Develop Your Materials

Resumes for Recent Grads and AlumniÌýÌý

Open your job search with career conversations and a strong resume

We recommend that you spend 80% of your job search time talking with professionals and alumni in the field, and spend 20% of your job search time online. This is because only about 10-20% of U.S. jobs are filled through online applications, and a majority of the jobs in the U.S. are filled through the hidden job market, which includes:Ìý

  • Internal and external referrals.
  • Career conversations.
  • Networking with recruiters face-to-face.

The best route to learn and find career opportunities comes from connecting and having career conversations with in your industry.

That said, your resume is the first thing an employer will use to evaluate the skills and experiences you have to offer. This document is your first step to convince the recruiter you are the right fit for the position when applying online for a job.Ìý

Recent grads and alumni have more experience to highlight, so 1.5-2 pages are more common as a recommended length for their resumes. New grads and students should keep their resume to one page.

Best practices for your resume

  • Always start bulleted statements with past-tense, active verbs and end with a bridge phrase.
    • Past-tense, active verbs represent the skills you have.
    • Bridge phrases validate the skills you have.
  • Start bullets with what you accomplished and answer one or more of the following:
    • How did you do it?
    • Why did you do it?
    • For what purpose?
    • Quantify and indicate a time frame whenever possible.
  • Delete words like a, and, the.
  • Use numbers, even under 10, when possible.
  • Be consistent with formatting and punctuation.
  • Do not include street addresses for safety and security reasons.
  • Include city and state or city and country for each career experience
  • On page one, a professional summary highlights experiences and skills with a quick snapshot of who you are as a candidate. It is important to specialize the summary with keywords from the job posting each time you apply for a new job.
    • One to three occupational titles.
    • Level and areas of experience.
    • Transferable and soft skills.
      • Subheadings or areas of experience can be listed in the summary statement to lead into the combination resume.

Ìý ÌýTip for new grads (all degrees): List education under your professional summary.

Ìý ÌýTip for recent grads and alumni: The more you accumulate industry experience, the farther down you can place your education.

Resume Types

Creative Resume

  • Cannot always be read by an Applicant Tracking System (ATS)*.
  • Share after you attend the first interview, so a recruiter can read the creative format.

Plain Text Resume

  • Can be read by an Applicant Tracking System (ATS).

*Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) provide each candidate with a relevancy rating before a human ever looks at your materials. Some application materials are only reviewed for the few highest-rated or most relevant applicants. The majority of medium to large companies and organizations use an ATS to manage the volume of applicants by sorting them according to their relevancy rating.Ìý

Writing a Cover LetterÌýÌý

It’s recommended that you write a cover letter that is tailored to the position you are applying to. Check out customized tips for writing a tailored cover letter.

24/7 Resume FeedbackÌýÌý

Resumes are often scanned by Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) or other AI programs that evaluate your resume and cover letter for keywords usually pulled from the job posting or the mission and values of the organization. One resource that can help with this process is Quinncia, our AI resume review platform.