The goal of a resume is to best represent your relevant skills and accomplishments, and there are several ways to do that successfully. That said, every resume requires these basic elements: - Relevant educational degrees or certifications and/or licenses - Relevant work and volunteer experience
- Contact information Relevant skills and your level of mastery. For example, “conversational Spanish” or “familiar with Microsoft Excel” vs. “fluent in Spanish” or “expert at Microsoft Excel.”
It can be useful to see how other people have written about their skills and experiences. You can also get a sense of the internal language used within a particular industry or company. You might have experience that isn’t directly related but is still highly relevant
to the position you’re applying for, and you want to include it in your resume.
Employers need to quickly understand your work experience. Format your experience as a list of short, scannable statements, rather than writing out dense paragraphs. The typical resume is two pages maximum, so make sure all the information you’ve included is
essential. If you can’t decide what is essential, ask yourself if what you’re including is relevant to what the employer is asking for in the job description.
Carefully read the job postings that interest you, and take note of the terms and phrases that employers are including there. You may begin to notice commonalities and can include some of these words or concepts in your resume if they are applicable to your background.
Proofread your resume multiple times, doing a thorough line-by-line, word-by-word edit. Getting an outside perspective is always a good idea. Ask a friend, mentor, or family member to review your resume for you before you begin submitting it to employers.