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Resume Writing

How to write a resume

A well-written resume should summarise your qualifications, skills and qualities and help you get a job interview.

Tailor your resume to the job. Create different resumes for jobs that are academic, casual, graduate, postgraduate, voluntary, vacation, industry-based learning or in the creative industry.

What to include

Personal details

First and last names

Current address (and postal address if different)

Home and mobile phone numbers (recorded messages should be business-like)

Email address (avoid using unprofessional email addresses)

Citizenship or residency status (only if requested by the employer)

Don't include personal information such as your date of birth.

Education

Course dates (eg 2009 - current)

Full course name

Educational institute

Subjects that are relevant to the job (use no more than 3)

Achievements and awards

Skills and qualities

You should list skills specific to the job, include any technical, generic or transferable skills (eg team work, problem solving). Write these as a dot point summary and provide an example of each.

Career objective

This section is optional and should be a short, targeted statement that is specific to the job.

Employment history

Period of work

Job title

Business name

Key responsibilities (in a dot point list)

Achievements

It is usual to list your jobs starting with the most recent. However, if you have course-related jobs you can include these first. Include jobs from the past five to six years that demonstrate the skills the employer is looking for.

Voluntary and community work

Period of work

Title

Association name

Key responsibilities

Achievements

Include participation in community work, clubs, sport associations or youth groups. This shows initiative, leadership and interpersonal skills.

Professional development and further training

Period of training

Title

Training provider, organisation or association name

Achievements

Awards and prizes

Scholarships

Professional memberships

Period of membership

Level (eg student member)

Association name

Interests and hobbies

Write a dot point summary of your personal interests such as community, sporting or cultural activities.

Referees

List two or three people who have seen what you are able to do in an employment or academic environment. Always get permission from referees before including their details on your resume. For each referee, include:

Name

Job title

Organisation

Phone number

Email address

Otherwise, write 'referees are available on request' and have their details ready to provide to an employer when asked.

Layout

Format

Use 10-12 point standard fonts (eg Times New Roman, Arial).

Write in plain business English (avoid SMS language, abbreviations, jargon and slang).

Use sub-headings and bulleted lists to draw attention to important information.

Ensure plenty of white space between paragraphs and margins that are not too narrow.

Write in the third person, don't use I, me or my.

The layout (including indent alignments) must be consistent throughout the resume.

Length

2 - 3 pages for a graduate with little professional work experience.

3 - 4 pages for a graduate with a considerable work history.

Styles - there are 3 main types

Chronological - information is listed in reverse date order.

Functional - highlights your skills and achievements.

Hybrid - this is the most suitable for graduates as it combines the best features of the chronological and functional styles.

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