USFSP College of Education
Collaborative Digital Network (CDN) Portfolio

Resume

What is it?
Resume is a one or two page summary highlighting your education, work experience, (both paid and unpaid) and other qualifications pertinent to your job search. Resume is often used by administrators to judge whether the teacher applicant is the "kind of person qualified for the work". You will be required to submit an up-to-date resume in your CDN Portfolio.Note that your resume will change as you mature in the college and gain additional experiences. CDN Portfolio will help you to see the copies of your earlier resumes and compare them to your current resume to more clearly understand how you gain professional experiences during the college education. As you develop your resume in your CDN Portfolio, some of the items you may wish to address include: Goals, Qualifications, Education, Experience, Activities, References

Section 1 Goals: Brief statement marketing your immediate career goal & listing 2-4 skills This is a brief statement summarizing your career goals and is important on a resume. Your goals should be focused and specific. Example:

Section 2 Qualifications:
Include any skills that would set you apart from other candidates, primarily computer, public speaking, and foreign language skills. Also include, if any, certifications or achievements. Example:

Section 3 Education:
Begin with most recent level of education; line 1: degree, institution, city, state, graduation month/year; line 2: majors, minors, emphasis, and concentration; cumulative GPA if 3.0 or greater. Example:

Section 4 Experience:
List the most recent experience first for a chronological resume. List the job, the place where you were employed, city, state, and a concise description of what you did. Include dates you worked. Utilize past tense, active verbs.

• Include: Student teaching, Field experiences, Substitute teaching, Practical and internships and can be Full-time or part-time, Paid or volunteer work/experience

In describing your responsibilities on the job, be specific and use active skills verbs such as "planned", "organized", "coordinated", "supervised", and "achieved". See the list of skills verbs included in this information to help you get started in describing your experiences. Always put verbs in the past tense even though you may be currently performing these duties. Example:

Section 5 Activities:
List college activities, officer titles, honor societies, Dean's List, scholarships, volunteer work, fraternity affiliation & committees. It is important to show involvement throughout college in areas other than the classroom and academic achievement. This is not about your hobbies!

Section 5 References:
Identify people that will write or speak positive about your abilities to work with children. Do not include family members as references. Choose your references wisely. Identify three to four people who know you well and can positively describe your character, work traits, abilities and accomplishments. Use professors who know your abilities as a student as well as an employer who knows you in a work setting. Be sure to request permission well in advance from people you are listing as references.

Frequently Asked Questions:

1. What is a resume?
   A resume is a document that you create (or have created for you) that summarizes your life’s accomplishments. Its purpose is to highlight your qualifications for employment, whether for a specific position or a general job category. In short, a resume is an advertisement about yourself that you give to potential employers.
2. Why do I need an objective statement on my resume?
   An objective statement is used to let you and employer know what specific job or internship you are targeting.
3. How long should my objective be? What should be included?
   A resume SHOULD be a stand-alone document. When looking at the resume alone an employer should be able to determine what the candidate is seeking. A clear career objective is essential. The objective should articulate both the objective AND the top skills that a candidate brings to the equation
4. Does volunteer work go on a resume?
   Yes. Relevant "work" experience is in no way limited to paid employment. Include non-paid work, volunteer work, part-time and temporary positions, internships, unstructured work, self-employment, odd jobs, and miscellaneous informal services you may have provided to your academic department or a favored professor—IF IT IS RELEVANT to your field
5. Should I include Clubs/Activities?
   Employers are very interested in your experience with organizations on and off campus, which indicate your leadership potential, interest and involvement in a professional field and philanthropic service. Include your membership and committee work as well as positions of leadership.
6. What if I don’t have anything to put on my resume?
   That's the whole idea of creating a resume very early. It helps to see your professional development. Also there is always something for a resume even if it is the first draft. Let's see. If you haven’t had any paid employment while in school, what extracurricular or volunteer activities have you been involved in? In what ways have you demonstrated leadership or teamwork? Include non-paid work, volunteer work, part-time and temporary positions, internships, odd jobs, and miscellaneous informal services you may have provided to your academic department or a favored professor—IF IT IS RELEVANT to the job or internship you are applying to. Also use your classroom experience. What analytical techniques have you mastered? Expand on these points and list them as “Technical Skills” on your resume.
7. Should I put things I did in high school on my resume? Generally not, unless it was spectacular. Employers want to know what you can do when you are on your own--achievements from high school might just stem from your parents making you work. You don’t need to put your high school degree on your resume—if you are in college, it is assumed that you graduated from high school.
8. Should I include GPA? Major GPA? Minor GPA? General wisdom has concluded that the arbitrary figure of 3.0 is the cut-off for inclusion on your resume. If your GPA is 3.0 or above include it, if it is below 3.0 do not include it. Calculate your major and minor GPA’s too. Same rule. 3.0 and above, include it.
9. Should I list all work experience, even if it is not related to what I am applying for? The simple answer is no. It is neither necessary, nor even desirable, to list ALL jobs on your resume. Ask yourself, “Does this experience help me demonstrate skills that are relevant to the opportunity I am applying for?”
10. Should I include group projects (or major papers) for classes?
    Yes. You should include group projects and/or significant papers. Teamwork and writing skills are among the top skills that employers are seeking. Whether you include the project in your EDUCATION section or in your EXPERIENCE section depends on the significance of the experience.
11. Should I use "I" (or other pronouns) to describe myself or others on my resume? No. Personal pronouns should be avoided on your resume. (I, me, my, our, your, their, she, he) should NOT be on your resume.
12. What other things should I consider? Don’t make claims about your ability to be a “team player”, or other desirable personal traits, without also giving evidence for this clearly in your resume. Otherwise, you’ll just look like you are throwing in buzzwords to pad your resume.