What is a resume?
A resume is a one-page summary of your academic, employment, and co-curricular experiences. The main purpose, along with a cover letter, is to get you in the door for an interview. This will be the employer’s first impression of you.
There are many different components in a resume. Your resume should ALWAYS contain a header section with your name and contact information, as well as an education section including your Fitchburg State University degree. All other areas of the resume are tailored to your experiences. Sections that can be included in a resume are: work experience, internship experience, extracurricular activities, project areas, volunteerism, skills, etc.
Tips for success
- Experiences—For each significant experience, describe your specific duties and responsibilities.
- Describe actions taken and concrete results
- Identify interpersonal or technical skills used
- Provide examples of tasks or projects, including quantified information (number of children taught, size of budget managed, etc.)
- Include any significant accomplishments, achievements, or awards.
- Keywords – identify keywords used in the job description and incorporate them into your resume, in your experience descriptions, and skills.
- Begin each bullet point with an action word such as created, achieved, collaborated, etc. Please reference our full resume resource guide to get a list of action words.
Formatting
Your resume should be no more than one page in length. Some basic tips are:
- Keep it simple and clean
- One font style (Arial, Helvetica, or Tahoma)
- Font size: 10–12 pt
- Left-aligned text
- No graphics, tables, columns, or decorative elements
- No pictures
Please see the linked resume guide in the resource section to get a visual representation of a sample resume.
Get Your Resume Reviewed
All current Fitchburg State students have access to Quinncia.io. Quinncia is an online resume builder and review tool that can help you edit your resume and give you feedback. Once you have a completed draft of your resume using Quinncia, please email careercenter@fitchburgstate.edu or schedule an appointment to have your resume reviewed by a Career Advisor. Once your resume has been reviewed by a Career Advisor, the last step will be to upload the resume to Handshake and begin your job/internship search process.
What is a Cover Letter?
A cover letter serves as a writing sample to highlight your written communication skills and shows the employer precisely how you meet the qualifications for the position. The cover letter should be well-crafted, customized to the position you are applying to, and well-written to make a good first impression. A cover letter accompanies your resume and, together, they serve to introduce you to an employer.
What to Include in a Cover Letter
Your contact information (Name and Address)
Date
Employer’s name, title of the hiring manager (if known), and address
Engage the reader and state the reason you are writing to them in the first paragraph. Include the name of the position you are applying to and mention where you learned about the position, particularly if it was through a network connection (i.e. spoke with a recruiter at a career fair, heard about the position from someone at the company). Explain why you are interested in the position and organization and briefly state why you’re a strong candidate.
Highlight 2–3 relevant skills or experiences (can be work, projects or academic) and use specific examples to show qualifications. Make sure to Customize your letter and do your research. Employers can tell when a generic cover letter is used. Keep your audience in mind, what are they looking for? Focus on what YOU can do for the EMPLOYER, not what you will get out of the experience. When you speak about your experience, relate it back to the job description and how it meets the employer’s needs.
In your closing, express interest in an interview and how they can contact you. Thank the employer and restate enthusiasm for the opportunity
Sign the letter with “Sincerely” and your name
Formatting
Your cover letter should be one page and follow the proper business format. Please see the cover letter resource guide for a visual example of the business letter format. Be clear, concise and proofread! The cover letter should be free of grammatical mistakes. You can always bring your letter to Career Services and Advising for a review as well.
A Note About Legal Name vs. Preferred Name
Your resume is a marketing document, not a legal contract. You should use the name that reflects your professional identity and that you want your future colleagues to call you. You can use your preferred name on your resume, cover letter, LinkedIn, email signature, and job application form unless it specifically asks for your “legal name”. Use your legal name for onboarding processes with HR like an I-9 and/or background check.
Options for Formatting Your Name
Preferred Name Only: If you strictly go by your preferred name (e.g., Alex Smith instead of Alexander Smith), simply list it at the top. This is the most common and seamless method. This could be a nickname, chosen name, or and “Engligh Name”/Westernized name for international students, just whatever you go by.
The “Nickname” Format: Use this if you want to bridge the gap between both names. Example: Alexander “Alex” Smith
Pro-Tip: If you are worried about the transition, you don’t need to make a big announcement. When you receive an offer and start filling out tax forms, you can simply say: “For payroll and insurance, my legal name is [X], but I go by [Y] in all professional settings.”
