Use Microsoft Word to prepare your resume; however, DON'T use the resume templates in Microsoft Word. Templates we have seen do not create effective resumes based on what we know about employers' opinions. DO create your own simple Microsoft Word format, using a table with invisible borders, as explained and shown in the example below:
- Page margins of 1/2 to 1 inch on all sides generally look fine.
- Except for your name, which can be larger, font sizes of 10, 11 or 12 generally look fine. Note that Arial 12 and Times 12 are not the same size. If you have trouble getting your content on one page, use a smaller font, like Arial 10.
- Create your heading (name, addresses, phone numbers and email). You can create a three-column, two-row table (with cells merged on top row) to organize your heading, as shown below, if you find this helpful.
- For the body of your resume, create a table; one column for headings; another column for content; one row for each heading section.
- You can resize and realign your content easily as you revise your resume. Using the table format means you don't have to individually tab each line of your resume.
- Set your borders to be invisible: format > borders and shading > borders > none. You'll see them on screen as guidelines, but they won't print.
- For assistance, use the "Help" function in Microsoft Word or visit the Career Services Computer Lab.
SAMPLE layout / format:
Name (centered or left justified; bold and larger than other text) | |||
School address 1st line 2nd line Telephone Email address (email address under your name looks fine also) |
| Permanent Address 1st line 2nd line Telephone |
Objective | Your concise objective here |
Education | B.S. (Major), June 2006 Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech) Blacksburg, Virginia GPA: x.x/4.0 Earned and financed 70% of tuition and college expenses |
Skills | First skill Another skill Etc. |
Experience | Employer Company/Organization, City & State location Job Title, Month/Year dates (DO use the bullet feature in MS Word to list each item) (DON'T try to manually insert bullets and manually add spacing to make your indentions line up) |
Activities & Honors | (Leadership position in organization) (Award) (Scholarship) |