resume cv writing techniques

Resume / CV Writing Techniques

Center for Career Development

Manhattanville College

Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 1

Resume Format ......................................................................................................................... 2

What To Include On Your Resume .............................................................................................. 3

Resume Tips ............................................................................................................................... 5

Action Verbs .............................................................................................................................. 6

Sample Resumes ....................................................................................................................... 8

Reverse Chronological Resume .................................................................................. 8

Functional Resume ..................................................................................................... 9

Sport Business Management Resume Sample .......................................................... 10

Curriculum Vitae (Cv) ................................................................................................................ 11

What To Include On Your Curriculum Vitae .............................................................................. 12

Sample Curriculum Vitae .......................................................................................................... 14

Master Of Arts In Writing Sample ............................................................................. 14

Teaching Cv For Recent Graduate ............................................................................ 16

Research Cv For Experienced Professional ............................................................... 18

Artist Cv .................................................................................................................... 21

Fall 2012

1

INTRODUCTION

A resume is a document that contains a summary of your education, accomplishments, skills

and goals. It can be used to obtain an interview for a job or internship or when applying to

graduate school.

Your resume is the first impression that an employer will have of you and you may only get 10-

30 seconds to impress. Think of your resume as your customized marketing tool to get an

employers attention and land an interview. Your resume should answer the question: Why

should I hire you? To answer that question, keep the following points in mind:

An effective resume is tailored to show you are a good match for the job by highlighting

your relevant skills/qualifications

Your resume is not simply a chronological listing of your experiences, but a selective

listing of your accomplishments

A resume needs to include the necessary information in a visually appealing, easily

readable format

You can start by thinking about your past and present skills, education, accomplishments,

experiences and activities. Consider including relevant work experience, volunteer work,

professional memberships and professional development. If you are a career changer you may

not have relevant work experience; however, the skills you used in unrelated work can be

applicable.

If you have been out of the workforce for a significant amount of time, skills used in volunteer

positions at schools, community or various other non-profit organizations can be relevant and

should be added to your resume.

Organizing your resume into a clear, interesting format is the next step.

Helpful tip: Read through job descriptions of your desired internship or job highlight required

skills and qualifications and try to use those words in your resume.

2

RESUME FORMAT

TYPES OF RESUMES

Chronological resumes list experiences in reverse chronological order within appropriate

categories, including: education, work experience, community service and skills. It is the most

common resume format and is appropriate for individuals whose education and/or experience

match their career objective.

Functional resumes are used by career changers and individuals who have extensive

experience, but not in their chosen field or industry. This type of resume focuses on skills,

functions and/or related activities that match a career objective.

DESIGN

Your resume should be organized and easy to scan for relevant information

Bold and use italics sparingly and consistently to draw attention to important

information

Use the same font throughout your resume and choose a font that is easily readable,

such as: Times New Roman, Calibri, Georgia or Ariel

Use a larger size font for your name, 14pt. -16pt. and 10pt.-12pt. font for the rest of

your resume

Use .5 1.0 inch margins consistently throughout

Do not use a template or text boxes

Keep your resume to one page unless you have extensive work experience

If you are printing your resume use white or ivory resume paper

ACCOMPLISHMENT STATEMENTS

When listing job responsibilities, stress accomplishments. To highlight your skills and

accomplishments, use measurable statements. Begin with an action verb that describes a skill

followed by the task you performed. If applicable, complete the statement by writing the result

or purpose of the task. Use the jargon or buzz words of your industry in the statements.

3

WHAT TO INCLUDE ON YOUR RESUME

CONTACT INFORMATION

Name, Address (City, State - street address optional), email, phone number, and

LinkedIn and/or website address (if you have one)

Ensure your email address and phone voice mail message are professional

OBJECTIVE (OPTIONAL)

Useful for individuals who do not have related experience or education

If you choose to write an objective, keep it succinct and relevant to the position you are

applying for

Note: It is not necessary to have both an Objective and a Profile/Summary

PROFILE/SUMMARY (OPTIONAL)

A summary of an experienced individuals background and qualifications

Appropriate if you are making a transition into a different industry where skills are

transferable, or if you have a lot of experience and want to summarize your key

qualifications at the top of the page

EDUCATION

School, location, degree, date of graduation (If you graduated more than 5 years ago it

is not necessary to put the graduation year), major, minor, and concentration

List study abroad experiences

List a thesis or research project if relevant

ACADEMIC PROJECTS OR PUBLICATIONS (optional)

List a related academic project or publication by title, brief description and date

HONORS AND AWARDS

Honors, awards, and scholarships you received; limit to 3-6 most recent and or most

prestigious

CERTIFICATION/LICENSURE (if applicable)

List relevant certification(s) and/or licensure(s)

Certifications and Licensures can replace an objective at the top of the page if it

describes the position you are seeking

You can list certification that is pending as pending or the expected date

EXPERIENCE

List by reverse chronological order or most recent experience first

You can divide your experience into multiple sections such as: Relevant Experience,

Teaching Experience, Leadership Experience, Additional Experience

List Employer, location, title, dates and accomplishments

4

COMMUNITY SERVICE/VOLUNTEERISM

It is not necessary to list accomplishments for each experience unless it is relevant to

the position you are seeking

SKILLS

Include computer skills, foreign language(s), technical skills, lab skills, research skills

Language skills can be described as: fluent, basic, conversational, proficient in, or bi-

lingual

Language and Computer Skills can be differentiated within the skills category or as

separate categories

PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS

List memberships in professional organizations relevant to your current position or

career objective

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

List conferences or workshops you attended that are relevant to your career objective

Please note: The categories are not listed in the exact order that should be used for every resume.

The order may change by individual and specific use.

5

RESUME TIPS

Use perfect grammar, spelling and punctuation.

Use present tense for current activities and past tense for previous activities.

Do not use personal pronouns, e.g. I, Me.

Do not use articles, e.g., a, the.

Do not repeat accomplishment statements.

Customize your resume for the employer/position for best results.

Read through the entire job description of your desired internship or job.

Highlight the required skills/qualifications that are listed and try to use the same words in

your resume.

Use the jargon and buzzwords of your industry.

Quantify where appropriate in terms of sales, profits, number of people, and size of

budget.

Use indentation, bolding and capitals for emphasi