Advising: Career Counseling: What Makes a Good Resume?
  1. Relevant & Focused
    • Must IDENTIFY CAREER GOAL first to do a good resume
    • Lists only experience and skills that are related to the job objective
    • Use action verbs in past tense that describe tasks in that type of job
  2. Short/Concise
    • One page
  3. Easy to Read - Clean & Well Organized
    • Wide margins
    • Divided into Sections
    • Uses Phrases, not sentences and paragraphs
    • Neat
    • Consistent format throughout resume
  4. Professional
    • No Misspelled Words
    • No Errors
    • On Quality Paper
    • No abbreviations, be formal
    • No strange statements
    • Avoid High School
    • No opinion words like excellent and superior
  5. Types of Resumes
    • Chronological
      • Emphasizes work experience from most recent to past
      • May list short skill area
      • Used if have worked in the same field as the job objective
      • Parts include Objective, Education, Experience, possibly Skills, Activities and Honors
    • Functional
      • Emphasizes Skills related to job
      • Will still list work experience/employment, but in a small section of resume
      • Used if don't have related work experience to the job objective
      • Parts include Objective, Education, Professional Skills with bulleted tasks, Experience/Employment, Honors and Activities
    • Use the Resume Format that Will Market you for a Specific Job
    • Functional Resume Specifics and Sample
FIRST AND LAST NAME
Current and Permanent Address
Phone Number
E-mail Address
OBJECTIVE:
The objective should be brief and very specific to the job title or area of employment. If you choose not to include an objective, be sure to include a statement in your cover letter identifying exactly what type of position you are seeking.

EDUCATION: List most recent degree first, major, institution and date of graduation or expected graduation. Point out areas of specialization in academic work, honors (e.g. Magna cum Laude).
If applicable, include: Thesis Title and Faculty Research Advisor
You may wish to identify the courses you have taken that target the position for which you are applying. This is often helpful in the sciences.

QUALIFICATIONS OR PROFESSIONAL SKILLS:
In this section, isolate three to five of your strongest demonstrated skills or "functional areas" gained through coursework, employment, internships, volunteer experience, or student leadership opportunities. The skills you select should be essential to the type of job you have identified in your "Objective." For each skill you have chosen, summarize your accomplishments and experiences that pertain. You need not mention the specific job in this section, as you will do so in the "Employment History" section. Be specific in discussing how you demonstrated your skills and, whenever possible, concentrate on the results you achieved in using the particular skills.

EXPERIENCE OR EMPLOYMENT:
For the recent or upcoming graduate with limited professional employment, it is very important to include internships, relevant part-time or summer jobs, and volunteer experiences.
List employment experience in reverse chronological order.
Include your job title, name of organization, location of organization (city, state), dates of employment and a brief description of your duties and accomplishments (optional). If the type of work has no direct bearing on your employment objective, list tasks or accomplishments that demonstrate transferable skill sets.

ADDITIONAL CATEGORIES TO INCLUDE:
Depending on your background, involvement while in college, and special talents, you may want to add additional categories to showcase these attributes. Examples include:
  • Professional Affiliations
  • Honors, Awards, and Activities
  • Campus/Community Involvements
  • Leadership Activities
  • Foreign Language Proficiency
  • Computer Knowledge
  • Volunteer Experiences
Sample Resume

For more information and assistance, go to http://www.career.colostate.edu/students/findAJob/resumes.html