When many students think about joining clubs, interning or working part-time, they often consider whether that activity helps them build an attractive resume. 

Jill Pletcher, director of Career Services at Wichita State, said, “For many positions, it is the first opportunity for an employer to know anything about you. 

“Employers did tell us they look at a resume the first time for 7-10 seconds. So if it is not immediately clear to them what your qualifications are, that you’ve had the appropriate background, those kinds of things, then they flip through, and they’ll never look at you again.” 

Pletcher gave tips for constructing a resume that stands out from the rest. 

Make it visually interesting.

 “Sometimes when employers talk to us about what they see, it is one that is just visually done well, readable, formatted nicely, those kinds of things.” 

The first thing employers will notice is the format of your resume. If it looks well done, that helps. 

Don’t include references automatically.

“If they’re asking for references, then I would do a separate page that would use the same contact information header as you would for your resume, so that there are some similarities to it. Then just list the contact information for three different references.” 

Putting “references available upon request” on the bottom isn’t necessary; just put them on a separate page. 

Tailor it to the job you’re applying for.

“Employers have in their mind a specific kind of a person they’d like to have in a given role, because of what they want them to do.” 

Tailoring a resume gives employers better information about applicants’ backgrounds relevant to the job’s responsibilities. Highlighting a special class project or something similar that pertains to the job gives employers information about you.

Don’t just give job descriptions.

“Ten other people could have that same job description, but I know that each of those 10 people does it differently, based on who they are, how motivated they are, how talented they are.” 

Write about what made you stand out in at previous jobs. Pletcher gave an example of a waitress who wrote that she often had customers request to be seated in her section, making it obvious that she did something differently. Quantifying things also gives scope to accomplishments.

Career Services is on campus to offer students help in their job search. They offer starter kits with sample resumes and can critique resumes based on job descriptions. 

Critiques can be done during regular walk-in hours on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, from noon until 1:00 p.m., or by appointment. On Sept. 23-24, resume reviews will be offered from noon to 7:00 p.m., and on Sept. 25, they will be available from noon to 4:00 p.m. 

Career Services is located in Room 203 on the second floor of Grace Wilkie Hall, a small building between the Heskett Center and Ablah Library. For more information, call 978-3435 or go to wichita.edu/careerservices.