Resume Resources

A resume presents your story by highlighting your skills (the things you do well). Employers initially scan a resume for 30 to 60 seconds, so it needs to be descriptive and concise at the same time. It also needs to be tailored to the organization to which you are applying. We asked a few recruiters to tell us what they notice on a resume in 30 seconds. Check out what they look for in the video below.

Sections to Include + Quick Formatting Tips

To keep your resume easy to read, divide it into these common sections. Check out the samples in the resources section for examples of what to include.

Name and Contact Information
Summary (Optional- more common with experienced professionals, but an option for any student)
Education
Experience- This is often broken up into two or three sections based on the themes in your experiences. Common headings include: Work/Professional Experience, Clubs/Student Organizations, Leadership Experience, and Service/Community Involvement.
Skills (Optional)

Most employers take 30-60 seconds per resume during their first glance. Don’t get stuck in the “no” pile because of formatting issues.

Keep your document to one page (for most undergraduates)
Put your experiences in reverse chronological order in each section
Keep your formatting consistent and easy to skim quickly (i.e. put job titles, organization names, dates, and locations in the same location each time)
Use bullets, not paragraphs
Quantify when possible and use the Bullet Plus Formula to show skills, not just tasks (keep scrolling for more on the Bullet Plus formula!)
Tailor your resume to the experience for which you are applying

Write Higher Quality Bullet Points

Show the reader your skills (instead of just listing the tasks you did) by using the bullet plus model:

Action Verb + What + How/Why/Impact

Basic bullet: Developed interpersonal skills
Bullet plus: Developed interpersonal skills by facilitating cross-cultural conversations with Malawian teens and community members(how)
Basic bullet: Created real interest monitoring tool
Bullet plus: Created real interest monitoring tool to study the effect of rate changes on foreign exchange levels(why)
Basic bullet: Directed actors in productions
Bullet plus: Directed 5-10 student actors and managed technical team in both short and full-length productions attracting audiences of 100+(impact)

Instant Resume Feedback + Other Resources

VMOCK-24/7 access to instant resume feedback for all U-M undergraduate students
Targeted Resume- Automatic feedback on if your resume is tailored for a specific position for anyone with a umich.edu email

Resume Templates

To get started, choose a template from below > make a copy of the template > edit it with your information

Resume Examples

Choose a thumbnail to access the full view

Undergrad Examples

Masters Examples

If you are a doctoral student, please visit our PhD Non-Academic Job Search page for resume resources.

Resume Action Verbs

Action Verbs for Resumes and Professional Profiles

Management	Communication	Research	Technical	Teaching	Financial	Creative	Helping	Organization	Achievements
administered	addressed	analyzed	adapted	adapted	administered	acted	adapted	approved	achieved
analyzed	advertised	clarified	assembled	advised	adjusted	adapted	advocated	arranged	completed
appointed	arbitrated	collected	built	clarified	allocated	began	aided	cataloged	expanded
approved	arranged	compared	calculated	coached	analyzed	combined	answered	categorized	exceeded
assigned	articulated	conducted	computed	communicated	appraised	conceptualized	arranged	charted	improved
attained	authored	critiqued	conserved	conducted	assessed	condensed	assessed	classified	pioneered
authorized	clarified	detected	constructed	coordinated	audited	created	assisted	coded	reduced (losses)
chaired	collaborated	determined	converted	critiqued	balanced	customized	cared	collected	resolved (issues)
considered	communicated	diagnosed	debugged	developed	calculated	designed	for	compiled	restored
consolidated	composed	evaluated	designed	enabled	computed	developed	clarified	corresponded	spearheaded
contracted	condensed	examined	determined	encouraged	conserved	directed	coached	distributed	succeeded
controlled	conferred	experimented	developed	evaluated	corrected	displayed	collaborated	executed	surpassed
converted	consulted	explored	engineered	explained	determined	drew	contributed	filed	transformed
coordinated	contacted	extracted	fabricated	facilitated	developed	entertained	cooperated	generated	won
decided	conveyed	formulated	fortified	focused	estimated	established	counseled	implemented
delegated	convinced	gathered	installed	guided	forecasted	fashioned	demonstrated	incorporated
developed	corresponded	identified	maintained	individualized	managed	formulated	diagnosed	inspected
directed	debated	inspected	operated	informed	marketed	founded	educated	logged
eliminated	defined	interpreted	overhauled	instilled	measured	illustrated	encouraged	maintained
emphasized	described	interviewed	printed	instructed	planned	initiated	ensured	monitored
enforced	developed	invented	programmed	motivated	programmed	instituted	expedited	obtained
enhanced	directed	investigated	rectified	persuaded	projected	integrated	facilitated	operated
established	discussed	located	regulated	set	reconciled	introduced	familiarize	ordered
executed	drafted	measured	repaired	goals	reduced	invented	furthered	organized
generated	edited	organized	replaced	simulated	researched	modeled	guided	prepared
handled	elicited	researched	restored	stimulated	retrieved	modified	helped	processed
headed	enlisted	searched	solved	taught	originated	insured	provided
hired	explained	solved	specialized	tested	performed	intervened	purchased
hosted	expressed	summarized	standardized	trained	photographed	motivated	recorded
improved	formulated	surveyed	studied	transmitted	planned	provided	registered
incorporated	furnished	systematized	upgraded	tutored	revised	referred	reserved
increased	incorporated	tested	utilized	revitalized	rehabilitated	responded
initiated	influenced	shaped	presented	reviewed
inspected	interacted	solved	resolved	routed
instituted	interpreted	simplified	scheduled
led	interviewed	supplied	screened
managed	involved	supported	set up
merged	joined	volunteered	submitted
motivated	judged	supplied
organized	lectured	standardized
originated	listened	systematized
overhauled	marketed	updated
oversaw	mediated	validated
planned	moderated	verified
presided	negotiated
prioritized	observed
produced	outlined
recommended	participated
reorganized	persuaded
replaced	presented
restored	promoted
reviewed	proposed
scheduled	publicized
streamlined	reconciled
strengthened	recruited
supervised	referred
terminated	reinforced
reported
resolved
responded
solicited
specified
spoke
suggested
summarized
synthesized
translated
wrote

Using AI on Your Resume

GenAI Tools (like U-M GPT or ChatGPT) can be incredibly helpful for resumes, but don’t forget to be careful with what you share. We recommend only putting personal information (like your resume) into U-M GPT.

Here are a few ways to get started:

Brainstorming Example Prompts:
- Copy/paste a job description and ask “Summarize the most important keywords and skills from this job description”
- “I am about to apply for a job as an account manager at an advertising agency and I'm working on my resume. Can you ask me questions about my marketing internship to help me generate ideas for my bullet points?
- Copy in the job description and your resume and ask “Where does my resume match up with the job description? What skills are missing from my resume that are on the job description?”
- “Review the following bullet points for how effective they will be for a data scientist role. Provide suggestions for how I could improve them”
- Important Note: Use this as a starting point and don’t just copy/paste! Recruiters tell us they can tell when something is a straight copy/paste from a GenAI tool. Edit the bullets so that they are accurate and written in your own voice.
- “This summer I was a research assistant for Professor Smith. The project was about (add details). My specific role was (add details). The results of the experiment were (add details). I want to highlight these skills: (add details). Generate resume bullet points using the Bullet Plus Model.”
- Upload your resume then ask, “Optimize my resume for a job as a financial analyst.”
Note: We recommend using U-M GPT to keep your information secure. If you use other tools, we recommend removing any personal information. It is also important to make sure you do not include any sensitive information from your employers and you’re aware of any NDAs you have signed.