Career: Internship Resume 101

In the previous post in the career section I have tried to outline the difference between a Resume and a CV. Now its time to know a little bit more about 'resumes'. For a revision purpose a resume is a document, usually one page in length which serves as an introduction to prospective employers. A Curriculum Vita on the other hand is much more descriptive and is usually at least 3 pages in length.

Internship Resume vs Normal Resume

Now, whenever students search for sample resumes online they find themselves baffled. That is because they actually look at normal resumes and not internship resumes. Normal resumes are meant for individuals who already have a good amount of work experience. However, we cannot expect that fresh graduates would have that much work experience. So fresh graduates usually resort to internship resumes which contain more information on academic learning.

The goal of an internship resume is to help you obtain practical experience to compliment your academic experience in a particular career field of interest. An internship resume helps the employer place your current level of knowledge and skill development in your college educational process. The focus for an internship resume is not on knowledge and professional skills, but on the academic background and transferable skills you will be able to apply in an internship setting. Transferable skills like interpersonal communication, teamwork, initiative, and self-directed leadership are gained through campus involvement and employment during the school year and college breaks.

Resume Content

1. Name, address, telephone and email—if you are living on campus include your current and permanent address and use a telephone number where you can easily be reached. Remember to ensure your current voice mail greeting is professional and others answering your phone take accurate and complete messages once your resume has been sent to an employer. Your name should be typed in a larger font size to make it easier for an employer to identify and remember your resume.

2. Internship objective—the objective is a concise statement of exactly what you want to pursue in an internship experience and should be catered to each internship position for which you apply. It is better not to include an objective at all than to use one that is too broad or extremely narrow.

3. Education—emphasize the highest level you have achieved, including study abroad experiences. If your GPA is at or above a 3.0, include it as well as academic honors and awards.

4. Relevant coursework, academic highlights, and/or research experience—list courses relevant to the type of internship you would like to pursue and describe research projects or academic experiences related to the type of work your hope to do in an internship.

5. Skills—list language skills, computer skills, and special certifications that relate to the internship opportunity.

6. Work or relevant experience—use this section to highlight the transferable skills you have developed by tying them to the responsibilities you have had in employment experiences. If necessary, employment from high school may be listed in this section, although it is not preferred.

7. Campus and Community Activities—list transferable skills by tying them to involvement in campus organizations, church and volunteer activities in which you participated at Hope or during college breaks.

8. Additional information—if may be necessary to include publications of poetry, articles, etc., posters, or other artistic work. Faculty and OCS staff are available to help you determine if additional information is expected in your career field of interest.

How to Describe Experiences

Transferable skills are outlined through descriptions of your work experience and campus/community activities. Because the employer wants to see the most relevant information first, each description begins with a subheading that includes a position title first, followed by an employer name (if applicable), the geographic location (if applicable), and the dates of the experience.

Descriptions may be in the format of a paragraph with several phrases/sentences that outline each experience or they may be represented in a bulleted list below each description’s subheading, but the format must be consistent throughout the resume.

Action Verbs

Each descriptive phrase used each sub-heading should begin with an action very in the past tense; no subject nouns or pronouns are used. Be sure to use a variety of action verbs in order to keep your resume from appearing repetitive.

Links

List of Action Verbs

Sample Internship Resume