Resume
Purpose: To showcase your work and academic experiences and highlight why you would be a
good fit for a position. The résumé does not list your entire work history but should be tailored
to the specific job for which you are applying. It should showcase not what you did but who you
are and what you have accomplished in your previous education, work, and volunteer
experiences.
Audience: Though the audience of a résumé appears to be obvious (the employer), pay attention
to it. Depending on the specific job and the employer, the résumé will need to be tweaked to fit
that position and highlight specific areas.
Types of Resumes:
Chronological: Jobs are listed chronologically (with the most recent work experience listed
first to the earliest).
Functional: The focus is on skills and experiences from your work experience,
extracurricular activities, and volunteer experiences.
Combination: Skills and experience are both detailed.
Starting the Résumé
1. Read the job description to find key words that are important for the job.
2. Write out your experiences that fit these key words, such as the work experiences, classes,
and organizations. Be specific in what you accomplished in these various positions (not
only what you did).
3. Ensure that your experiences relate to the job and that you have the knowledge and skills
to perform that job (or transferable skills that can be used for that job).
Writing the Chronological Résumé
The setup for a résumé does not have to follow this format but should be an overall format to
help you get started:
1. Heading:

Your name (biggest font on that page), address, phone number, and professional e-mail
address (SmithA@gmail.com NOT onedirectionrocks@yahoo.com)
2. Objective (optional):

A specific work goal and area of specialization (job title)

Type of job such as part-time, full-time, internship, etc.
3. Education:

Include only your college-level degrees, not high school

The name of school, city, and state

Your degree and major

Date of graduation (month & year) or expected date of graduation

Minor and/or area of concentration

GPA (if it is a 3.0 or above)

Relevant coursework (if applicable)

Accomplishments and awards (if applicable)
4. Work History:

Job title, location of your employment, city and state, and the dates of your
employment (start with your most recent jobs first and work backwards).
o Define each job in a way that showcases what skills you had in that job and what
you accomplished in that job.
o Use several statements that begin with past tense action verbs and are bulleted
o Use quantitative statements as well as qualitative (i.e., managed five staff
members, increased sales by 10%, etc.)
o Relate your experience as it connects to the job for which you are applying.
5. Related Professional Information:

Other potential headings can be the following:
o Professional organizations
o Awards or honors
o Extracurricular activities
o Volunteer experiences
o Internships
6. References:

Do not list your references but state that they are available upon request if you would
like.
Writing the Functional Résumé
The main difference between the chronological and functional résumé is that the functional
résumé lists competencies or skills first and then education and work history. This type of résumé
is helpful if you have not had much work experience.
1. Heading
2. Objective
3. Competencies or skills related to your career:

1-5 subheadings about your skills gained from classes, work, volunteering,
extracurricular activities, etc.

Here are some example of subheadings:
o Communication skills
o Writing skills
o Creative skills
o Computer skills
o Financial skills
o Leadership skills
4. Work History:

You will not list as many skills underneath these experiences because your skills will be
listed in a previous section.
5. Education
Tips:

Instead of focusing on what you did (job duties), focus on what you accomplished at your
job.
o What did you do at the job that was better than others?
o What did you accomplish at your job? What problems did you help to fix?
o What awards, if any, did you receive at your job?
o How did you make a difference at your job? How did your employer benefit from
what you did there?

Be specific rather than vague.
o If you include an objective statement at the start of your résumé, include your
specialization (Example: “An adjunct faculty position teaching courses in composition,
rhetoric, and/or interdisciplinary studies).
o Use action verbs to “show” what you accomplished at your previous positions.

Target your audience.
o Include keywords and job duties/accomplishments that are tailored to the job
application (Example: If the job involves organization skills, think of what you
accomplished at your previous jobs in terms of organization).
o Determine the appropriate length of the résumé depending on your experience in
that specific field. A page is typical length for a résumé, but if you have more
experience in that field, you can make it longer.

Do not use first person (“I” or “me”).
o Example: I created some new software for the company that expanded its reputation
to five additional states. CHANGED TO Created new software for the company that
expanded its reputation to five additional states.
o Do not include personal information that does not connect directly to the job.

Include a summary or profile section to summarize your qualifications (skills, experiences,
and education that make you suitable for the position).

Use keywords from the job description in your résumé.

Do not include references. You can include a tagline at the end of the résumé that
references are available upon request.

Proofread! Have others look at your résumé too. Having only a few grammatical issues or
typos could cause your résumé to be thrown away without a second glance.
Connection Center: Apply Your Knowledge to Your Writing
Résumé Brainstorming Activity
What type of résumé are you planning on doing?
Who is your audience going to be?
What are the key words listed in the job description?
List your previous work places, volunteer experiences, classes, and professional organizations here.
Look at what you listed in the question above. What specific accomplishments did you achieve
during these experiences? (Be specific.)
Below are several examples of résumés.

Example 1: Mary Anderson’s résumé
o This résumé illustrates Mary’s achievements at her previous jobs rather than her job
duties at her previous jobs.
o The chronological format is used.

Example 2: Kathy Keller’s résumé
o This résumé illustrates a person who recently graduated from college and does not
have much work experience.
o The functional format is used.
Critique these résumés!
What is the purpose of each résumé?
Based on each résumé, who would be an appropriate audience?
What are some strengths of each résumé?
What could still be improved?
What other observations do you notice about each résumé?
See the Writing Space thembuwritingspace.wordpress.com:
1. To respond to the “Resume” exercises above,
2. To ask a question about resume, OR
3. To practice creating writing qualifications for your résumé.
--In the Search bar, type “Resume.”
--Click on Leave a Comment.
--Perform one of the 3 actions listed above in the Leave a Reply section.
--A writing tutor will respond to your Writing Space response within 24 hours!
MARY ANDERSON
123 Johnson Hill Road, St. Louis, MO 63141
314-322-3122
andersonm@slu.edu
Objective: A full-time position as Writing Lab Director at a 4-year university.
Education
M.A. in English with specialization in Teaching of Writing, University of Missouri
May 2014
Competitive Graduate Award
January 2013
B.A. in English, Midwest University
May 2012
Alpha Chi/English Outstanding Student of Achievement Award, Midwest University
April 2012
Professional Affiliations
National Council of Teachers of English
2013-present
Midwest Writing Centers Association
2013-present
Summary of Qualifications

Experienced in tutoring, assisting, and coordinating a writing lab at a private institution.

Effectively coordinate the writing lab, increasing the quantity of appointments and interdisciplinary
of appointments over the course of three years.

Have initiative in starting a Research Symposium and Writing across the Curriculum group on
campus.

Collaborate with various organizations for workshops and events.
Professional Experience
Writing Lab Coordinator, Academic Success Center at St. Louis University

July 2013-present
Tripled student attendance in the Writing Lab over the course of three academic years, which
better improved students’ writing styles and engagement in their writing assignments.

Tutor students face-to-face on writing assignments in composition, counseling, sports management,
journalism, biology, and other disciplines to develop students’ writing skills.

Promoted the image of the Academic Success Center by meeting with faculty one-on-one and via
email to discuss the Writing Lab’s mission within faculty’s classrooms.

Restructured the tutor training program to improve the staffing in the Writing Lab.
English Writing Tutor, Tutor.com,
August 2012-December
2013

Consulted with students about their writing assignments to increase their understanding of how to
write at the college level.

Formed strategies to use the available technological resources within the tutoring sessions.
Publications
“The Work of a Writing Lab Coordinator.” FORUM: Issues about Part-Time and Contingent Faculty 17.2
(Spring 2014): A4-A7.
“Gene’s Pauline Journey of Enlightenment in A Separate Peace.” Cantos 17 (2011): 105-108.
Conference Presentations
“Celebrate Writing: Writing as a Metaphor Workshop.” Midwest Writing Centers Association 2013
Conference, Holiday Inn North Shore, Skokie, Illinois, October 2013.
“Teacher Feedback and the Transfer of Writing Skills in the English 102 Classroom.” Graduate Student
Research Symposium, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, April 2013.
KATHY KELLER
One College Park Drive, St. Louis, MO 63141
314-555-5555
kellerk@mobap.edu
OBJECTIVE
A part-time position as an editor of a magazine.
SUMMARY OF QUALIFICATIONS
Communication skills

Collaborated with other journalists to manage the news stories for the week.

Organized meeting times with potential sources for stories and planned interview
questions.
Writing skills

Developed succinct language habits to write stories in a straightforward manner.

Won an award for news story of the year.
Additional skills

Proved to be a team player.

Has the ability to juggle a variety of tasks simultaneously and improve company’s internal
and external communications.
EDUCATION
B.A. – COMMUNICATIONS
2011-2015
Minors: French, Christian Women’s leadership
Birmingham, AL
Samford University
WORK EXPERIENCE
MANAGING EDITOR
Oct. 2013 – Present
Boulevard (literary magazine)

St. Louis, MO
Independently designed and developed company website (boulevardmagazine.org) and
founding editor’s professional website (richardburgin.net).

Proofread magazine content before publication with editorial expertise.

Manage, organize and traffic approx. 80 submissions per week.

Act as liaison between writers, editors, readers, typesetters and subscription agencies.
FEATURES EDITOR
Sep. 2012 – May 2013
The Samford Crimson

Organized and led weekly staff meetings.

Created story ideas that highlighted arts, culture and the community.

Supervised and coached student writers.
Birmingham, AL