RESUME WRITING

Tutorial

This tutorial will assist you in preparing a resume for your job search.

A resume is a marketing tool

It should be a professional and concise document that summarizes information about your background, education, and experience that is most relevant for the career field you want to pursue.
It is your first contact with a prospective employer and it must stand out and provide a positive impression.

A resume is a flexible tool unique to your experience and goals

There is not a universal format, only guidelines.
Remember, the purpose of a resume is to get an interview, not the job!

Know what career field you plan to target

A general resume wont get you very far. Target your resume to the career field that you are pursuing and be sure to showcase the accomplishments, skills, courses, and experiences that relate to the kinds of things that employers in your field of interest are looking for.

Figure out what you have to sell to employers

First, write down information about ALL your college experiences paid and unpaid internships, volunteer work, courses, study abroad, college activities, independent research, honors, awards, summer and parttime jobs, skills you gained along the way. You will need dates, duties, titles, leadership roles, accomplishments, promotions, etc.

Select your strongest selling points: most relevant to your job target
Now, go back and highlight the parts of your experience MOST relevant to the field that you want to enter. NOTE which ones are your strongest examples.
Remember, to do this you must have some clue about what employers in your field want.

Organize your information

Now you can begin to put the information into a generally accepted resume format.

Parts of a Resume
Contact Information Education Experience / Work History Technical Skills Optional Categories

Contact Information
NAME STREET ADDRESS CITY, STATE, ZIP PHONE NUMBER E-MAIL ADDRESS
This information comes first at the top of the page.

Education
Name and location of institutions youve received degrees or certificates from Type of degree (no abbreviations) Major(s) / Minor(s) / Concentration(s) Date of graduation (month and year) GPA (if 3.5 or above) Relevant coursework (optional) Academic honors (optional)

Education
McDaniel College Maryland Bachelor of Arts in Psychology with a minor in Criminal Justice May 2007 3.8 GPA OR

McDaniel College Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts

Carroll Community College Associate of Arts in General Studies

Westminster, Maryland May 2007

Westminster, Maryland May 2005

Relevant Coursework Sample

Social Psychology Group Dynamics Family Counseling Aging: The Individual and Society
*These courses should be related to the position for which you are seeking

Experience
Can include:
paid / non-paid jobs internships volunteer work community service military part-time / full-time work temporary positions

Experience
Include: Name of Organization Organizations Location (city and/or state) Position Title Dates of Employment Duties performed / Skills used / Responsibilities / Accomplishments / Results

Action Verbs
For a more powerful resume, use action verbs when describing specific job duties and accomplishments For jobs you are currently in, use the present tense of the verb For past jobs, use the past tense of the verb
* see Resume Writing Made Easy guide for a complete list of Action Verbs

Technical Skills
List all computer hardware and software skills and knowledge you have Example:
MS Word, MS Excel, MS PowerPoint, E-Mail, People Soft, and the Internet

Optional Categories
For a list of optional categories, please refer to our Resume

Writing Made Easy

guide. Copies can be picked up at Career Services located in Smith House.

REFERENCES
Do not indicate: References Available Upon Request Experts say this only takes up space. Instead: List your references on a separate sheet

Sample References
Mr. Sam Jones Assistant Director of Marketing D & J Marketing, Inc. 4405 Parkway Drive Annapolis, MD 21061 410-766-0000 Sjones@djm.com

Pick a style that showcases your best selling points

Chronological
Functional Career Track

Chronological Resume
Emphasizes specific highlights of each position List jobs in order from most recent to past Best used when job target matches your work experience

Functional Resume
Emphasizes relevant skills and accomplishments Best used when: ~person has varied work history ~specific experience is required for the job ~education or current position is not relevant to the job target

Career Track Resume

Emphasizes the fast track promotion and notable achievements Best used when a person has worked for the same company, but has held different positions within that company

Common Resume Mistakes

Too long Disorganized Poorly Typed Too sparse Not results oriented Irrelevancies Misspellings, Typos Doesnt match career objective Written in paragraph form

Need More Help?

For additional information, visit Career Services in Smith House.
To speak with a career counselor, complete the Talk to a Career Counselor form on our website.