Fluent in Spanish-reading, speaking and writing EDUCATION Abilene Chr ist ian University Abilene, TX Bachelor of Arts, Global Studies Expected May 2020 Relevant courses: • Religion & Global Politics • Borders & Identities • Mechanisms of Governanace
GLOBAL EXPERIENCE Study Abroad Morocco June 2017 - August 2017 Program Participant • Adapted and assimilated into a new cultural environment, developing a global mindset while creating new relationships with fellow international students and overcoming language barriers • Analyzed the continued evolution of the Moroccan government from a strong, centralized monarchy to a parliamentary system resulting in a 15-page thesis utilyzing various theories of governmental change
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE Internal Rescue Committee Abilene, TX January 2017-Present Intern • Maintained and updated the memebership database of over 400 members to enhance continued and consistent communicationamong all member • Served as an administrative assistant to the Executive Director, contacting and meeting with many professionals and dignitaries to promote financial and economic relations resulting in continued collaboration and initiatives to increase the city's economic growth • Responded to concerned constituents regarding economic and political issues
CAMPUS INVOLVEMENT ACU Wildcat Week Leader, 2017 ACU LYNAY (Love Your Neighbor As Yourself), student leader The Optimist, ACU student newspaper, student contributor Ko Jo Kai Social Club, member
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT Meals on Wheels, driver Love Care Ministries, community volunteer
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FUNCTIONAL FORMAT
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