Resume Building Tips for Incoming Students

The most important piece of paper you will graduate RIT holding, along with your diploma, is your resume! RIT has one of the strongest co-op and experiential education programs in the nation, providing students with hands-on experiences and paid employment during their time as an undergraduate. You will graduate ahead of your peers with over a year of experience relevant to your field and a jumpstart to your professional development.

Although, the road to reaching that point can be riddled with insecurity. “How can I secure my first co-op if I don’t have any work experience?” is a frequently asked question by first-year students. Don’t worry, RIT does not demand that you figure that out independently. There is a mandatory career seminar for every major before you can accept a co-op. This class requires you to build a resume, and then the instructors provide as many rounds of feedback as needed to make it attractive to employers. Resumes are frequently revised multiple times before they are polished and ready to be used for job applications; there is no shame in not making a perfect resume the first time. While the advice provided in the career seminar class is helpful, as a fourth-year civil engineering technology student who has landed three co-ops at three different companies, I’ve had a variety of employment experiences and want to add my pieces of advice that can make you feel even more comfortable in your resume.

1. You don’t have to make a carbon copy of the example resumes provided in the career seminar class. 

Resumes should be personalized to your strengths and organizational style in a manner that allows you to easily transition between your education, classes, skills, and previous work experiences during an interview. The instructors of the seminar are going to emphasize the importance of an “objective” session that describes your current situation. Honestly, in nearly every interview I’ve completed with employers, the first question they’ve asked me was, “What are you looking for?” when that was answered in my objective already. Since hiring managers are likely not reading it, you can free up that space on your resume to display more of your experiences.

2. At this point, any work experience should be mentioned.

Employers implicitly understand that when they post an intern/co-op role, they are going to receive applicants with zero industry experience. The purpose of these postings is to gain that industry experience for when you’re searching for full-time employment. The company is taking a calculated risk on you to be receptive to mentoring, possess discipline and commitment, and show up punctually every morning. Those characteristics can be demonstrated on your resume by holding down previous jobs in retail, hospitality, caddying, etc.

3. Projects completed in your class are resume-worthy material.

If you have a large hole in your resume, adding completed class projects is an effective way to close it. However, you run the risk of including a project that everyone else in your class has completed - diminishing its effectiveness in distinguishing yourself from other candidates.

4. High school experiences are fine to include as long as they are leadership-oriented.

Vital emphasis on the leadership part. Now that you’re in college, most employers don’t care about where you went to high school or what activities you participated in. The exception to that is if you were leading the activity you were engaged with; team captain of a sport, president of a club, leader of an honors society, etc. What would make this experience distinguish you further is if you continue engaging with it during college.

5. Divide your skills into two sections: technical and personal.

Your marketable skills are more than just the software programs you can use; decision-making, communication, leadership, and initiative are all equally, if not more important. Splitting these skills into two distinct categories prevents all your skills from being muddied. For example, as a civil engineering student, I was exposed to AutoCAD, the Adobe Suite, and the Microsoft Office Suite before I secured my first co-op. I listed those programs under “technical,” and then made a “strengths” section to highlight my communication skills.

6. Mention numbers wherever possible.

This is the most important piece of advice on this blog. Your resume becomes tremendously more impactful when you know your numbers. As an exercise, compare the two resume descriptions below.

• Managed lighting projects
• Verified they met local regulations for light levels

      -or-

• Managed 12 site lighting projects to replace metal halide fixtures with LEDs 
• Analyzed photometric plans to verify they reached 5 fc in the main drive lane and 3 fc in the parking areas

See how much more detail the numbers provide? Both describe the exact same work, but the inclusion of the numbers and specific details are much more likely to catch the attention of a hiring manager.

Resumes can vary greatly between industries. Hiring managers across varying disciplines expect different things from candidates, and you should prioritize what your major requires accordingly. The tips I have provided are general enough so that no matter where you’re searching for a job, they will still apply and strengthen your resume. Happy job hunting!