Resumes 101 Presented by the Grady CCC Fall 2012

Why You Need a Student Resume College interviews – Person interviewing you may not have seen your application – Resume provides a good one-page summary of you – Process of completing resume will help you think through your strengths College fairs or one-on-one recruiter meetings at your school – Gives recruiters a visual of your name and a summary of your credentials Scholarship interviews – Often with a committee of people so you need multiple copies To give people whom you ask for a reference and/or recommendation letter – Reminds them of your experiences to write a more robust, informative recommendation or reference Job interview (may highlight different information for this type of resume)

What Is a Student Resume? A single, (1), ONE-page, academically-focused resume presents your information and credentials in a professional manner – Highlight your story … academics, sports, extra-curricular activities, awards, accomplishments, etc. – Provides a visual reminder of your name and your experiences – Makes it easier for recruiters and interviewers to remember you Helps guide conversations and make it easier for you to tell your story Resumes should include the recent, relevant activities to present your story – High-school junior/senior should only include high-school information. Middle school awards are included if they are extraordinary or demonstrate a key attribute of the person.

CCC tools to make it easier … Visit the CCC website for templates Consult the resume notebook in the CCC for sample resumes Bring your resume to the CCC to be reviewed/proofed by a fresh set of eyes Keep your resume saved on your flash drive so that you can update and print it when needed

Tip #1: Clear Information Name and contact information at the top – Include phone number and (if you check it) for contact purposes – If you list your cell phone number, make sure that your voice mail greeting is professional and appropriate for the image that you wish to project – Create a professional address for the purpose of job and college applications NOT Choose a simple design and easy-to-read font... for example: – Henry W. Grady High School (Arial Narrow) - squeeze in more words –Henry W. Grady High School (Arial) - clean and professional – Henry W. Grady High School (Times New Roman) - traditional –Henry W. Grady High School (Helvetica) - clean - fatter

Tip #2: Organize your information Organize the information so that reader can quickly and easily review – Use indented bullets to give more information about similar activities – Check spacing for readability – Group similar items to tell your story – your activities determine your groups Don’t make the reader jump around the page – Use bold and italics to guide the reader to most important information First Place Award, Georgia Conference for Parliamentary Procedures – Finalist at National Conference News Editor, The Southerner, award-winning newspaper – Manage news team of eight students Captain, Varsity Tennis, elected by team members to serve as Captain – Played on regional-championship junior varsity and varsity tennis teams all four years of high school

Tip #3: It is a Conversation Starter Remember that the resume will initiate and guide conversation – Prioritize room for activities and awards you want to discuss – Eliminate things that distract from your story or lists of activities where you were just “along for the ride” - or “you signed up b/c your friends did too” Include test scores and GPA if it strengthens your story – Optional to include PSAT; SAT or ACT scores. If your scores are really strong, you may want to include – Optional to list AP course names. If you did well on AP exams for college credit, you can list individual courses names – Optional to list GPA

Tip #4: Use Strong Writing Use action words to describe your activities and accomplishments... – Awarded; accomplished; achieved; conducted; coordinated; created; designed; developed; directed; elected; founded; generated; hosted; led; managed; organized; participated; performed; planned; published; represented; selected; taught; trained; wrote Use a professional writing style... – Phrases are acceptable; however, use consistent verb tenses and correct grammar – Briefly descriptive of clubs or position that are not obvious to reader – Use consistent punctuation/structure

Samples