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HKSCAREER ADVANCEMENTt 617-495-1161t career advancement@hks.harvard.eduOCAtt www.hks.harvard.edu/careerSkills: ResumeOFFICEOF CAREERADVANCEMNTresumes that Work: 1Market Your Story SuccessfullyintroductionA good resume presents a prospective employer, and allpotential advisors in your job search, with a clear and concisesummary of your knowledge, skills and accomplishments. Inessence, it is a snapshot of the “professional you” designed toget you the interview!As you start to prepare a resume, always keep in mind that it may bea person’s first introduction to you, the candidate. First impressionscount. In just a few seconds, the reader will form a judgment on thecare and reflection you have brought to writing your resume and,by inference, how committed you are to the job search. Both thepresentation and content are important to forming the employer’sinitial impression of you. Therefore, be sure your resume reflects thesame level of professionalism that you would bring to a presentation to a client. Be sure that the content is thoughtfully prepared toemphasize your most significant accomplishments and to addressthe specific requirements of the type of work you plan to pursue.Employers usually scan a resume quickly, rather than reading it asa narrative. Therefore, the resume must be clear and consistent,making the highlights of your training and accomplishments easy tospot. Your reader will be asking: “Do I want to talk to this candidate;does s/he have the skills and knowledge we need?” Your reader willhave many applications to consider and will be making quick comparisons between candidates. Of course, you want to stand out forthe clarity of your presentation of your knowledge, skills and accomplishments. The Office of Career Advancement (oca) has consultedwith employers about their preferences and recommends the following guidelines in preparing a resume.1. DesignThe Office of Career Advancement(oca) has developed design templatesthat are pleasing to the eye and easy fora reader to scan. We recommend thatstudents use the overall design,incorporating appropriate changes tofit individual circumstances. You maydownload the template from the jackdocument library on the oca website.Additional samples of mpa and mpa/idresumes are also available in the library.If you have fewer than five years ofprofessional experience, we usuallyrecommend a one-page resume.We suggest these design specifications:t Times New Roman 10.5 or 11 pointthroughout the documentt Margins:top and bottom —minimum of .5 inch, maximum 1.0 inch;left and right —minimum of .5 inch, maximum 1.0 incht Text left justified, except header,which is centered, and locations,which are right justifiedt Insert your name and page numberin header, if your resume is more thanone paget Use FULL CAPITALS, Initial Capitals,and Bold to help the reader readilydistinguish the elements in eachblock of textt Use italics for book or thesis titles,for example: Soft Power: The Meansto Success in World Politics;Understanding International ConflictOffice of Career Advancement

HKSCAREER ADVANCEMENT1Present information in reverse chronological order within each section of theresume.3. Name & ContactinformationProvide your current mailing, e-mailand telephone information.4. EducationYour educational history should bedescribed in reverse chronological order.Present the information in a consistentformat, listing university first, then schoolwithin the university as appropriate, forexample: Harvard University, John F.Kennedy School of Government.Write the full name of your hks degree:t Master in Public Policyt Master in Public Administrationt Master in Public Administration inInternational Developmentt Mason Fellows may add belowMaster in Public Administration:t Fellow, Edward S. Mason Programin Public Policy and ManagementIf your resume includes credentialsfrom universities outside the U.S., use theexact name of the degree as provided bythe granting institution. If necessary, youmay add a phrase to clarify the level oftraining attained, for example:“equivalent to JD.”t coursework Here is an opportunityto educate your reader about yourprogram and your own focus. You mayinclude selected course titles, if they areshort, or key words such as “statistics”or “environmental policy.” mpps may wishto include their pac.mpps and mpa/ids are advised to usethe term “Policy Analysis Exercise” or“Second Year Policy Analysis,” respectively. In a cover letter, you may thenexplain briefly that the pae or sypa is thehks-equivalent to a master’s thesis.paget career advancement@hks.harvard.edut www.hks.harvard.edu/careerresumes that Work2. Content2t 617-495-1161t honors Be selective in honors youlist, enumerating the highest in eachcategory. Similarly, if you were awardedseveral scholarships/fellowships, list onlythose to which you attach the mostimportance. The terms summa cum laude,magna cum laude, and cum laude arealways italicized.GPA is not routinely included in an HKSresume. However, if an employer states aminimum requirement, include your GPAin the resume. Similarly, if an employerrequires high proficiency in quantitativeanalysis, you may include your GRE orGMAT score.5. LeadershipThis section of your resume isdiscretionary. You may wish to includeinformation on extra-curricular activitythat highlights your growing interest in aprofessional field, your capacity toorganize and manage people and teams,personal accomplishments, ormanagement skills that may not be readilydiscerned from the Experience sectiondescribed below.6. ExperienceAs in Education (see above), you shouldalways list your professional experience inreverse chronological order. List the nameof the organization, followed by yourdepartment within the organization. If theorganization is not well-known and itsmission is not evident from its name orthe context, you may choose to add adescriptive phrase.Provide a brief description of eachexperience. Present the information inabbreviated sentences, omitting definiteand indefinite articles such as “the,” “a,”“an,” and also omitting pronouns, suchas “I” or “their.” As a convention,numbers with or % signs and allnumbers 10 and above are written asfigures, for example: 9%, team of 25.Use verbs, in the past tense, to describeyour work. Use active voice. See page 4 ofthis document for a list of verbscommonly used in resume writing.Whenever possible, introduce a varietyof verbs, for example: “managed,”“directed,” and “oversaw.”Emphasize your accomplishments in thecontext of the resources available to you.Be specific about size of budget, size ofteam supervised, etc. Numbers are moreeffective than adjectives in describingyour success. For example, “increasedenrollment by 15%” lets the reader learnmore than “successfully increasedenrollment.”Within each job, organize information in alogical flow so the reader can understandthe different elements of what you haveaccomplished. Assign more space todescribing more recent and/or moresignificant experiences and less space toless recent or less significant experiences.The description of each experience shouldbe presented in a bulleted format thathighlights your accomplishments andresults. These descriptions should marketyour skills and accomplishments, notsimply list tasks and duties. We suggestthat each bullet point be one to four lines.t for example: Wrote successful grant proposalsgenerating 1.2 million in new revenue.Funds supported development ofinnovative literacy programs reaching100,000 additional clients across fivestates. Received “Top Volunteer” award fromlocal City Council for more than 100hours volunteering in homeless shelter,food bank and senior citizen dayprogram.

HKSCAREER ADVANCEMENTt 617-495-1161t career advancement@hks.harvard.edut www.hks.harvard.edu/careerResumes that work7. OptionalAdditionsYour resume may conclude with theExperience section, or you may choose toadd further relevant information. Beloware some common additions in an hksresume.t travel Be specific about countriesvisited and length of time spent abroadwhere this sheds light on yourprofessional interests, capability to livein hardship conditions, etc.t languages Be specific on yourfluency: native, fluent, proficient,intermediate, beginner, and whetherskills are spoken or written.t professional affiliations You mayinclude membership in professionalorganizations. Be prepared to discussyour active involvement.t computer skills General proficiencymay be assumed and does not need to bestated. Include in this section specificskills required for a type of position, forexample: Proficient in stata.8. PolishingYour ResumeAlways proofread your resume, and neverrely entirely on the spell check function onyour computer to catch all errors. Themost effective way to catch mistakes is toread your resume aloud from start tofinish, and also to read it aloud from lastword to first. In addition, ask a friend toproofread with you.For individual advice, make anappointment (30–45 minutes) with anoca coach. Coaches can advise you ontailoring your resume to a particularemployer, assist in organizing material,and brainstorm an effective resume for astudent making a significant transition.Quick questions can be addressed in15-minute walk-in sessions offered daily.9. FrequentlyAskedQuestionst How long should my resume be?A general rule is that a candidate with lessthan five years work experience should beable to write an effective one-pageresume. No resume should be longer thantwo pages. Candidates with extensivepublications and presentations mayinclude this information as an addendumin following pages.t Should I include references?Where required with an application,references should be listed on a separatesheet of paper. Be sure to include currentcontact information.t Should I include information aboutmy date of birth, marital status andnumber of children?Should I include a photo?1recent experience in full and a summaryof their earlier work history. As foractivities, list those which most directlyconnect to the work you want to do, and/or which you believe most distinguishyou. Be selective and keep the list brief.t What type of paper should myresume be printed on?Is it ok to email a resume?If you are sending a hard copy resume,print it on resume stock in a neutral color,white or cream. Many resumes today aresubmitted by email, and some throughonline resume collection systems forposted opportunities. Follow thedirections for submission indicated by theemployer. PDF format is recommended.t How should I name the file?Name your resume clearly, using lastname, first name or initial, and the word“resume,” for example: BennettDresume.pdf.NO. U.S. law prohibits recruiters oremployers from asking for any personalinformation that is not essential to the jobfunction. U.S. employers may not ask for,nor should you provide informationabout, your date of birth, height orweight, marital status, number of childrenor sexual orientation. Never attach aphotograph to your resume for a U.S.employer.t Should I mention political affiliations?First ask yourself: “Is this informationrelevant?” Include information on yourpolitical involvement only if it will be ofinterest to your reader, and you arereasonably certain it will be viewed in apositive light by your audience.t How far back should I go in listing mypositions and activities?Kennedy School students in two-yearprograms usually include all professionalpositions from the completion of their firstdegree, with a description of each thatwill vary in length depending on theactivity and relevance. Students with veryextensive experience may describe morepage3

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(resume: sample one, MPp)DANA BENNETT1350 Massachusetts Avenue, Apt. 80

recommend a one-page resume. We suggest these design specifications: t Times new Roman 10.5 or 11 point throughout the document tsame level of professionalism that you would bring to a presenta Margins: top and bottom — minimum of .5 inch, maximum 1.0 inch; left and right — minimum of .5 inch, maximum 1.0