Key Sections of Your Resume
Identifying Information
This section includes your name, address(es), phone number(s), and email address. Some people choose to include their contact information for both home and campus to ensure quicker contact with employers. Do not include date of birth, marital status, health, or other personal information that is not job related. Personal information of this nature may even cause some employers to disqualify you from consideration.
Job/Career Objective
The objective is optional and a good way to highlight a specific skill, indicate a specific career focus, or specify the position for which you are applying. The objective should be specific and focused, kept to one to two lines.
Profile or Qualifications Summary
This may directly follow an objective statement or identifying information and lists only skills, experience, and abilities relevant for the position that you are seeking. This shows the reader upfront that you have the skills they are looking for. It is especially helpful when applying for positions outside your field. Usually four or five bullet points are included.
Education
List your academic background in reverse chronological order (Pitt Public Health degree will be first and can use expected date of graduation). Include the institution, location, degree, academic major, and date of completion for each educational accomplishment. Some resumes include minors, subfields, relevant courses, and honors in this section.You can highlight a few courses relevant to your stated objective if you are a first year student seeking a summer opportunity or have little experience.
Licensure and certifications can be inserted here; list state and area of licensure or certification and date. Include expected licensure as pending or in process.
Professional Experience
Begin with your most recent experience and list the employer/organization/institution, location, job title, and description for each position in reverse chronological order. Begin each description with a skill or action verb and avoid using “responsible for”, “duties include”, and “worked on” as part of your description. Use either past or present tense, as applicable, and keep your format consistent. Describe each experience in the sequence that works in your favor. For example, if your last job involved supervising others only 30% of the time, yet it is a skill you would like to emphasize, list supervisory experiences first. You should always include non-paid experience if it is in any way related to the job you are pursuing.
Other Experience
List positions that are not related to the career that you are pursuing.
Special Skills
List skills that supplement your experience. Include computer skills, communication skills, language skills/proficiencies, and other relevant skills.
Other Section Headings Typically Included
Most resumes include professional memberships and honors and awards. Some resumes also include items such as academic service, volunteer opportunities, or community service. These can appear in different sections of your resume or in a separate section, depending on the purpose of the particular resume.
References
References should be listed on a separate page with your name and contact information at the top of the page. Be sure that your reference page is on the same paper as your resume. Include each referee’s name, position/title, current organization, work address, phone number, and email address. You may also want to include a brief explanation of the person's relationship with you (i.e. former supervisor).
Resume Formats
Chronological and Functional Formats
Chronological format is the preferred and most commonly used. The emphasis is on presenting education, experiences, and additional information in a clear, straightforward, and concise manner. Most examples on this site are chronological resumes.
The functional format emphasizes skill areas. This format allows you to highlight the relevant experience by function while de-emphasizing specific dates or jobs because of gaps in employment or lack of relevant experience.