1 RESUME GUIDELINES FOR WRITING AN EFFECTIVE RESUME

Resumes are presented in a number of formats including general (chronological) resumes, functional resumes, CV’s, federal resumes, and targeted resumes. Regardless of the format required for an application or the format you choose, it is important to remember that the goal of the resume is to get you invited to an interview. Your resume represents you on paper or via email – the knowledge, skills and experiences that have prepared you for the job(s) you are applying for. You have to make it reader-friendly and as easy as possible for employers to find the most important information. On average, employers spend 9 SECONDS looking at a resume at first glance! Therefore, you have a short time to make a big impression. Sample resumes are attached at the end of this document. Please pay attention to the writing style of the resumes as well as the format. RESUME FORMAT 1. Keep your resume to no more than 2 pages. One page is usually preferable, but if you have numerous years of work experience to add to your masters degree, than two pages is acceptable. 2. DO NOT use an objective statement. 3. DO NOT use resume templates, lines, graphs or tables. 4. DO NOT use the spacebar for spacing. Tabs or indents may be present and USE right and left align keys. 5. Only use fonts between 10 and 12 points; 11-point font is recommended. 6. DO NOT use any ornate fonts – Times New Roman, Garamond, Arial or a similar style is recommended. 7. DO NOT include graphics of any kind, underlining and use of italics should be kept to a minimum. 8. DO NOT get fancy will bullet points – use standard circles or squares. 9. DO NOT title your resume “resume”; using your name as a title is recommended, e.g. “smith_jon.doc”. 10. DO NOT list references or put “References available upon request ” on your resume. 11. Be Consistent – if you use all capital letters for a section-header, this must be done for all sections; if you write your dates out using numbers instead of months, do that everywhere