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4. Education. Record your most recent education first, including the degree type, name of the
program of study/major, GPA if it is greater than 3.4, date (or anticipated date) of graduation, as
well as the school name, city, and state where the credential was obtained. You may reference
classes that are relevant to the job application (under a subheading of “Course Highlights”) or
additional academic information, including honor societies or other significant achievements. You
may include high school information if it is fairly recent and you have an outstanding achievement
or experience that is relevant.
5. Work Experience. Your previous work experience includes paid employment, volunteer work,
internships, and tutoring; in fact, any experience that demonstrates to the employer that you have
transferable skills that would benefit the organization. Organize work experience in reverse
chronological order, that is, the most recent experience comes first. Include the name of the
employer, the city and state, your job title (indicate if the position was an internship or volunteer
opportunity), the dates you were employed, and a brief description of activities/experience/
accomplishments, starting each idea with a strong action verb (see Skill-Specific Action Words
on page 9). Use the present tense for the current job and past tense for all other experiences. If
there are chronological gaps or work history that is less than one year that you want to leave out,
include the word “Relevant” in the title, which assumes there is experience not included.
6. Additional Information. If there is information that you feel is important to share with the
employer, and it does not fit into the above categories, then create additional headings, such as
Computer Knowledge, Activities, Honors and Awards, International Experience, Languages, or
Additional Skills. Always keep in mind that the employer is looking for well-rounded individuals,
since active people make good employees. Include activities that show leadership ability,
interpersonal skills, or that you are a hard-worker or a self-starter. Keep it relevant.
7. References. Do not list your actual references on the resume. It is sufficient to use a statement
such as “References Available on Request” although this statement is no longer necessary on the
resume. Create a separate Reference Sheet using the same header formatting as the resume. It is
recommended to have a list of at least three professional references (this can include colleagues,
instructors, advisors, or activity mentors) who can speak to your qualifications. See page 14 for
more information.
GATHERING YOUR INFORMATION
The four worksheets that follow (pages 4-8) will help you pull together details relating to your goals,
education and training, skills, and work history. Make extra copies of the worksheets if you need more
space. Once you have completed the worksheets, use the content to guide you in constructing your resume
in a new Word document.