Building Your Resume
By: Cyrus, Editor in Chief National Edition

November 17, 1999

Many different types of resumes exist, but generally the word on the street is the simpler, the better. Use white or off-white paper and a very simple font, at least 10 point, preferably 12. For students or recent graduates, one page should be enough!

Even if you have no actual on-the-job experience, the likelihood is that you do have plenty of material to create a worthwhile resume. What do you do after school? Are you on Student Council? That's your leadership experience. Have you volunteered in the office of a non-profit organization? There's administrative experience. You don't have to get paid to build your resume. There are two types of resumes: functional and chronological. The functional type is often easier for students to complete, as it lists your skills first and relates any experience you've had to those skills. The chronological resume lists your experience (in order from most recent to longest ago) and details the skills pertaining to each job or event you list.

It is absolutely up to you which type you choose; you might want to try both and see which one looks more complete. More important than the format is the content. Make sure you list all your accomplishments and skills, but do not list things that are completely irrelevant. Tell employers you directed a play your junior year (creativity, leadership) but do not tell them you were in plays in elementary school. It's too long ago and it's not part of who you are now.

The last thing you must do is proofread and edit your resume. Have other people you trust (a parent, a teacher, etc.) read it over and check for errors. Spellcheck is also a wonderful tool! In the worst case scenario, you could be turned down for a job because you forgot to fix a spelling error on your resume! It is worth your time to make sure the grammar, spelling, punctuation and usage are perfect.

Now you are ready to get your resume out there, but what about a cover letter?