Crafting a Student Résumé for College Applications

Donut or bagel? Sunrise or sunset? iOS or Android? Horror film or comedy? Cats or dogs? Call or text? Spotify or Apple Music? Free coffee or free Wi-Fi? Beach or mountains? 

I enjoy donuts and coffee on the beach at sunrise. I choose films with humor, never horror, and I am a big fan of short texts. Also, there is no question: dogs, only. Playing This or That, or Three Things about Me, and creating top ten lists are all great ways to learn more about yourself and your friends or to get to know someone better. They’re also a fun way to exercise your partiality and reveal a bit about who you are as a person. All are very low stress games that can easily reveal your preferred choices, and it is this unique set of favorites that will give others a clue into who you are as a distinct individual.

Our choices shape our world, and sharing information about ourselves has become a feature of life for people of all ages. Personal websites, Instagram accounts, TikTok, and LinkedIn profiles all call for bits of information or “story boards” about our lives. These multi-media platforms can produce really impressive portraits, but what about conveying straightforward, practical information?

The résumé is a practical and informative document that has become a useful tool for high school students to share information about themselves quickly and efficiently. Think of the college interview or an internship application. A résumé is a good way to deliver some background information that helps to understand you and what makes keeps you motivated to a college representative or potential supervisor. Make sure to include things like your contact information, honors, awards, academic highlights, and extracurricular interests. Another important consideration is that, in constructing a résumé, you’ll need to think carefully about all of your activities and accomplishments, and consider the most significant experiences of your high school experience. This kind of reflection, self-knowledge, and research skills that you’ll need to help you construct a résumé are also the skills that will form the backbone of your college search process. Start early, reflect often and update as you gather new experiences. You are always evolving as an individual, so your résumé should be, too!