Keep your objective in mind as you write and refine this section. You should be reinforcing your goals by demonstrating relevant experiences. Use action words as you describe your work experience. Phrases such as “responsibilities included” sound weak compared to phrases that begin with words such as “coordinated, developed, or prepared.” Highlight achievements, your accomplishments and skills. Use the present tense to describe current activities or jobs. Use the past tense throughout the remainder of your résumé.

List Your Experience

Begin by listing four facts: the title of your position, who you worked for (i.e. the company), location of your employer, and when you worked. If your employer has instant name recognition you may want to list that first instead of the position held (you can list the dates when you worked at the end of the entry). The length of your experience can be listed in terms of months or seasons; just be consistent in the format you choose.

Describe Your Experience

Characterize each work experience. Start by writing a narrative description of each experience. Begin with all the responsibilities you assumed during each job—you can always edit if necessary. Use short statements that begin with appropriate action words to describe your responsibilities and achievements.

Bear in mind that experience is not only paid employment. Volunteer activities, internships and fieldwork experiences are equally valuable and may be more relevant than paid employment. And do not forget campus activities—involvement in student organizations can be very important, particularly if you held a leadership position.

When the narrative is complete, write a statement to summarize it. Emphasize your skills and accomplishments. This process may take time; well-written (and well-edited!) résumés are usually the result of multiple drafts.