Perfect Your STEM Resume

Write the ideal resume to hook recruiters at first glance.

Aresume should be no more than two sheets of A4-sized paper, but what information should you include? How can you fit all the information about yourself into a single document?

The overall aim of a resume is to market yourself and your skills to recruiters in order to convince them that you are a good fit for the role and company you are applying to. In other words, a well-written resume is key to landing an interview with prospective employers.

Make a positive first impression by crafting an effective resume with our tips and sample.

The golden rules

1. Tailor your resume to each employer.

Keep a master copy on hand, but tweak it for each application. 2. Ensure your resume is easy to read – choose a clear font in a reasonable size (such as Calibri, size 11), word your headings clearly, and consider using bullet points to break up the text. 3. Use a skills-focused or chronological format for your resume, depending on what sells you best. 4. Resumes commonly follow the reverse-chronological format, which focuses primarily on work history and education. If you follow this approach, make sure the chronology is clear and there are no major time gaps to confuse or worry employers. Resumes often follow the reverse-chronological format, and are particularly useful if you have held a couple of positions in the past. This format is best for highlighting work experience and lessons learned.

A skills-focused resume, on the other hand, is useful if you are applying for a highly-specialised role that requires a specific skill set. It is also a good format to follow if you have very little prior experience.

Do graduate resumes need personal statements?

Many students start with brief personal statements that outline their abilities and aspirations. It is also advisable for graduates to include a short profile in their resumes that quickly summarise their motivations for applying to the position and why they would be a good fit for the company.

Be specific and keep it relevant to the position in question. For instance, it is a waste of space to put down: “Student with great teamwork skills seeks challenging job”. Instead, it is far better to state: “Finalyear mechanical engineering student with particular interest in mathematics seeking graduate role in the defence industry”.

Educational history – how much details do companies want?

Your educational history from your university years should include your predicted or actual degree class, information on group projects and your dissertation, any modules relevant to the job and related academic awards.

Keep in mind that employers do not need to know the specifics of modules that do not pertain to them.

What experience should I include in my resume?

Many employers look very favourably on achievements and experiences outside STEM. These can be a real boost if you have not been able to secure any STEMrelated work experience – and can give you an extra edge.

Examples worth mentioning include fundraising, voluntary work, or taking a leading role in a university society. You can also mention part-time work or summer jobs, but do not go into detail. Instead, summarise your achievements and any transferable skills developed that will be useful in your career.

Crafting an effective resume

Here is a sample of a resume detailing the information you should include in order to convince recruiters that you are the right candidate for the job.

Give contact details at which recruiters can easily get hold of you. Ensure your email address sounds professional.

Include university modules that are relevant to the job instead of listing them all.

Devote plenty of space to relevant work experience, highlighting what you achieved and how it benefitted the company.

Where relevant, summarise what you learned from an experience.

Include part-time jobs, emphasising transferable skills obtained, but devote less space to these and more to relevant experience.

Many employers will be interested in your IT skills, but do not exaggerate your abilities.

Including references on your resume is optional. If you cannot fit them in, write “References available upon request”.

Jeremy Wong

Email: jeremy_wong@gmail.com Mobile: 8765 8903

EDUCATION 2018 – Present Singapore University, Bachelor of Electrical Engineering, Honours

• Relevant modules: Circuits and systems; signals and communications; microwave systems and circuits. • Final year project on auto intensity control of street lights.

WORK EXPERIENCE 2020 (July to September) Future Electronics Singapore, Intern

• Actively sourced for potential Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) suppliers of key components in the Southeast Asian region. • Identified more cost-effective alternatives to key components used in company products. Theoretically reduced production costs by 5% as a result. • Communicated directly with senior management during the sourcing process, and submitted reports of findings to them.

2019 (June to August) Research Assistant, Fibre Optics Lab, Singapore University

• Assisted in research on power fibre laser systems and their practical industrial applications. • Set up, maintained and catalogued equipment used in research experiments. • Coded programme to filter and analyse gathered data, in order to assist with interpretation of research findings.

VOLUNTARY WORK 2018 (June to September) Volunteer Vocational Trainer, Craft a Change Organisation

• Volunteered as a trainer for a robotics vocational programme for underprivileged teenagers. • Taught a class of 26 teenagers. Successfully designed and taught programmes such as building and programming a pet bird robot and a race car. • The experience taught me the value of patience and good communication. It also gave me a lot of satisfaction knowing I imparted knowledge to underprivileged individuals who may use these skills to potentially better their future.

FURTHER EMPLOYMENT EXPERIENCE 2016-2018 Customer Service Assistant, Tesco (part-time)

• Duties included working on the checkout counter and at the customer service desk. • Helped develop my commercial awareness and interpersonal skills.

ADDITIONAL IT SKILLS

• Able to programme in C# and Java. • Proficient in Microsoft Office applications.

REFERENCES

Dr Edwin Wong

Senior Lecturer

Faculty of Engineering, Singapore

University

Mr Thomas Kumar

Operations Manager, Future Electronics Singapore

Tel: 9085 6721 Email: edwin.wong@su.edu.sg Tel: 9983 7832 Email: kumar.thomas@future-e.com