Tips for Students Preparing Resumes for Colleges and Scholarship Applications
Information provided by the University of Texas
Seniors, you will need a resume, a list of the academic achievements, extra-curricular
activities, awards, recognitions, and responsibilities that you have been involved in
during high school. It’s important that you really take the time to develop your resume.
Colleges, universities and scholarship donors want to know what’s happened to you and
how you have lived out your commitments.
Submit an expanded resume of you high school life so that you can communicate
everything about you to an admissions officer or a scholarship donor. An expanded
resume gives you the opportunity to provide a complete picture of your activities,
community service, honors and awards, and employment.
Here are some suggestions to keep in mind when creating your expanded resume:
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Content: The content of your resume is really what matters. That doesn’t mean
you shouldn’t be concerned about things such as spelling and grammar, but
submitting a resume that looks like something you would submit with a job
application isn’t really necessary. Placing it in a fancy binder or folder will not
make up for your résumé’s lack of content.
Format: First, check to see if your college or university has a suggested or
required resume format. Check online. An expanded resume (see sample below)
allows you to include the details that set you apart from other students.
Length: Don’t try to fit everything on one page no matter who tells you to do so.
The sample given below is only a page long because it’s just that—a sample that
is demonstrating the details you will want to include for each item. Many
students submit multiple pages of information about their activities,
achievements, and responsibilities. You should do the same if you have that
much to tell about yourself.
Be thorough: Include details about each activity rather than listing something
general like “community service” or “football” without any details about what
that service involves.
Don’t repeat: Don’t repeat information or use large font to try to make it seem as
though you have more to tell than you actually do. A reader will not be impressed
with your attempt to exaggerate accomplishments.
Include details: Include details about all your personal achievements in your
expanded resume. Having everything in one place will make it easier for the
reader to get a clear picture of your accomplishments.
Below is a sample expanded resume from the University of Texas. While this may not be
the university of your choice, the format of the resume is excellent. Remember, you are
not required to have one page only. This is just a sample to get you started.