It’s that time of year when students start updating their resumes to begin applying for full time positions and spring and summer internships. Avoid making silly mistakes on your resume and pay attention to these tips.   

Keep your resume to a page.

Some employers will not read a resume if it exceeds one page.

List your experiences chronologically.

List where you’re currently working or what organizations you’re currently involved in first.

Always use action verbs when listing job duties and tasks.

Trained, developed and supervised are some great examples.

Proofreading is a must.

Don’t expect to get an interview if you have typos or glaring grammatical errors on your resume.

Your achievements from high school can drop off. That’s okay.

Employers value the experience you’ve had in college. Use your resume to highlight these accomplishments and experiences.

Don’t forget to include contact information.

List your email, phone number or any other contact information. Make sure employers can reach you.

Brag about your internships.

Employers want to see that you’ve had ‘real world’ experience in your intended career field.  

Make sure you list relevant skills and experience.

List skills and experience relevant to the jobs you want to apply for and those linked to your major. Use key words from the job description and industry to highlight your abilities.

Be as specific as possible. Emphasize your accomplishments.

Employers want to know more than the fact you held a summer job at a pool. They want to know if you hired, trained or supervised at that pool.

Don’t try to make it visually fancy.

Stick to simple font and appropriate text size.

Visit Career Services in Kent Campus Center to have your resume and other application materials reviewed.

“A resume serves as your introduction to a potential employer. Your goal is to create a document that is professional and easy to read.  Employers will spend about 8 seconds scanning a resume before deciding if they’d like to speak further with a candidate.” –Bobbi Meyer, Internship Coordinator