Resume Tips

Gather your information:

A high school girl works on her resume.

  • Contact information including your name, address (including zip code), phone number. Only include your cell phone number if you always answer the phone in a business-like manner. Consider setting up a separate email account to include on your resume - and make a point to check the in-box frequently or have it forwarded to your primary account.

  • Get all the addresses for school and any extra training programs you attend.

  • If you are using teachers as references, make sure to get their permission and contact information.

  • Previous job information including name of company, address, dates worked and contact name.

Write your career objective:

  • Your career objective gives your potential employer an insight into what you hope to achieve. Put some thought into crafting a career objective that demonstrates your current skills and your long-term goals.

  • Don't just write "To get a job doing web design." Write "To get a job where I can utilize my current web design skills and meet the challenge of learning more advanced HTML and coding."

Organize and write:

  • Contact info: Name, street address, city, state, zip, phone xxx-xxx-xxxx

  • Job Objective: 1-2 sentences about what you hope to achieve.

  • Work Experience: List current job first and then other jobs.

  • Professional experience: Clinical placements, internships, co-ops and job shadowing.

  • Professional skills: If you created a web site, if you're an ace at PowerPoint, if you can work diagnostic equipment, if you're fluent in another language - here's where you list all your special skills. Class work and projects count! Select projects directly related to the type of job you are applying for.

  • Education: List your school and outside course work with complete addresses and graduation information.

  • Honors, awards, certificates: Show off your academic success and leadership, which are all important to your prospective employer. But choose a few more prestigious awards rather than a long list of every small thing you have every accomplished. The few selected awards will stand out more and not get lost in the clutter.

  • Certifications/licenses: List any specialized licenses or certifications valuable to an employer.

  • Tailor your resume contents to the particular job you are seeking. If you are looking for a graphic design job, include more experience and projects that highlight that skill. If you are looking for a photo retouching job, trim the design experience and emphasize your skills with Photoshop. Depending on your career goals, you may end up with 2-3 versions of your resume.

Edit! Edit! Edit!

  • Triple check that all contact information is correct. Check spelling. Check dates.

  • Be consistent with formatting. Use a standard 10- or 12-point font (Times New Roman, Helvetica), black ink, and white paper. No fancy borders. No clip art or photos. Margins of at least 1″ all around.

  • Your resume should fit on a single sheet of paper. Your 5 page resume highlighting every honor roll, your starring drama club performance, and your sports stats will probably end up in the recycle bin rather than the "interview" pile. Delete anything that is not directly related to a job search. Your potential employer won't care that you were the 8th grade spelling champ unless they are hiring you to be a proofreader. They will care that you designed the new logo for the local daycare center if they are hiring you for your graphic design skills. Pick and choose what belongs.