Resume Critiquing

Resume Critiquing Florida State University Career Center

Heading • Complete information (i.e., name, address, phone number) • Placed at the top of the page • E-mail address (optional) • Name on subsequent pages

Objective • Place immediately after identification info • Targets area of employment • Clearly stated • Focused • See the Career Objective Guide for additional assistance

Overall Appearance • Resume looks professional • Do you want to read it? • Easy to follow? • Correct spelling, grammar, punctuation

Layout • Key points stand out (e.g., skills, interests, goals) • Uncluttered • Uses formatting appropriately (e.g., boldface, underlining, bullets) • Adequate margins and white space

Organization • Key information accents skills, accomplishments, abilities • Appropriate categories emphasized • Strongest to weakest order • Specifics stand out • Consistent format

Action-oriented • Uses positive-action verbs • Avoids introductory phrases • Results-oriented work descriptions • Avoids exaggerations or flowery adjectives

Concise • Uses short, clearly written phrases and paragraphs • Avoids complete and run-on sentences • Uses summary statements to condense information

Relevance • Extraneous material omitted • Provides facts • Avoids generalities • Clear to the reader exactly what was done and why it relates to an objective

Controversial Info • Avoids mentioning controversial activities • Doesn’t raise more questions in the employer’s mind than it answers

Appearance • Avoidedextreme colorsand formats unless appropriate to career goals • Used a high quality printer • Made copies on high quality paper • Got extra sheets of paper for cover letters

Bottom Line • How well does the resume present a positive picture of the applicant’s qualifications? • Will it get generate a request for an interview?

Resume Critiquing