Student Career Tools

Resume Development

The resume is primarily a marketing tool designed to interest a potential employer in your qualifications and skills. The resume is your advertisement and "selling piece" to persuade an employer to interview you. It is a summary of your experiences, not your full-length biography.

Resume Checklist

CLEAN AND ERROR FREE
Your resume must be neat. An initial impression is made in the first five seconds. If your resume is difficult to read, it may be thrown aside and not considered. Furthermore, even one error will make an employer question the quality of all your work.

FORMATTED CONSISTENTLY
You should ensure that your resume uses consistent verb tenses, font, and sizing. Avoid the use of templates since you want to make sure that your resume is distinct and not necessarily the same as the other candidates.

CONCISE AND EASY TO READ
Limit your resume to one 8 1/2" x 11" page printed with a laser printer. Use the following guidelines as a standard to follow:

• Use 9-point font minimum, Times New Roman preferred
• Use even margins, minimum of .5 inch on the left
• Use a minimum number of words and use bullet points; important skills and information should be highlighted and easy to spot, not buried in lengthy paragraphs
• Use at least 20-pound bond paper in a plain or off-white color – Keep in mind that many resumes are photocopied, and gray or dark colors do not reproduce well.
  

POSITIVE ACTION-ORIENTED FOCUS
Maintain a positive word choice – Avoid saying “not” or “none.” The reader should feel that you are optimistic in your approach. Use "action" words and action-verb phrases in order to make your job responsibilities distinct and powerful. Highlight any leadership involvement and opportunities you took to initiate or lead.

CORRECT GRAMMAR

• Ensure consistent and correct use of punctuation and capitalization.
• Use the language of your specific industry when you are sure it will be understood
• Limit use of abbreviations/acronyms
• Avoid the use of pronouns ("I" and "me") and unnecessary articles such as "a”&"the."
• Use consistent verb tense (present tense for current positions; past tense for previous work)
• Use conventional abbreviations and capitalization for resumes
• Spell out months and street addresses (August not Aug; Street, Avenue not St., Ave.)
• Abbreviate states using the U.S. Postal abbreviations. Be sure to capitalize both letters in the abbreviation (AZ not Az; CA not Ca)
• Capitalize languages (i.e. Spanish not spanish)
• Write out all years fully in consistent format (1993-1995 not 1993-95 or 1993-5)
• Periods are not required when using bullets; periods may or may not be used, but you must be consistent throughout
• Be extremely careful when spelling and capitalizing computer software and hardware. Check the correct spelling and capitalization with the manuals. (COBOL not Cobol; PowerPoint not Powerpoint)

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Sample Resume

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Action Verbs

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Action Phrases

Administered plan..
Assisted in the coordination of...
Assumed responsibility Carried out...
Chaired a task force .....
Compiled data for...
Completed a $XX.XX project
Contributed to the development of...
Created new campaign/committee/
Interviewed, organized and trained XX staff members...
Developed new system to...
Hired and supervised a staff of XX
Improved....resulting in....
Initiated and Implemented new ...
Increased sales by...
Involved in the development...
Managed the successful completion of...
Oversaw all aspects of ...
Provided services which...
Received extensive training in....
Referred customers to.....
Responsible for marketing and…

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