Student Employment Services is hosting Resume Rookie this week, a workshop to help students revamp their resumes for college to get jobs on and off campus.

Director of Student Employment Services Dawn Chong said the workshop is designed to help students create their first resume or expand an old one. The workshop ensures a resume can be loaded into WorkNet and meet the minimum requirements so it can be sent off to potential employers.

“My resume was a mess,” said freshman Alie Cooper, “so it helped me get more organized.”

The workshop lasts from Monday through Thursday between 3 and 4 p.m. in Room 208 of the Bowen-Thompson Student Union.

As said by the Resume Rookie home page, “No work experience? No problem!” There are many ways to build a solid resume without any prior employment experiences. Here are 12 tips from the workshop for creating a resume that will impress employers and increase hiring chances:

1. The resume should list the following in order: the potential employee’s objective, education, employment, co-curricular activities and skills.

2. Items such as contact information and education should be considered mandatory; the writer’s objective and GPA are optional, but can help.

3. List all items in reverse chronological order, with the newest listed first, and the oldest last.

4. Constant updates and revisions are needed to reflect new experiences and jobs.

5. Always write out full school names and official names of degrees and majors; never use acronyms.

6. Personal attributes are not considered skills, so do not write them as skills. Skills can include language proficiencies, certifications, computer program or software specialization and specialized machinery experience.

7. Use action words such as led, achieved, initiated and developed when writing about experiences to sound more professional.

8. Only list three to five bullet points about experiences per job.

9. White space is important; do not let your resume get too crowded.

10. Never use “I” statements.

11. Always create a separate page for references and make sure to ask references for permission to list them before they are added.

12. Check out resources like O-NET OnLine and WorkNet to get assistance with writing a resume and to view sample resumes. Worknet can be accessed through the Student Employment Services website or through a MyBGSU portal.

To sign up for a Resume Rookie workshop, visit the Services and Events page off the main page for Student Employment Services.

Chong said resumes are important because they allow students to articulate their work experience, which is something a lot of employers seek.

For any questions, call the Office of Student Employment Services at 419-372-2865 or email [email protected].