I have some work experience/skills but I can’t imagine that it would fill a whole page (or even half a page). I am an incoming freshman and already am setting up a first interview… do they expect me to have a resume?
It depends on the position. I would have one ready just in case.
You should put your high school education on it as well as any significant skills (ex. foreign languages), even if they are unrelated to the position.
@guineagirl96 will it look bad if it’s super short? And should I only put a foreign language if I speak it at a near-native level? And for the high school thing, do I just put the name and address of the high school I attended?
I would try to make it one page if possible. You do not have to be near-native level to put a foreign language on your resume, but you need to be honest as to what your proficiency is.
As an example, my resume my first year of college contained:
-my name and contact info (email, mailing, and phone)
-college name, location, intended major, projected graduation date
-high school name, location, and graduation date
-a short description of my senior research project (graduation requirement, mine was an iPhone application)
-the name and location of the community college I dual-enrolled at one summer (along with date) in high school, along with gpa/semester date
-scholarships I received towards my college education (and a short description for each on competitiveness, what it was for, etc)
-previous work experience (office assistant; listed some of my specific duties)
-foreign language skills (for me, basic french and intermediate german, with advanced german oral comprehension)
-programming languages I had experience with, ranked by my familiarity/skill level
-other technical skills learned in high school (CAD, circuit design)
-other miscellaneous skills, such as proficiency with Microsoft Office
Wow my high school experience seems very average compared to all of that. Would it be better to have a very short resume or none at all? I’m thinking that if it’s too short, it’ll just point out the fact that I haven’t done much.
I went to a magnet STEM high school, so I did not have the average experience.
I’d say it’s better to have a short one than none at all, in case they ask for one.
What ECs did you do in high school? Sometimes, skills from these can be transferred and applied to jobs, so the related skills can be listed on a resume. For example, music may mean able to multi-task, be creative, work well with others, etc.
List your volunteer experience.
You’d be surprised in what you already know that is a vocational skill.
At the bottom, where you put “licenses/skills” you can put
California Drivers License
Proficient in Microsoft Word/Excel
but I don’t have a license and I’m awful at technology @“aunt bea”
@guineagirl96 Volleyball captain was the main thing I had.
You can put that on there if you don’t have anything else.
You can put what your duties were as captain; it shows leadership abilities.