A Customized Resume Blog

College students/grads with little or no work experience would benefit from a functional style resume.

The benefits of a functional format:

Camouflages unstable history.
Helpful for recent grads with limited experience.
Reentering the workforce (different career)
Changing careers
Lots of volunteer experience - related to chosen position
Overqualified and looking for less responsibility

Elements of a student/recent grad resume:

1. Heading (contact information)

What to include for your contact information.

Name (first name, middle initial, last name) NO NICKNAMES
Street Address ( 234 Hallgate Ave)
City, State, Zip Code ( St. Louis, MO 63123)
Residence Telephone Number ( 314-345-6789)
Cellular Telephone Number ( 314-776-2345)
E-Mail Address (use appropriate e-mail address, acceptable format for e-mail address lastname.firstname@…)

2. Your Job Objective or Title Statement

Objective Statement
Your job objective is a brief statement that describes the kind of job you want. Many resume writers are against the use of an objective statement. Why, it is now seen by hiring managers as generic and self-focused.

Example:

Objective: To obtain a challenging position where I can utilize my skills and experience in the field of finance.

Objective: To obtain a position in which I could apply my variety of Financial, Customer Service and Sales skills.

The two examples above are telling the hiring manager what you want instead of what you can offer company.

Good Example:

Sales Representative to grow your customer base through telemarketing and networking.

Shipping Manager to support program development, team leadership and customer care.

Title Statement

Or you can use a Title Statement. Best to use if you know the needs of the company matches your experience. The title statement is clean, focused and can save space. This technique eliminates the use of an objective statement.

Ex: Networking Recruiter
Program Coordinator

3. Education / Academics

For recent graduates it is best to list education closer to the top to of resume. Why, your work experience will be minimal. You want to highlight your accomplishments in school as much as you would do for accomplishments at work.

You can include

Schools you have attended (include GPA if is 3.0 or higher)
Academic honors
Awards
Recognitions
Honor Roll
Essay writing awards
Science competitions

4. Work History

The work history section of your resume can also be title as:

Career Experience
Professional Experience
Professional Background
Experience
Career Highlights
Relevant Experience

What to include:

Title of position
Name of organization
Location of work (town and state)
Dates of employment

To highlight your accomplishments, it is much easier to think of any challenges your experienced during your first 30/60/90 days of employment. Ask yourself how you reacted to those challenges and what were the results of your actions. This will give you a good list of accomplishments, instead of a list to duties and tasks.

5. Additional Information / Extracurricular Activities (Demonstrate your uniqueness)

Key elements of your background that don’t fit in any other section such as:

Special skills
Leadership skills
Leadership roles
Volunteer experiences
Sports
Band
Yearbook
Clubs you belong to
Volunteer
Special interest

6. References

Be sure to ask people if they would serve as your reference before you give their names out.
Don’t include your references with your resume

Giselle Brown
Professional Resume Writer
A Customized Resume
Career Directors International
314-324-5756

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