Last Updated on Mar 11, 2020 by James W
Many college students are busy applying for internships in NYC. This is an exciting time in their lives. Internships allow them to gain experience in the real world that will add to their education. However, it is not always easy to get an internship. If you are not experiencing the success you were hoping for, it might be time to fine-tune your resume. The following suggestions can help you make your resume stand out from other students.
Organize Your Resume
One of the biggest problems with most resumes is that they lack organization. Keep in mind that a headhunter or company is probably scanning hundreds of resumes in hopes of finding one that looks interesting. This means that a block of text on a page will easily get overlooked. Therefore, consider the following suggestions to help your resume appear more organized and presentable:
- Use a header
- Create sections to discuss categories (i.e. school, work, skills, hobbies, volunteer experience, etc)
- Bold the titles so they stand out
- Write in list format instead of paragraphs
- Limit the information to one page
- Keep the punctuation consistent throughout the resume
When you adhere to these guidelines, it is much easier for someone to skim your resume. This will allow them to quickly learn about what you have to offer their company.
Filling the Space
A major challenge that many potential interns face is that they do not have a lot of information to put on their resume. After all, this is the first real job they are looking for. If students have worked part-time jobs in the past, then they can definitely include that experience on the resume. It does not matter if these jobs are minimum wage level jobs. Companies understand that most interns usually only have this kind of work experience. In addition, some students may not have any work experience at all. This is also acceptable. Regardless of past work experience, there is plenty of other information that can be included on the resume including the following:
- Educational information (school attending, graduation year, GPA, etc)
- Memberships to any school clubs and responsibilities you had
- Volunteer activities you participated in
- Awards you have received
- Hobbies
- Skills (computer programs you are proficient in such as Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint and other programs that may pertain to the internship you are applying for)
Remember that a resume is only one page. Therefore, it should be easy to fill in the space with this information. Also, it is particularly important to include the section on skills because companies might search their criteria to find specific candidates they are looking for who will fit their job description.
Tailor Your Resume to the Specific Job
Since you will probably be applying for multiple internships, it might be smart to tailor your resume to each job you apply for. This allows your resume to stand out better with each job that you apply for, giving you a better chance at landing an interview.
Although building a resume can be more challenging when you are still in school, it is not impossible. With these tips, your resume can stand out so you have a better chance at finding an internship.
Please feel free to contact Ella Gray at ella.l.gray@gmail.com with any questions that you may have.
