By Madison Staley, Blogger
It’s that time of the year where everyone is scrambling to get the perfect resume and cover letter together. As summer approaches, many are getting ready to graduate *tears* or land that dream summer internship. And, as the weather gets warm, getting that resume and cover letter together can be the last thing you want to do. But, we’re here to make it hopefully a little less dreadful for you.
After four years, two internships and one full time job later, I have had my resume and cover letter critiqued about 5,000 times and by just about anyone and everyone. So, from someone who has stressed over my resume and cover letter too many times to count, I’m here to share some of my knowledge and tell you it’s all going to work out.
Relax, have some fun with it and don’t be afraid to let your personality shine through.
Resume tips:
- First things first, make sure your name is noticeable in your header so employers know who you are.
- In that header make sure you include your contact information:
- E-mail (Create a new one that is professional and isn’t your school e-mail)
- Phone number
- Link to your LinkedIn page or website
- Include experiences, accomplishments and a skills column
- Condense your resume to ONE PAGE (I hate to break it you, but, no employer wants to spend that much time looking at your resume)
- Spell check and make sure your grammar is PERFECT
- Use action words such as — Created, assisted, developed, etc.
- Use past tense for all previous experiences, present tense for all current experiences
- Depending on your major don’t hold back from making your resume creative, to stand out from the competition
- Canva is a good, free website to build your resume on
- Edit every resume to fit with the job you are applying for, not every job is the same therefore you may have to adjust your resume and cover letter to each individual job
- Do not list courses you are enrolled in
- Get rid of any high school experience
- Avoid overusing the same words—Thesaurus can be your best friend!
Cover Letter Tips:
- Make sure the header matches the header on your resume
- Address the employer directly
- Come up with a creative lead that draws the employer in
- Don’t repeat everything on your resume in your cover letter
- Address the job you are applying for and how your skills/ experiences will contribute to it
- Be clear and concise, keep it to one page
- This is where you can really let your personality shine, be yourself and let who you are show in your writing
Other helpful links:
6 Captivating Cover Letter Openers
VARIANT Magazine 