Fremont
High School

RESUME WRITING

General Information

Resumes are reviewed for 15 to 45 seconds.

Make your resume easy to scan. Do not write it like a medical book or in paragraph form. The information is only meant to get the reader's attention not to tell your life history.

Resumes are to be one page only.

Use colored paper (white, ivory, or gray) for the resume and envelope. If you provide a cover letter it too must be on the same color paper. Purchase quality paper from a print shop.

Margins for your resume should be 1 1/2 - 2 inches around the page.

Use present tense action verbs for current jobs; past tense for previous jobs.

Avoid the use of sentences and pronouns.

Leave off personal information (age, religion, marital status, sexual preference, health status). This information cannot be asked.

Information which will not get you an interview should be left off. E.g.- references available upon request, zip codes and specific addresses of employers or schools.

Use 14 font to state your name at the top of the resume. All other fonts should be size 12.

Career Objective

State the job title immediately. Don't write a sentence leading into it. Say it. E.g. Customer Service Representative, Welder, Accountant.

Education Bold print the name of your high school followed by the date of graduation. If you have not graduated say "anticipated graduation (year)."

Note the city and state where the high school is located. Do not put the specific address or zip code.

List you GPA. If it is lower than a B- do not include it but be prepared to explain.

Identify special academic recognition you've received. E.g. National Honor Society, National Merit Scholarship Finalist. Do not list all your scholarship here.

Personal Qualities/ Work Skills/ Related Course Work Choose one of the above titles to show off your worth for the job.

Place the information on the other half of the page from Education.

List strong words. E.g. Personal Qualities - organized, flexible, handle multiple tasks, detail oriented, written and verbal communication skills.

Balance this side of the page with the Education portion. Have information on the same number of lines for each side of the page.

Work Experience State your job title in bold print and place it ahead of where you work.

List your place of employment followed by the city and state. Do not include a street address.

State the yearly dates on the right side of the job title. Do not include the months because it detracts from focus on your job responsibilities.

Include only those jobs that you have held while in high school. Jobs should show a progression in responsibilities. Do not keep repeating the same responsibilities for each job. Identify as many different skills and responsibilities as you can.

Group jobs of the same type to save on space. E.g. Babysitting or telemarketing. Sate your job title then list those who you have worked for including city and state. This avoids unnecessary repetition.

List jobs from most recent to least recent. Remember to use the correct tense verb depending on whether you are currently employed or if a past tense verb is required.

Community Service List the organizations followed by city and state for whom you do/did volunteer work. It must be outside of school requirements.

Community service is important. Employers want to know if your world is larger that you are. Do you realize the need to actively be involved in making your neighborhood, city, state, United States, and world a better place to live in?

Honors/Awards/Activities List those that apply to your junior and senior years unless involvement and recognition are limited.

Last but no least - Leave off "References Available Upon Request." Why not provide another piece of information that might get you an interview? References will be called for only after you get an interview. Don't waste your time indicating you'll provide references. It is a given!