Writing a resume can feel awkward — you need to be persuasive, summarize your experience on one page, and stand out enough to land an interview. Remember: your resume isn’t a job description — it’s your story.
Whether you’re just entering the workforce or refreshing your resume for a new opportunity, we’ve gathered tips to guide you — with advice from Lori Coe, Associate Director of Lacy School of Business Career Development at Butler University.
Start With Authenticity
“Sometimes candidates write a resume they think a recruiter would like to see, and it shifts away from authenticity,” Coe says. “You can never go wrong if you stay true to yourself and highlight your own personal strengths, skillset, and results.”
Treat Your Resume Like a Hook, Not a Task List
When a recruiter has your job title, they can already guess those things. Your resume isn’t meant to document everything you did. It’s meant to tease the stories you’ll tell in the interview. Think of each bullet as a hook, conversation starter, and a preview of your strengths.
Start With Feedback, Not Formatting
The best resume content often comes from others. Ask friends, family, or mentors what stands out about you. Coe calls feedback a “gift” that highlights strengths you might overlook. Your resume is your personal brand collateral. Show what you bring to an organization.
Design Mistakes That Quietly Hurt You
Keep it clean. Content matters most, but design can help—or distract.
“We’re looking for clear, concise, and easy to read formats,” Coe said. “For example, a picture of a telephone next to a phone number can be distracting and cause a recruiter to have to slow down and look for what they are trying to find.”
Best practices:
- Stick to black and white
- Avoid heavy icons, graphics, or decorative lines
- Skip premade templates
- Use a clear, easy-to-read layout
- 11–12 pt font; use bold for emphasis
- Avoid italics and underlining
- One page
- Simple = professional
Quick Fixes to Improve Your Resume
- Remove your full address
- If you are an out of state student and applying for a position at home, use your home address
- Use only cell/LinkedIn/eportfolio instead of state, if you are applying for a role that will require you to move
- Delete “References available upon request”
- High school and college students: include expected graduation date at the top (remove later)
- Mirror keywords from the job posting
Coe says recruiters scan resumes quickly; alignment with the job posting improves your chances of making it past that first screen.
Showcase Your Transferable Skills
You can reposition your story even if your experience doesn’t match perfectly. Highlight transferable skills using:
- The feedback you’ve received
- The strengths that show up repeatedly
- The moments where you created impact
The story doesn’t change—just the framing.
Pro Tip for Interviews
Bring a physical resume copy. It shows preparation, professionalism, and gives the interviewer a reference.
Stay Authentic (Even Using Tools)
Candidates should use spell-check, grammar tools and AI, or ask for help when you hit a writing block — but ensure the final resume still sounds like you.
At the end of the day, your resume isn’t just about getting an interview, it’s about clearly communicating why you belong in the room.
