When you’re a college student or a recent graduate, it can be difficult to know what to include in your resume. After all, most college students don’t have an extensive employment history. However, employers know that, so they don’t expect to see a long list of jobs.
But just because you’re at the beginning of your career doesn’t mean you don’t have important achievements to include in your resume. As a college student or recent graduate, you have many accomplishments that will qualify you for summer internships, summer jobs, and your first job after graduation.
In addition to paid employment, you can also include volunteering, summer jobs, paid and unpaid internships, coursework, and extracurricular activities in your resume.
You can also focus on the skills that qualify you best for the jobs you’re applying for. Taking the time to show an employer that you have the right skills will help in considering your application for an interview.
Read below for tips on how to write a resume as a college student or recent graduate, along with lists of sample resumes to look at and download to get started on writing your own resume.
What to Include in Your Resume
If you’re unsure about what to include, take some time to think about all of your past experiences, including relevant work positions, volunteer work, academic experience, leadership positions on campus, extracurricular activities, internships, and any special awards or honors you may have received. All of these can be included in your resume.
Create a list of everything you’ve achieved during your time in college, and include the accomplishments that are most relevant to the job you’re applying for in your resume. You’ll need to tweak your resume every time you apply, but it’s worth the extra effort.
Tips for Writing a Resume for College Students and Graduates
1. Focus on academics: If you have limited work experience and extracurricular activities, you might want to focus on your academic history. Place the “Education” section at the top of your resume so it’s the first thing an employer sees. Include the name of your school and your degree, as well as any honors, such as a high GPA or any academic awards (like the Dean’s List). If you’ve taken courses relevant to the job you’re applying for or completed school projects that required skills related to the job, include those as well.
2. Match your skills to the job: Look at the job listings you’re applying for – your goal here is to match your experiences and skills to the job requirements. Identify experiences and skills in your experiences list that relate directly to the job (or jobs) you’re targeting. Integrate these specific items into your resume. You can clarify some of these experiences in a bulleted list under each.
3. Focus on achievements: Based on your experiences, you may choose to divide your resume into different categories like “Work History,” “Volunteer Experience,” “Relevant Coursework,” and so on. If you don’t have much relevant experience, you can place all of these items under one category: “Relevant Experience.”
4. Create a skills section: You can also create a “Skills” section in your resume to highlight the skills you’ve gained through your experiences. For example, if you’re applying for a job as a computer programmer, you can list the programming languages you know under the “Skills” section of your resume.
5. Print your resume: It’s much easier to review your resume for format and spot errors if you print it out. You will be able to ensure there’s enough white space, that your resume is readable, and that you haven’t made any mistakes.
Examples
On Resumes and Tips for Writing Resumes for College Students and Graduates
Use a resume example or template to guide your own writing. A resume example can help you determine what type of content to include and how to format your resume. However, be sure to customize the resume example to fit your own experiences and the job you are applying for.
Download a resume template (compatible with Google Docs and Word Online) or check out more examples below.
©TheBalance 2018
Reviewing Your Resume Before Applying
If you can, have a look from your university’s career services office, or perhaps from an alum in the field you’re interested in, at your resume to ensure you’ve included as much relevant information as possible. Otherwise, ask a friend or family member to review your resume for you.
This person can also read your resume to catch any errors, including grammatical and spelling mistakes, as well as issues with style and formatting.
How to Make Your Resume Stand Out
1. Include all your achievements: You can include more unpaid work experiences on your resume.
2. Focus on the most relevant skills: Tailor your resume and cover letter to highlight the skills that qualify you for the job.
3. Tailor your resume for the job: Take the time to customize your job application materials for each job you apply to.
4. Start with a template: Download a template to use as a starting point for writing your resume.
5. Get help: Need more assistance? Check with your university’s career services office for guidance.
Was this page helpful?
Thank you for your feedback! Let us know why?
Source: https://www.thebalancemoney.com/resume-examples-for-college-students-and-graduates-2063553
.lwrp .lwrp-list-row-container .lwrp-list-item{
width: calc(12% – 20px);
}
.lwrp .lwrp-list-item:not(.lwrp-no-posts-message-item){
}
.lwrp .lwrp-list-item img{
max-width: 100%;
height: auto;
object-fit: cover;
aspect-ratio: 1 / 1;
}
.lwrp .lwrp-list-item.lwrp-empty-list-item{
background: initial !important;
}
.lwrp .lwrp-list-item .lwrp-list-link .lwrp-list-link-title-text,
.lwrp .lwrp-list-item .lwrp-list-no-posts-message{
}@media screen and (max-width: 480px) {
.lwrp.link-whisper-related-posts{
}
.lwrp .lwrp-title{
}.lwrp .lwrp-description{
}
.lwrp .lwrp-list-multi-container{
flex-direction: column;
}
.lwrp .lwrp-list-multi-container ul.lwrp-list{
margin-top: 0px;
margin-bottom: 0px;
padding-top: 0px;
padding-bottom: 0px;
}
.lwrp .lwrp-list-double,
.lwrp .lwrp-list-triple{
width: 100%;
}
.lwrp .lwrp-list-row-container{
justify-content: initial;
flex-direction: column;
}
.lwrp .lwrp-list-row-container .lwrp-list-item{
width: 100%;
}
.lwrp .lwrp-list-item:not(.lwrp-no-posts-message-item){
}
.lwrp .lwrp-list-item .lwrp-list-link .lwrp-list-link-title-text,
.lwrp .lwrp-list-item .lwrp-list-no-posts-message{
};
}
Leave a Reply