Idealist Careers Try This Challenge # 5 | Refresh Your Resume was originally published on Idealist Careers.
Congrats! You’ve made it to the fifth and final challenge in the #IdealistCareersTryThis Challenge series. To wrap up all of the great work you’ve done the last few weeks, it’s time for the ever-dreaded (and ever- important) resume and cover letter update.
(Haven’t tried the other challenges yet? Then get started with Challenge #1 now!)
Challenge #5
The previous challenges have helped you gain new insights and refresh important career connections. Now it’s time to bring those gains to your resume and/or cover letter template.
Did you take a course? Recall a professional success (and perhaps pull together some numbers that best illustrate that success)? Reconnect with a mentor? Find where in your resume or cover letter these new developments can live so you can appropriately feature all of your hard work.
Pro Tip: New insights on professional challenges and growth, renewed professional connections, and passion projects can all go in your cover letter, while courses taken and quantitative success should fit nicely into your resume.
Why it matters
A lot of work goes into drafting a good resume and keeping it up to date. You’ll want to make sure you’re using the best format to showcase your skills and achievements, that you’ve carefully edited each section, and that the information you include is relevant to the position for which you’re applying.
And if you haven’t dusted off the old resume in a while, you’ll probably be surprised at what needs to be updated and reformatted.
