Resumes

What is a resume?

A resume is a document you will use to apply for jobs, internships and other professional opportunities. It provides an overview of your relevant education, skills, and experiences as they relate to the opportunity you seek, and should present who you are as a candidate in a clear, concise, and compelling way. Resumes should be well written, perfectly punctuated, honest, concise, one page, organized, and consistent in formatting.

Customizing Resumes

If you apply online for a job or internship (as opposed to emailing your resume to a person), your application will likely go through an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) also known as a resume robot. ATS are software that help employers manage many applications by pre-screening resumes according to job qualifications and keyword matching between resumes and the job posting. ATS don’t read cover letters, but they do comb through resumes carefully so you will need to customize your resume for each job to make it through this system. 

• How to Get Your Resume Past the System and Into Human Hands
• Jobscan ATS Resume Checker
• Skillsyncer ATS Resume Scanner

In addition to being formatted for an ATS, your resume needs to function well when a human being reads it. Hiring managers do a first read-through of applicant resumes surprisingly quickly – spending 10 seconds or less on each to determine who warrants a closer look and discarding most of them. Employers are looking for directly relevant information that matches their job description and discarding applicants with generic sounding or ineffectively-written resumes. They are determining the handful of applicants to invite to interview. If they can’t find what they are looking for quickly on your resume (even if it’s there), they will not consider you further.

The Basics

It takes time to prepare an effective resume. These guidelines will help you get noticed by employers with the goal of gaining an invitation to interview for the position you are seeking.

CVs

What is a CV?

A Curriculum Vitae, or CV, is a list of accomplishments and qualifications usually used when applying for graduate school, grants, fellowships, artist residencies, and teaching opportunities. A CV is similar to a resume, but there are key differences. The advice on this document is mainly for United States CVs and pertains to undergraduate students.

Your goal when making a CV is to clearly, efficiently, and with common words show your audience that you have the qualifications for the position (or grant, fellowship, residency, etc.).

The Basics

It takes time to prepare an effective CV. Don’t forget to update it after a new accomplishment!

Organization/Content

Try to include and arrange information according to the relevance it holds for your audience. For instance, if you apply to a history grad program, “Performances” won’t be relevant, but a “Performances” section is relevant if you apply to a music program.

• Heading
  • Write your name at the top on a line by itself.
  • Include contact information under your name.
• Education
  • List your degree(s) and institutions. Don’t forget to include the degree you’re currently working on!
• Teaching (does what you’re applying to involve a teaching component?)
  • Include any teaching, tutoring, or mentoring experience you may have. For example: working in a writing center, tutoring students (in any subject), mentoring new students, working as a Teaching Assistant (TA), assisting in a K-12 class, being a camp counselor, etc.
• Research (are your research or research skills relevant?)
  • You can include your thesis/capstone and any substantial projects or papers you’ve worked on.
  • Additionally, (if these apply to you—many students won’t have these accomplishments yet) include: publications, conference presentations, honors, awards, fellowships, grants, and research experience.
• Arts Performances/Showcases/Exhibits (is what you’re applying to in a fine or performing arts field?)
  • Include solo or ensemble performances, gallery showings, exhibitions, festivals, arts groups/troupes you belonged to, etc.—anywhere you were able to share your work!
  • You may also include awards or honors.
• Additional Experience
  • You can include non-academic work, but try not to let it overwhelm your academic/arts work.
  • You may also include school organizations/committees; community outreach; volunteering; professional development; certificates; training; professional affiliations; language skills; technical skills; etc.

Format

• Don’t use a template. Start from a plain Word or Google doc. You don’t need to make your CV pretty or creative.
• For emphasis, use bold and capital letters. Avoid headers/footers, columns, lines, underlines, and borders.
• Unlike a resume, a CV can be as many pages as you need (but note that applications may require a “brief” or 1-2 page CV).

Some Finer Points…

• Know and write to your audience. Every time you send out a CV, it should be customized to your audience.
• CVs don’t usually include as much explanatory text as resumes. If you include descriptions for experience/accomplishments, be brief. Do include explanatory text if:
  • An experience is completely different from what that position implies.
  • You describe a project/research position.
• Entries under a section heading should be in reverse-chronological order (most-recent first).
• UMass is a nickname—write “University of Massachusetts Amherst” every time.

A Final Note…

• Look at recent successful CV examples in your field. If you have a friend in your field who was recently accepted into grad school or an arts program, ask to see their CV.

Cover Letters

Basics

A cover letter is a letter of introduction that you submit with your resume when applying for opportunities. The cover letter works in tandem with your resume; while your resume presents relevant data and facts about your skills and experience, a cover letter is a narrative, whose purpose is to highlight and expand upon your most relevant experiences that align with the requirements of the position. The cover letter is also a chance to share your knowledge of, and interest in, the employer and to move to the next step in the hiring process: a job interview.

A cover letter should be no longer than one page, and ideally 3 or 4 paragraphs. You should include an opening and closing paragraph in addition to the main content. Your name and contact information should match what is on your resume, and we recommend using business professional format, with the date and employer’s contact information at the top, under your header.

Letters should be tailored for each position (no generic letters or templates!) and be addressed to an individual. If no name is available, then address it to the Hiring Manager, Search Committee, or Internship Coordinator (or something similar).

Keep in mind: there is no such thing as a good general cover letter. Each job or internship you apply for requires a demonstration of how your qualifications fit with a specific company or organization, and should reflect the attributes the employer is seeking for a specific role. It’s an opportunity to connect the dots for the employer and show why you are a great fit for them.

Before You Begin

Research! Be sure you understand the employer, the position, and how your skills, education, and experience align with what they need. Carefully re-read the job description to identify the required qualifications and scour the company/organization website and LinkedIn pages to understand the culture. Search online for articles, reviews, or press releases related to the organization and its activities. Your cover letter should convey that you understand what the company is about and that you understand the position.

Identify the main qualifications the employer is seeking. Consider how your courses, academic projects, internships and jobs, volunteer experience, and extracurricular activities relate to the responsibilities and qualifications for the job. Jot these down.

Choose 2 or 3 of the most relevant examples from your experiences that match the qualifications for the job.

Demonstrate to the employer that you’ve done your research by connecting the position to your skills and experience. For example: “It’s my understanding that you’re seeking candidates who possess strong writing and editing skills. My internship at a publishing house enabled me to develop those precise skills through...”

End on a positive and enthusiastic note. Remember to thank them for their time and reiterate how excited you are about the possibility of working with them.  

AI and Your Application Materials

HFA Career Services recognizes that you have likely already been cautioned about the responsible use of artificial intelligence (AI) (the platforms themselves are usually quick to share their own disclaimers). We have immense confidence in HFA’s students' critical thinking ability, communication skills, and ethical judgment when using these tools, as well as your ability to decide when, how, and if you will use them. 

The goal of this guide is not to persuade you whether you should or should not use AI broadly. Instead, we want to explore more specific questions: How does the use of AI impact the development of your application materials? What implications does it have for the success of your job or internship search?

Simply put, we believe that a successful job or internship search begins with application materials that authentically communicate your strengths, experiences, and potential.

As you consider using AI tools in the development of your application materials, please consider the following:

• Who are you, really? AI may describe your experiences inaccurately or suggest language that doesn't reflect your skills, experiences, or communication style. Your application is often an employer's first introduction to you, as well as your first writing sample. If your materials don't genuinely reflect who you are, employers may not get a strong enough sense of your actual skills and experiences to invite you for an interview. If you are selected, AI-generated materials may create expectations that do not align with your communication style, interview responses, or workplace writing.
• Getting ready for the interview: Thoughtfully creating your own documents helps you understand and “own” each bullet point and experience you include. This preparation makes it easier to both recall and discuss your experiences, skills, and accomplishments during the interview.
• Protect your privacy: AI tools may collect and store information submitted by users. Avoid inputting personal or sensitive information, including your name, contact information, employment history, or other identifying details from your resume or cover letter.

Potential Uses of AI

AI may be a useful tool for brainstorming and editing, but it should not replace your own writing or understanding of your experiences. 

Potential ways AI tools may be helpful in your application development include:

• Ask AI to generate questions that help you reflect on your experiences, accomplishments, and skills.
• Ask AI to explain unfamiliar terminology, industry language, or skills mentioned in a job description.
• Use AI to identify keywords and skills from a job description and its required qualifications that may be relevant to include on your resume as keywords.
• Ask AI to review your resume or cover letter for grammar, spelling, or sentence clarity. 
• Input a resume bullet point and ask AI to suggest alternative action verbs or ways to improve clarity.
• Share an experience, such as a project, internship, or job, and ask AI to help identify transferable skills. 

We hope this guidance helps you make informed decisions about using AI throughout your job or internship search. If you have questions about AI as it relates to your materials, or would like feedback on your application materials, HFA Career Services is here to help.