Resume Checklist
Stick to 10-12 point font size AND one font style. Pick a font style that is legible and easy to read such as Times
New Roman, Arial, or Calibri.
Use bolding, italics, or CAPS sparingly to emphasize key text such as section headers, university/company
name, job title, etc.
½ - 1 inch margins are standard. Margins should be consistent along all four sides.
Utilize your white space appropriately. Make sure to balance white space and text.
Organize information according to what’s most relevant to the employer. Relevant information should be
placed closer to the top of your resume.
Don’t clutter your resume with nonessential, irrelevant information such as an Objective or Summary
statement.
Be consistent in formatting, position of certain text, location of bullet points, etc.
Align all dates to the right to balance out content and separate out information.
Do not use pronouns: I, me, my, their, our, etc.
Do not include references on a resume.
Strive to keep resume one page in length. Do not exceed two pages.
Make sure your resume is free of typos and grammatical errors.
Include your name, phone number, and a professional email address at the top of your resume. Add a
personalized LinkedIn URL link to your profile.
Emphasize your name by increasing the font size by several point sizes or bolding it.
Overall Guidelines
Header
Education
Include name of university, city and state and degree.
List the name of your degree and major. Example: Bachelor of Science in Biology
List your relevant academic achievements.
Experience
Organize your experiences in reverse chronological order.
Include company name, your job title, city and state, and dates of experience (start and end date).
Pick either your job title/roles or company to bold.
Use bullet points to list job responsibilities AND accomplishments/improvements – employers are really
interested in these.
Start your bullet points with action verbs. Vary your choice of verbs. Your verb tense should be in the same
tense as the experience: past experiences should include past-tense verbs (compiled, created, etc.); current
experiences should include present-tense verbs (compile, created, etc.)
Keep bullets under two lines.
Use digits (#, %, $) when writing out numbers. It improves readability and saves space. Example: Supervised 5
employees; Increased sales by 15%; Collected $300 for fundraising event.
