Tips for Stand

writing your resume

ing Out
Creating a1great resume
Know Yois your exciting first step to getting a job.
ur Brand
Facilitator Guide
resume + cover
Think of itto
Your bran
asoffe d is the sum
an advertisement for well-crafted summary of pr
2
ovide evide
l ofyourself—a your
education,skill
r an employe
s and pers andr—a
experience
tota what you
skills—designed
mix have
to convince the The
reader to contact nce
onal interest of experience, bullets belo
you for anpas sion. What
interview. makes
s/enthusias
m/ accompl w your job
title
It’s useful you a grea ishm are called
statement
to write out
a persona
t candidate? your achieve ent statements. The
ments. Som y des
your resu
and let it guid l brand struggle with etimes stud cribe
The diagram below
me. highlightse how you write there is a elegant self- ents
handy form promotion,
some key parts of the resume ula you can but
that you might choose to include.
L AVO N N P O W E L L
articulate
your acco
mplishments use to
Here is a sample: :

+ problem/project
555-227-9841 lpowell@email.com lpowell

Your resume will likely include a action

+

letter peer exercise

“My academ
mix of the sections ic
ma shown.
background result
rketing and in digital
public rela
skills in writ
ing for soci tions, my Here is a sample:
passion for al
connecting media, and my “Coordinated
diverse aud with new
candidate
iences ma
ke
and for local she three fundraising eve
for this opp me an excellent raised mor
lters [action/ nts
ortunity.” e than $8,0 project], ] which
[result] and 00
greatly imp (20% over goal)
Education awareness
[result].”
roved com
munity
The education section should
include institution, major, GPA
(if higher than 3.0) and date of
completion. It can also include
3
relevant coursework. format for
quick read
ers 4 match your
PROJECTS

Experience
According
resume to th
In this activity, students will provide peer feedback on
to
job-matchin a study released by
This spe
section
nd anshould
g service The
include part-
online
Ladders, recr
e ro le
average of six seco uite Every resu
timean jobs,
indiinternships,
vidual resu volunteer nds reviewi rs me
applying to. should match the
rolestoand
useother me.that
activities This makes ng You might role you are
an info rma it critical different resu have three
provides
provided youan relevanttion arch
professional or more
easy, efficien itecture that you are inte mes for the kinds of

resume and cover letters, with a special focus on using

reader exp
experience. Beerie
sure your job ttitle
and producti rest opportunitie
nce. ve communicat ed in. For example, s
clearly describes your role. ions major, if you’re a
resume focu you might
Use white sed on soci hav
like bold
space and
form focused on al media role e one
Course assignments and
, italics and self-driven
attin g techniqu even ts, and one focu s, one
und es relations. sed on pub
a visual
projects also
logican provide erlines to
evidence of Integrate

the correct keywords, making a clear brand statement,

c—make it create job descrip key words from lic
specific info
experience easythem
and skills. Include to zero in tion into you the specifi
rmation for on stand out. r resume to c
in this section. busy read help you
Technology Skills
ers.
We’ve pro
Including any research you’ve vided a how
to guide in -
a sep arate soft

and tailoring documents to a specific opportunity.

done provides the opportunity Increasingly, jobs and This section should NOT
“Tailori include
ng Your Res
to demonstrate skills and internships require skills, such
and asCov
people skills. It’s
ume better
er
experience collecting, analyzing, knowledge of specific to think about whatLett er” han
concrete tasks
dout.
and managing data. tools or platforms. you can perform for an employer.

LINCOLN
PARK: (773)
careercenter. 325-7431 |
LOOP: (312)
depaul.ed 362-8437
u | depaul.joi
nhandsha
ke.com

IN ADVANCE OF THIS ACTIVITY: ACTIVITY INSTRUCTIONS:

Share the Career Center’s career Ask pairs to swap their materials
library resources (especially: and spend at least 10 – 15 minutes
Resume and Cover Letters section) answering questions on the
in advance of this activity. “Resume Peer Review” worksheet.

Ask your students to select an Ask the class to share their

existing job or internship for this observations about keywords and
exercise and instruct them to write brand statements with each other
a cover letter and resume tailored and then poll the larger group
for this opportunity. about their feedback.

Direct your students to bring a Distribute the “Cover Letter”

printed copy of the resume, cover worksheet and allow 10 – 15 minutes
letter, AND the job/internship for them to complete cover letter
description to class. prompts.

Ask class to share their observations

NOTE: This activity offers alternative in pairs and then have a group
instructions if students don’t bring a discussion about what makes a
specific internship/job description. successful cover letter.

LINCOLN PARK: (773) 325-7431 | LOOP: (312) 362-8437

careercenter.depaul.edu | depaul.joinhandshake.com
resume peer exercise

Interviewer Interviewee

1 The average resume is viewed for six seconds. With this in mind, start by skimming the content of
the resume (for no more than 10 seconds) and fill out this sentence on behalf of the candidate:

My , and

make me an excellent candidate for this role.

2 93% of all applications go through an applicant tracking system that is looking for relevant keywords
to filter out unqualified candidates, and only 30% of all resumes even get reviewed. Looking at the job
posting, write down 6 to 8 keywords that you would expect to see in the resume. (If none is provided,
list the keywords you would expect to find in the posting.)

3 Put a check mark (above) next to the keywords that you find in the resume.

4 What, if anything, makes this resume distinctive from other candidates that might apply for this role?

DePAUL UNIVERSITY CAREER CENTER

careercenter.depaul.edu | depaul.joinhandshake.com PAGE 1
 5 Quickly draft how you think this candidate would answer the following interview question:

“Tell us about what makes you qualified for this role?”

“What do you see as your strengths?”

6 Many applicants are moving from “chronological” resumes (that feature a general
experience section that displays experiences in reverse chronological order) to a
“functional” resume that groups experiences into specific skill-focused sections, like:
“Marketing and Events Experience” or “Youth Development Experience.”

If this resume is “chronological,” what are the experience sections

you might use in a functional version of this resume?

If this resume is “functional,” provide feedback on the groupings—

as they relate or don’t relate to the job posting.

7 Using this rating system, give this resume a score. And explain your score.

5 Perfect match! Explanation:

4 Good candidate
3 Qualified
2 Kind of a reach...
1 Ummmm

8 What is one thing this applicant could do to improve their resume?

DePAUL UNIVERSITY CAREER CENTER

careercenter.depaul.edu | depaul.joinhandshake.com PAGE 2
cover letter peer exercise

Interviewer Interviewee

1 Why is this candidate interested in this role? At this employer? (answer both questions)

2 Returning to #2 (in the resume review section), circle the keywords that are featured in the cover letter.

3 In the cover letter, underline every hard skill and circle every soft skill identified.

4 If you were planning to interview this candidate, what question(s) would you ask?

5 Using this rating system, give this cover letter a score. And explain your score.

5 the cover letter provides deep evidence of a solid Explanation:

claim and articulates why this role is a match

4 the cover letter and resume align to make a similar

claim about the candidate

3 the cover letter is a narrative version of the resume

2 the cover letter references the resume

1 the cover letter introduces the candidate

PAGE 3