YOUR IDENTIFYING INFORMATION (aka Header)
Your name, present and permanent addresses and telephone numbers including area codes. Include an e-mail address, but be sure it is professional in nature. If this is a temporary e-mail account, specify that it will only be functional until a certain date. Consider adding a link to your LinkedIn profile or professional webpage if you have one.
CAREER OBJECTIVE (Optional)
Fewer employers today seem to want an objective on resumes, preferring a key skills section instead. If you have a specific job which you are pursuing, you may wish to write a brief objective. If you are interested in more than one position and applying to a centralized database where many positions are posted and you are not able to edit the resume, then omit this section on the resume and include it in the accompanying cover letter. In any case, an objective should state what you would be getting (e.g., To secure a position) and what the company would be getting (e.g., Where I can contribute to a team effort).
Summary of Qualifications/Skills (Optional)
Instead of an objective statement or in addition to one, you may want to include a section that summarizes your skills and/or qualifications. This section will help you to focus your resume on specific skills, achievements, or experiences that are important to your potential employer. This section can be particularly helpful for professionals who need to summarize long work histories as well as those interested in a career change. Some entry-level candidates may find this is NOT necessary for their resume and are fine to skip it until more experience in their career field has been gained. Be sure to support any claims you make in the Summary of Qualifications in the remainder of your resume.
Examples of summary skill statements are:
- Excellent time management skills developed through working 25 hours per week while attending school full time.
- Developed leadership skills as a result of serving as a community assistant responsible for 40 residents where I was responsible for creating a physically and emotionally safe living environment.
- Strong knowledge and ability to work with Microsoft Office Suite, Adobe Photoshop, and HTML.
Education
For each post-secondary degree (most recent first), include the name of the college/university you attended, your expected graduation date (month and year), your degree title without abbreviations, any additional majors/minors, and your GPA (if it's 3.0 or above). Some additional items to consider would be certificates or licenses received, study abroad experiences, professional/education memberships.
Experiences
Provide information that is relevant and positive; avoid a boastful or dishonest resume; and accentuate your most marketable skills and experiences. Whenever possible quantify your experiences by including numbers, percentages, time frames, financial data, etc. this will help to draw in an employer's eye to specific information. Information in this section should be listed in a reverse chronological format-meaning most recent to furthest back. This pulls what is current and relevant to the top of each section.
If you have a number of experiences, consider adding additional categories to showcase the information such as work experience, volunteer experience, related experience (might include unpaid as well as paid), internship experience, etc. Dividing your experiences also gives you the opportunity to pull the best information and place it higher up on your resume so it won't be missed by a quick scan.
Each entry should:
- Include your job title, the employer's name, city, state and dates employed (month/year), related skills, responsibilities and results of your actions.
- Highlight when an increase in responsibility occurred or you received a promotion.
- Use numbers to quantify and specify information i.e., cash sales of $9,000 or supervised four clerks.
Do not be discouraged if you have never had employment in your field. Instead focus on skills, accomplishments, and responsibilities relevant to your field. Don't get bogged down in details that are not of interest to potential employers.
Campus and Community Involvement
Employers look for well-rounded individuals who involve themselves with extracurricular activities. You may want to:
- Include both college and community activities, highlighting any leadership roles.
- Identify organizations to which you belong, the role you play in each, and your dates of participation.
- Emphasize activities closely related to your career goals and/or the needs of the employer.
- Note: When you include religious or political activities, carefully consider whether you want to identify specific denominations or parties. The potential for bias may be an issue.
Additional Sections
Based on your own experiences and history you may have other categories which is perfectly fine. Use whatever you have that is relevant and related to that position to highlight your skills and abilities. Some additional categories could be Research, Academic Projects, Honors and Awards, Military Experience, Study Abroad/International Experience.
References
You may attach a separate sheet listing 3 to 5 references with work addresses, phone numbers, and e-mail addresses if available. Remember to make sure you have permission from individuals before listing them as references.
