RESUMES

UNIVERSITY CAREER SERVICES

The Wendy P. and Dean E. Painter Jr. Career Center

(919) 962-6507 | careers.unc.edu | uc[email protected]

RESUMES

Resumes highlight the specific, tangible and transferable skills and attributes you have to offer. You typically have one

page to share what you have learned and accomplished while at UNC. Your goal should be to communicate your

qualifications for the position and the value you will add to the organization.

Formatting Basics

A resume that is formatted well is easier to read and more likely to be given another glance. Use this checklist to catch

the reader’s eye:

 Margins: should be balanced on opposite sides with even tabs and spacing between lines and sections

 Font: size is between 10-12 (except your name), font type is consistent and easy to read

 Length: maximum of 1 page if you have limited work experience

 Headings: use capitalization, bold, or italics to highlight parts of headings. Be sure to remain consistent

 Reverse chronological order

 Don’t include personal information such as weight, height, marital status, social security number, age, race,

religion, or political affiliation

 Don’t use graphics or pictures (unless you are applying for a graphic/visual design position)

 No spelling, grammatical or punctuation errors

Resume Sections

SECTION

BASICS

SUGGESTIONS

CONTACT

INFORMATION

 Includes: name, address, phone number, and email

address.

 Name should stand out (bold, 14-20 size font)

 Be sure your answering machine message and

email address are business-appropriate.

 If you have roommates or if someone else might

answer your calls, make sure they use proper

etiquette and relay the message to you.

EDUCATION

 Begin with most recent education

 Include: university name in full, degree earned,

expected date of graduation, GPA

 Add courses as an option.

 List any study abroad or other colleges attended

 The emphasis on your GPA will vary by

employer. If your GPA is a 3.0 or higher, we

recommend that you include it on your resume. If

your GPA is lower than a 3.0, then you may want

to consider omitting it from the resume. Some

students will list only their major GPA if it’s higher,

rather than their overall. Contact a UCS

counselor if you have specific questions about your

GPA.

HONORS

 Include academic honors such as the Dean's List,

scholarships, and honor societies.

 Honors may be listed under a separate heading or

as a subsection under Education.

EXPERIENCE

Possible Section

Names:

Relevant Experience

Leadership Experience

Work Experience

Additional Experience

 Include any employment, internships, significant

campus leadership offices, volunteer work, and

relevant class/research projects.

 Include title, name of organization, location, and dates

for each position.

 Emphasize duties, responsibilities, skills, abilities, and

accomplishments appropriate to the position for

which you are applying.

 Use phrases beginning with action verbs

 Do not use pronouns in your job descriptions.

 You do not need to restrict this category to paid

experience.

SKILLS

 Foreign languages, computer skills, and other relevant

skills should be included.

 List level of fluency/proficiency with

languages/computer skills.

ACTIVITIES

 List college-related activities including student

government, fraternities / sororities, student clubs,

sports activities, etc. not mentioned elsewhere.

 Be sure to note offices held and committee

involvement.

UNIVERSITY CAREER SERVICES

The Wendy P. and Dean E. Painter Jr. Career Center

(919) 962-6507 | careers.unc.edu | uc[email protected]

RESUMES

Writing Strong Bullet Points

Your bullet points should convey a concise yet complete description of your story: your experiences, transferable skills,

and your accomplishments. You can follow this process:

1. Start by listing your responsibilities for each experience:

 Example (Camp Counselor): I led a meeting with my team of 4 people every other week to plan our learning

objectives and activities for the week ahead

2. Turn each responsibility into a bullet point by answering these questions about your experience

Always start with…

… then answer at least one of these questions

What did you do?

How did you do it?

What was the purpose

of it?

What was the result?

Who was your

audience?

1) Led bi-weekly

meetings with 4 team

members

To plan learning

objectives and

activities for the

week

3. Create a bullet point out of the information in the boxes:

Example: Led bi-weekly meetings with 4 team members to plan learning objectives and activities for the week

Additional Tips for Bullet Points:

 Quantify duties when possible

 Use active voice (i.e., managed) rather than passive (i.e., managing)

 Use short phrases that convey a positive, concise description of your accomplishments; don’t exaggerate your

experience

 Check the spelling of every word; make sure grammar and punctuation are correct

 Don’t use words such as I, me, or my on your resume

 Don’t start phrases in experience section with "Responsible for" or “Duties include”

 Don’t state salary or hours worked

 Don’t use abbreviations without spelling out what they stand for

Submitting a Resume

If submitting a resume electronically, always submit it as a PDF document to avoid any formatting issues when the reader

opens your resume. If submitting a hard copy of your resume to an employer, print it out on resume quality paper.

This is a heavier quality bond paper that can be purchased at any office supply store. Use a conservative, professional

color, such as off-white or crème.

Get Your Resume Reviewed by Family and Friends, Mentors and UCS!

UNIVERSITY CAREER SERVICES

The Wendy P. and Dean E. Painter Jr. Career Center

(919) 962-6507 | careers.unc.edu | uc[email protected]

RESUMES

Keisha R. Brown

Cary, NC 27519 | [email protected]du | (919) 000-0000

EDUCATION

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill May 20xx

Bachelor of Arts: Media and Journalism - Broadcast and Electronic Journalism Concentration, GPA: 3.24

Related Coursework: Audio, Video, Film Production and Writing, Narrative Production, Interactive Media

Honors: Dean’s List (all semesters)

RELATED EXPERIENCE

Social Media Intern, Myth Marketing, San Antonio, TX May 20xx-August 20xx

• Assisted startup company with establishing online presence utilizing Web 2.0 technology

 Created and maintained daily blog and Twitter account to promote marketing services and increase visibility to

potential clients; added over 500 new Twitter followers in 3 months

 Collaborated with 2 other interns to research current social media trends in technology and presented findings

to management

Business Development Intern, MarketUp, Raleigh, NC May 20xx-August 20xx

 Managed a database of 50 potential clients to document meeting discussions and bid milestones

 Forecasted revenues for existing clients using Excel and reported results on a weekly basis

 Performed research on potential clients to communicate their needs, existing business lines, and major

marketing campaigns to supervisor

ADDITIONAL EXPERIENCE

Technology Chair, Design for America, UNC Chapel Hill August 20xx-Present

• Created chapter web page to communicate the organization’s upcoming events and member information

• Advised on technological tools such as Adobe and Dreamweaver for project development

• Provided technical and overall input to the executive board

Cashier, North Carolina Museum of Life and Science, Durham, NC April 20xx– Sept 20xx

• Assisted with customer relations and sales through prompt and efficient service in high volume gift shop

• Balanced register of $4,000 cash volume nightly and ensured accuracy of deposits

Youth Counselor, Child and Family Services, Raleigh, NC June 20xx – August 20xx

• Assisted students with completing academic assignments and ensured their timely completion

• Demonstrated creativity in maintaining a conducive and learning-rich environment for 15 students

• Facilitated bi-weekly meetings with 4 counselors to strengthen teamwork and define learning objectives for

students

ACTIVITIES

UNC-CH Ballroom Dance Team, Member and Lead Dancer, Fall 20xx – Present

MASALA Multicultural Organization, Member, Fall 20xx – Present

SKILLS

Technology: SQL, Dreamweaver, Microsoft Office Suite, Adobe Creative Suite

Languages: Conversational in Spanish, Beginner in Arabic