Fine tuning your resume into something employers want to seeHow to make yourself look more hire-able!

Summer internships are quickly approaching and there is still time to apply to businesses in places like Dallas, Fort Worth, OKC, Tulsa and more. Making your resume stand out and look professional, along with writing a strong cover letter, can be the most challenging part of applying. Here are some good pointers to strengthen your resume and cover letter.

On your resume, include all of your contact information like address, email, phone, even Skype name so the company has different ways of reaching you. Always put your objective of why you are applying to internships or jobs. List every experience relevant to the internship starting from most recent. Put all activities you are currently involved in. Do not list high school activities or activities that have nothing to do with what you are applying for. 

The school you are attending and your major/minor should be listed, but avoid putting down your GPA; they generally do not care. Experience is more valuable than your grades. Only put down skills that would be useful to the internship or that make you stand out. Try not to make your resume longer than one page as most companies want to skim through the resumes as quickly as possible. If it is long, they won’t read it, so to keep it to one page use one sentence to describe each experience and activity. Lastly, make your resume look tasteful by using some color, borders or different professional fonts.

For the cover letter, always address it to the person who will be interviewing you or who is in charge of the internship process. Never use  “to whom it may concern.”  This shows that the letter is not personal and you did not make the effort to look up their name. 

In the first paragraph, mention the internship you are interested in and then write about what you are involved in with your school or other activities. In the second paragraph, write about what you want to get out of the internship and what you will bring to the table. This is when you brag about your experience and about what you know academically or what skills you have acquired. The third paragraph is when you talk about yourself as an individual, your personality pros and cons. Even though it can be weird to brag about yourself, this is when you are supposed to show your best abilities and attributes to stand out from everyone else applying for the same position. In the final paragraph, state that you are including your resume, repeat why you want this position and why you would be good for it. Thank them for their time and close with a professional good-bye.

Resumes and cover letters are some of the most vital tools to getting an internship (or at least an interview). If you tailor your resume to look and read professionally, and make your cover letter stand out, you will be on the right track to getting that internship for summer. Good luck to everyone applying!