A strong college resume is short, clear, and focused on what you can do. Recruiters spend only about six seconds on an initial scan, according to an eye-tracking study of recruiters by TheLadders, so make those seconds count.
Start with a clean header: your name, phone, email, city, and a link to your portfolio or LinkedIn if relevant. Keep the layout simple with consistent fonts and spacing.
Put education near the top. List your degree program, major, minor if you have one, school name, and expected graduation date. Add relevant coursework only if it relates to the job.
Experience comes next. For each role, write two to four bullet-free lines describing what you did and what resulted. Use strong verbs and numbers where you can. For example: managed a team of 10 on a class project and delivered it on deadline. Numbers make claims concrete, so quantify whenever the facts support it.
Add a skills section with tools and abilities the job posting asks for: software, languages, certifications. Include volunteer work too. In a survey of hiring managers, 82 percent said they preferred applicants with volunteer experience on their resume.
Tailor every resume to the job. Mirror the posting’s keywords and cut anything irrelevant. Proofread twice, then have someone else read it. One typo can end a candidacy.
For more guidance, see professional resume writing tips, how to write a master’s candidate resume, and whether to keep a master’s degree on your resume. Pair your resume with hands-on experience through incubator programs to strengthen it further.
