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Resume Writing

A resume is a summary of your educational and professional experiences. This may include: colleges attended, work, internship, volunteer, research, or other relevant experiences. The goal of a resume is to convince an employer to invite you for an interview. On average, employers spend 30 seconds or less screening a resume, so it is essential for your resume to demonstrate how your academic, extracurricular, and work experiences connect to the specific job and offer evidence that you have potential to be a good fit for the position and the organization.

There is no right or wrong way to put together a resume. However, it is recommended that you spend time researching the position and organization so you have a clear idea of what to showcase as you tailor your resume to the specific job. Read the job description carefully, and use it to identify keywords, skills, and requirements. When tailoring your resume, highlight the skills specific to the job, and use the keywords and verbiage you have gleaned from the job description and your research. Make the connection between your knowledge/skills/experience and the position apparent.

A few tips:

  • Keep a primary resume document that holds ALL your experiences so you can customize a presentation resume for each job
  • NO templates that can be found in Microsoft Word or other software. Start from scratch
  • Keep the most valuable information towards the top of your resume. Move less relevant items to a less prominent location or eliminate them from that version of your resume if they are not needed
  • Focus on skills that make you unique and stand out from other candidates
Skill Statement Formula

Skill Statements 

A skill statement is a bulleted statement that describes the skill you gained and duties you performed while in a certain position. Effective skill statements are the most important part of your resume. There are several different formats for writing skill statements, but in general, we recommend beginning with an action verb in the past tense, including your task, and a result. The result could be in the form of a number or quantity, a soft skill (e.g. teamwork, leadership, etc.), a language or technical skill, or an accomplishment. 

  • Choose a professional font (Verdana, Calibri, Times New Roman, Arial)
  • Completely spell all words other than the state or middle initial
  • Your full name should be at the top of the page and in a larger font than everything else on your resume
  • Your contact information should be listed under your name (mailing address, phone number, and email address)
  • Use a professional email address (example: firstname.lastname@gmail.com)
  • If applicable, include your shortened LinkedIn URL, online portfolio, or professional website link

 

Andrew Peters

5555 Riverview Avenue South, Woodbury, MN 55555
555-555-1234, andrew.peters@my.uwrf.edu

 

Melissa Mulberry
1003 Idaho Avenue  • River Falls, WI 54022 • 555-555-5555
melissa.mulberry@my.uwrf.edu • linkedin.com/in/melissamulberry

Resume Sections

Below you will find various examples of resume sections as well as different ways you can display content within sections. Include sections that are relevant to the position to which you are applying to display your skills and qualifications. Be sure to title each section appropriately. 

  • Most employers no longer expect or want to see an objective statement on a resume, so this is optional
  • If you do choose to include an objective on your resume, it should be clear, succinct, and tailored to the specific position you are applying for

    Objective1
  • 3-5 bullet points tailored to the position of interest in order to summarize related qualifications
  • Most commonly used when an applicant has extensive experience in their field

1summary

2summary

Include degrees already earned or in progress starting with the most recent toward the top. Do not include high school.

Include:

  • Degree
  • College/University name
  • Major
  • Graduation date (month and year) even if it is a future date
  • Minor, concentration, or emphasis area
  • Grade point average (GPA) if it is a 3.0 or above. List Major GPA instead if your overall GPA is below a 3.0 but your Major GPA is above a 3.0

UWRF abbreviation can be listed immediately following the written out name of the institution if involved in campus organizations, activities, or jobs. This allows you to use the abbreviation when referencing the university throughout the rest of your resume.

1education

21education

31education

41education

51education

3edu

53edu

Misc Experiences2

nondegreeseeking

studyabroad

  • Tailor section headings to highlight specific experience (Teaching Experience, Marketing Experience, Customer Service Experience)

  • Include relevant paid or unpaid experience

  • Reverse chronological order within sections

1generalexperiences

21generalexperiences

31generalexperiences

41generalexperiences

51generalexperiences

MultiplePositions1

Coursework is helpful to include if you have knowledge from class that is relevant to the position you are applying for that has not been applied within a job or other experience. This section is more common when you do not have relevant work or internship experience in your field. After you have completed an internship or gained relevant work experience, the coursework section is not as relevant as the related knowledge and skills from class will be covered through bullet point statements under specific experiences.

1coursework

21coursework

In this section of your resume, you have the choice of simply listing your involvement experiences, listing involvement experiences with skill statements, or a combination of both. If you choose to do a combination of both, ensure that your most related involvement includes skill statements. Involvement from pre-college years should only be included if it is very high level and/or directly related to the position to which you are applying.
1campus

1campus2

31campus

41campus

  • Focus on experiences related to academics, your major, or industry of interest outside of the classroom

  • You might consider titling this section presentations, training, conferences, or another title that relates to the experiences listed

1prodevo

21prodevo

Militaryexperience

1research

21research

31research

41research

  • For fields such as veterinary science, shadowing experience can be important to include on a resume

Shadowing1

1technicalskills

Technical Skills2

2technicalskills

References

We do not recommend putting “References Available Upon Request” on your resume. References should be listed on a separate document from the resume. Ensure that all application materials (e.g. resume, cover letter, and/or reference page) have a consistent "look" by including your name and contact information at the top of each document, using the same margins, font size, font type, etc.

Example: 

lastname_firstname_References

Saving Your Document

Hiring Managers receive hundreds of applications and it can be difficult to keep track of 10 resumes that are all titled “Resume.” Use a consistent titling format including your name and the type of document (e.g. resume, cover letter, references, etc.) when saving each document. This makes reviewing documents easier for the hiring manager as well as demonstrates your professionalism and attention to detail.

Examples:
NancyDrewResume
Nancy Drew_Resume
DrewN_Resume
DrewNancy_Resume

Submitting Your Application via Email

If you are asked to submit your application via email instead of through an online application process, include a short note via e-mail including the name of the position to which you are applying and stating that the requested application materials are attached. Use professional email etiquette by including a greeting and salutation.

Example:
exampleofemailing-1

2014 Out for Work Bronze MedalContact Us

Career Services
career.services@uwrf.edu
715-425-3572
M-F, 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
187 Rodli Hall

 

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