How to Write a Resume

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		+	The purpose of a resume is to get you an interview call, not a direct job offer. Many companies prefer a one-page resume, but it is ok to go up to two pages unless you are an undergraduate.
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	==General Advice==		==General Advice==

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Revision as of 19:11, 10 February 2007

The purpose of a resume is to get you an interview call, not a direct job offer. Many companies prefer a one-page resume, but it is ok to go up to two pages unless you are an undergraduate.

Contents 1 General Advice 1.1 Advice from Gayle Laakmann's website (weblink) 2 Action Verbs 2.1 Good Words for Administration and Management 2.2 Good Words for Communication and Creativity 2.3 Good Words for Sales and Persuasion 2.4 Good Words for Technical Ability 2.5 Good Words for Office Support 2.6 Good Words for Teaching 2.7 Good Words for Financial Management 2.8 Good Words for Many Skills 3 External Links

General Advice

The following sections on advice from different sources can be merged if they talk about similar things.

Advice from Gayle Laakmann's website (weblink)

General Tips

• A resume should sell your skills, not just list what you've done. Remember that with everything you list.
• NO spelling or grammar mistakes, whatsoever. Most employers with throw out your resume if you have a single mistake. You should have many, many people look over your resume
• If you are not a native English speaker, you should ask a number of people who native English speakers to read over your resume and make any and all comments
• If you have at least a 3.0 gpa, list your gpa. If only your in-major gpa is over a 3.0, you can specify that the gpa is in-major. Penn's official gpa/resume rules state that you can round your gpa (from 3.65 to 3.7)
• Make sure your resume is well formatted... And in order to design a well formatted resume, you need to learn to use Word's tables. You will often be emailing your resume to employers, so the trick to making a table border invisible is to show all the borders, but set the color to white.
• If you're emailing your resume: make sure the file name has your last name in it
• You need to list your graduation date... Otherwise employers won't know whether you're going for an internship or fulltime

Computer Science Tips

• List the languages you know... and put them in order of importance. This is a good order: C, C++, Java, C#, SQL, XML, HTML. This is a bad order: HTML, SQL, XML, C#, C++, Java, C
• Have a projects section on your resume. Employers like Microsoft and other big companies care far more about projects that you've done than they do about leadership experience and extra-curriculars. See my resume for an example
• Unless you have completed your undergraduate degree and have significant work experience behind you, your resume must be one page... (I have done three Microsoft internships, plus an Apple internship, plus TAing for three years, and even I was told by the Microsoft recruiter that my resume must be one page.)

Action Verbs

The following list is taken from Resume for Dummies by Joyce Lain Kennedy. Going through such a list can often give you ideas on the use of appropriate terminology when writing your resume.

Good Words for Administration and Management

advised approved authorized chaired consolidated counseled delegated determined developed diagnosed directed

disseminated enforced ensured examined explained governed guided headed initiated influenced inspired

installed instituted instructed integrated launched lectured listened managed mediated mentored moderated

monitored motivated negotiated originated oversaw pioneered presided prioritized processed promoted recommended

redirected referred reorganized represented responded reviewed routed sponsored streamlined strengthened supervised

taught trained validated

Good Words for Communication and Creativity

acted addressed arranged assessed authored briefed built clarified composed conducted

constructed corresponded costumed created critiqued demonstrated designed developed directed edited enabled

facilitated fashioned formulated influenced initiated interpreted interviewed introduced invented launched lectured

modernized performed planned presented produced projected proofread publicized published realized reconciled

recruited rectified remodeled reported revitalized scheduled screened shaped stimulated summarized taught

trained translated wrote

Good Words for Sales and Persuasion

arbitrated catalogued centralized consulted dissuaded documented launched lectured led

liaised maintained manipulated marketed mediated moderated negotiated ordered performed established

expedited familiarized identified implemented improved increased planned processed produced proposed

publicized purchased realized recruited reduced reported researched resolved influenced inspired

installed integrated interpreted investigated judged restored reviewed routed saved served

set goals sold solved stimulated summarized surveyed translated

Good Words for Technical Ability

analyzed broadened charted classified communicated compiled computed conceived conducted coordinated

designed detected developed devised drafted programmed published reconstructed reduced researched

edited educated eliminated excelled expanded expedited fabricated facilitated forecast formed

generated improved increased inspected installed restore revamped streamlined supplemented surveyed instituted

integrated interfaced launched lectured maintained marketed mastered modified molded operated

packaged pioneered prepared processed systematized trained upgraded wrote

Good Words for Office Support

adhered administered allocated applied appropriated assisted assured attained awarded balanced

budgeted built charted completed contributed coordinated cut defined determined dispensed

distributed documented drafted enacted enlarged evaluated examined executed followed up formalized

formulated hired identified implemented improved installed instituted justified liaised maintained

managed operated ordered organized packaged planned prepared prescribed processed provided

recorded repaired reshaped resolved scheduled screened secured solved started

Good Words for Teaching

acquainted adapted advised answered apprised augmented briefed built certified chaired

charted clarified coached collaborated communicated conducted coordinated delegated delivered demonstrated

designed developed directed dispensed distributed educated effected empowered enabled enacted

enlarged expanded facilitated fomented formulated generated grouped guided harmonized implemented

influenced informed initiated innovated installed instituted instructed integrate lectured listened

originated persuaded presented responded revolutionized set goals stimulated summarized trained translated

Good Words for Financial Management

adjusted administered allocated analyzed appraised audited balanced bought budgeted calculated computed

conciliated cut decreased developed dispensed disbursed distributed doubled downsized eliminated

economized exceeded financed forecast funded gained generated increased invested maintained

managed marketed merchandised planned projected purchased quadrupled reconciled reduced reported researched

reshaped retailed saved shopped secured sold solicited sourced specified supplemented

systematized tested tripled underwrote upgraded upsized vended

Good Words for Many Skills

accomplished achieved adapted adhered allocated appraised arbitrated arranged articulated assured

augmented collected communicated composed conceptualized conserved contributed coordinated demonstrated dispensed

evaluated executed facilitated forecast founded governed guided illustrated improved increased

initiated integrated interpreted invented launched led navigated optimized organized originated

overhauled performed prioritized promoted proposed reconciled rectified remodeled repaired reshaped

retrieved solved stimulated streamlined strengthened trained upgraded validated won

External Links

• Resume Workbook - Oakton Community College Career Center