3. TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
What is a Resume? 4
Types of Resumes 5
Parts of a Resume 6
Section 1: Contact Info 8
Section 2: Profile 9
Writing Your Profile 10
Section 3: Education 12
Section 4: Experience 13
Writing Good Bullet Points 14
Section 5: Additional Info 17
General Resume Tips 18
References 19
Example Resumes 20
4. A resume is a
Marketing
Tool
A resume is a
Customized
Document
A resume is a
Brief
Introduction
WHAT IS A RESUME?
Page 4
Your resume will
get you in the door.
Your interview will
get you the job.
5. Chronological Resume – Traditional
format, jumps straight from contact info to
experience
•Lists your experience in reverse chronological order
•Relevant skills described in bullet points
•Emphasizes your professional experience
Functional/Skills-Based Resume – Best for
industry changers, military transitions, or
periods of unemployment
•Emphasizes relevant skills by category
•Employment history is de-emphasized and placed at the
bottom of the document
Combination Resume – Most common in
today’s job market
•Top third focuses on professional profile and
qualifications
•Emphasize relevant skills by category with employment
history at the bottom OR
•Includes reverse chronological list of experience
TYPES OF RESUMES
Page 5
Check out pages 7, 21, and 22
for examples!
6. Section
One
•Contact Information
(Page 8)
Section
Two
•Professional Profile
(Page 9)
Section
Three
•Education*
(Page 12)
Section
Four
•Experience*
(Page 13)
Section
Five
•Additional Sections*
(Page 17)
* The order of these sections is not set in stone. If the job
description puts a lot of emphasis on past professional
experience, put experience before education, and so on.
PARTS OF A RESUME
Page 6
8. SECTION 1: CONTACT INFO
Sally Student
123 Main St., Manchester, NH 03101
123-456-7890 s.student@email.com
https://www.linkedin.com/in/yourlinkedin
Page 8
Your Contact Information is the very first thing a
potential employer sees, so make sure the
information is accurate, up-to-date, and professional!
Use a simple and
professional email
address that you
check regularly
List ONE email and
ONE phone
number on your
resume
Update your
voicemail and
remove your ring
back tone
9. SECTION 2: PROFILE
3-5 line snapshot of your
skills, values, and
interests
Catch the attention of
your reader/hiring
manager
Includes keywords pulled
from job description
Incorporate the exact job
title from the job
description
What is a Professional
Profile?
If keywords don’t fit naturally into any sentences, consider
adding a bulleted list of "Skills" or “Qualifications” section
and listing the top keywords there.
Page 9
10. WRITING YOUR PROFILE
Answer 5 questions
about yourself
Shape those answers
into a paragraph
Incorporate keywords
for each application
The Professional Profile can be daunting, so here is a step-by-
step guide to crafting a powerful Professional Profile.
5 Questions
What are 2 or 3 NOUNS you would
use to describe yourself?
Human Resources Specialist, professional, leader
What are 3 or 4 ADJECTIVES you
would use to describe yourself?
Compassionate, empathetic, patient, engaging
What are 2 or 3 skills or
accomplishments you are particularly
proud of?
Adapt to different cultures very well; extensive
international travel; work well under pressure; excellent
time management
What are 3 or 4 things you are
passionate about or value?
Helping others achieve their goals; continuing education;
volunteer with Humane Society
How would you define your leadership
and/or work style?
Born leader, but can also work well independently or as a
member of a team
Sample Answers
“Compassionate and engaging Human Resource (HR) Specialist. Dedicated
to helping people achieve their greatest potential by constantly looking for
the opportunity to mentor and support. Born leader who takes pride in
effective decision making and problem solving when implementing new
policies, but who can also work independently or as a member of a team.”
Page 10
11. 11
MORE PROFILE EXAMPLES
Accounting professional with proven experience working in
demanding environments that require strong organizational,
technical and interpersonal skills. Trustworthy, ethical, and
discreet; committed to superior customer service. Confident and
poised in interactions with individuals at all levels.
Warehouse operations professional with a proven managerial
background in motivating teams to perform at their best. Highly
organized and efficient while able to constantly develop ongoing
relationships with clients and coworkers. A structured, detail-
oriented, and reliable self-starter, who strategizes effectively to
accomplish multiple tasks and remain calm under pressure.
Compassionate, patient, and driven Special Educator passionate
about providing excellent education to students with special
needs. Works well under pressure with excellent time
management skills. Born leader who brings positivity to any task,
motivating administrators and peers alike.
12. SECTION 3: EDUCATION
This section can go above or below the
professional experience depending on the job
and your experience level.
DO
•Bold degree title
•Include:
•Full University Name
•(Anticipated) Graduation
•GPA if above 3.0
•Collegiate recognitions or
awards
•Use bullet point with relevant
coursework for keywords
DON’T
•List high school once enrolled
in higher education
•Include educational programs
you did not complete
•Only include education you
have completed or are
actively working towards
•List every course you have
ever taken
Note “anticipated
graduation” and
actual graduation
Degree title
bolded and
emphasized over
school name
Use these bullets
to highlight
academic
achievements
Page 12
13. SECTION 4: EXPERIENCE
Chronological
List jobs in reverse
chronological order
(most recent first)
Include company name
and location as well as
dates of employment
and bold job titles
3-6 accomplishment or
achievement based
bullet points
Start all bullet points
with action verbs and
do not repeat action
verbs under same job
Functional
List ~3 main skills to
highlight specific skills
related to the job
3-6 accomplishment or
achievement based
bullet points relevant to
that skill
Include Work History at
very bottom with no
bullet points
Here are the key differences between a chronologically-based
combination resume and a skills-based combination resume.
The next few pages will demonstrate those differences.
Page 13
14. WRITING GOOD BULLET POINTS
Page 14
• Did you ever consistently meet or exceed goals or quotas?
• How? What was the percentage increase/decrease?
• What problems did you solve?
• How? What were the results?
• What did you do that was above and beyond your normal job duties?
• What were the results?
• Did you win any awards or accolades?
• Why or for what? What were the results?
• What new processes did you implement to improve things?
• What were the results?
• How did you stand out among other employees?
• How and why?
• Were you ever recognized by a supervisor for a job well done?
• When and why?
• What made you really great at your job?
• Why? What were your results?
• Did you save the company money?
• How and how much?
Here are some questions you can ask yourself to help you write
good, strong, accomplishment-driven bullet points.
Remember, good FOLLOW-UP
questions are essential to uncovering
your achievements and writing
accomplishment-driven bullet points!
How?
Why?
Results?
How much?
What else?
How else?
What other?
15. Do not use 1st person (I, me, my)
or full sentences!
3-6 bullet points
in each section
Job title bolded and emphasized
over company name
Consistent formatting
throughout to keep it clean and
easy-to-read!
Each bullet point starts with a
unique action verb
Aim to include 5 measureable
results
EXPERIENCE: CHRONOLOGICAL
Page 15
16. EXPERIENCE: SKILLS-BASED
Work History listed after
Skills Summary
3-6 bullet points
in each section
Use quantifiables (numbers)
whenever possible
Each bullet point still starts with
a unique action verb
Job title still bolded over
company name
Consistent formatting in
whatever template you use
Page 16
17. 5. Additional Sections to Consider
SECTION 5: ADDITIONAL INFO
Awards
•Including: awards, scholarships, and major personal achievements
•Make sure to include what the award was for and when received
Publications
•Including: books, articles, online publications, creative works, academic
papers, training manuals, manufacturer guides
Certifications
•Including: relevant professional, non-academic training
•List currently active and related licenses
Languages
•Including: languages at a professional proficiency level or above
•Do not include your high school Spanish
Associations
•Including: memberships and activity within professional
associations directly relevant to target job
Page 17
Only include these sections if :
A) They are directly related to the job
B) You have space after writing the rest of your resume
Contact the Career Team at COCECareer@snhu.edu for
assistance in adding this type of information to your resume!
18. GENERAL RESUME TIPS
Use good grammar
• Don’t use first person or personal
pronouns (I, we, me, my)
• Have your resume proofread (your
SNHU Career Advisor can help!)
Be concise
• Use bullet points instead of long
paragraphs or full sentences
• Tailor content for every application
• Include EXACT job title
Keep it relevant
• Don’t list every job you have held,
stick to the past 10-15 years
• Try to update once a year, include
your most recent accomplishments
Incorporate hard and soft skills
• Hard Skills: specific, trainable abilities such as
math, statistics, or programming
• Soft Skills: less tangible skills that are harder
to quantify such as leadership and teamwork
Page 18
19. REFERENCES
Pick 3-5 professional references
•ALWAYS obtain permission first and keep them in
the loop any time they are included in an
application
Create a separate References List you
can submit to an employer upon request
•No need to list “references available upon
request” on your resume
Use the same header you used on your
resume to head the reference page
•Do NOT include in resume unless otherwise specified
List your references’ names, job title,
current employer, work address, phone
number, email & how you know them
Bring References List to your interviews
in addition to spare copies of your cover
letter and resume, just in case
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