So you have your format and target job picked out, its time to put together your resume. If you are a new graduate your resume should be in a different order (with the education at the top) then if you have some post graduate experience. The education section doesn’t have to be just your degree and university name. This is a place where you can expand upon what you did during college and include the clubs you were involved in, you awards, your GPA if it is above a 3.0 and scholarships. You can even list some of the relevant classes that you took to showcase what you have been exposed to.

Next you will want to include any work history that you have had since high school. Even if your work history is not related to your target job it is still important and tells the reader a lot about you. This is where you will include your accomplishment that you developed (put in link to previous article). Your bullets should be in the correct tense and start with action verbs as often as possible. If the bullet describes something you currently do, then it should be in present tense. If it describes a past accomplishment then past tense. Never use pronouns in your resume and always write it in first person, so leave the S’s off the verbs. For Example say:

Deliver exception customer service by building relationships quickly and listening to feedback

Do not say:

Delivers exceptional customer service by building relationships quickly and listening to feedback

The “S” implies third person.

Each job should have at least 2 bullets, but no more than about five.

Somewhere on your resume, either the top or the bottom should be a core competency section. This is just a list of hard skills that you have. If you have a lot of technology skills you can do a separate technology skills section to highlight those better. This section is like a bank of key words and should be updated before you apply to each job with the skills you have from the job advertisement.

If you have any certifications and licenses that were obtained separate from your degree (some degrees offer certifications with the degree), you need a section for those. If the certification was part of your degree, include it with your education.

Finally, if there is still room, you should include a section with your affiliations and one for your hobbies. Putting your interests on your resume could be a catalyst for starting a conversation with the hiring manager and building a connection.

Ready to move on to the last step? Check it out – Step 4: Writing an Engaging and Catchy First Paragraph