College is the time to be building your resume and gaining work experience in your field of study, but finding applicable experience to put on your resume is a challenge for many students, especially when you feel like you can’t get hired because you don’t have experience. Below are a few tips that I’ve picked up in my time working in the Human Resources office at USFSP to help you build your resume to obtain that coveted campus job.
1. List It Out
Experience is a tricky thing when you are new to the workforce. The first step is to list all of the experience you do have, and then weed through your list to find what is most relevant. The list can consist of any jobs you’ve held, volunteer work, or on-campus activities you are currently or have been involved in. Try to keep the list as recent as possible. I suggest limiting unpaid positions, such as volunteering to the past four years.
2. Get Creative
Write down as many experiences as you can think of and explain the skills you have gained from these experiences. Get creative by tailoring your responses to each application. For instance, if you are applying for an office job and your only past employment is babysitting, think of the skills you used or gained as a babysitter. Changing diapers may not be a helpful skill, but time management and leadership skills are definitely employable and realistic things to have learned.
3. Clean It Up
When your potential employers have sifted through a hundred similar applications and resumes, it helps to have a nice, clean and easy to read resume. There are templates available online to download and edit for free or to buy, depending on what you want. Likewise, there are websites that will create your resume based on a template you choose where you plug in your information. I paid three dollars for the template I used for my most recent resume and in my last three job interviews, each potential employer pointed out that the design made my application stand out from the rest.
When updating your resume as a college student, remember that making a few changes can go a long way. Since experience for a specific job can be hard to come by, take time to think of any position you’ve held where certain skills used there can be applied to the position for which you are applying. Once you know what content will go in your resume, take time to consider the impact of the appearance and organization. Don’t underestimate the power of a nice looking design! In addition, don’t be afraid to ask for help; most universities have a career resource center with people who are trained to help you make the most of your resume and can get you one step closer to getting your dream job.