Insights on Writing your Résumé:

• Résumé Resources
• Sample Student Résumés
  • Student Résumés 1
  • Student Résumés 2
• Symbol Set/ Infographic approach
• Correct Punctuation and How to make
• Correct Quote and Apostrophe Marks and Dashes
• Adobe Illustrator Tools
• Adobe Illustrator Tips and Tools
• Typographic Variables
• Minimum Typographic Management

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ARTS 073 Freshman Seminar Résumé Assignment:

Your résumé is primarily a list of your Accomplishments, Experiences and Education. It is a vital part of your personal Visual Identity group (which also includes, your website, business card and logo). It is many times the first form of information about you that a potential employer, gallery owner, or internship supervisor, etc. will see about you. As such, it can have a huge impact on making a first impression. To help make that impression a positive one, a well-designed résum´must accomplish the following:

• Be truthful and accurate
• Be 100% correctly spelled and grammatically accurate
• Be well-organized, clear and concise
• Represent the uniqueness of you
• Represent your qualifications in terms of interests, accomplishments, experiences
• Be organized and logical in its’ format/design and sequence
• Be recognizable visually as a part of the larger visual identity group

Design

• Résumé Organization using these Categories:
  • About Me
  • Education
  • Employment
  • Other (Awards, Interests, Scholarships, Achievements, Hobbies, etc.)
• Arrange all information in reverse chronological order:
  • the most recent experiences in each category at the top and the oldest at the bottom.
• Be consistent with the order of details
  • for each entry across all categories
• Print out a draft copy for me to proofread.
• Save and upload a corrected PDF version to the Canvas assignment page.
• Create a LINK to a Downloadable PDF of your final version and place the LINK on your Bio page (which will be located under the “About Me Tab/Page”).
• Do not place an actual copy of the résumé on your Website. 

TIPS

• • Do not write the word résumé on the résumé
  • Be sure to proofread and spell check thoroughly
  • Use correct forms of punctuation such as en and em dashes (not hyphens), typographer’s quotes, and typographer’s apostrophes (not ditto or foot marks)
  • References available upon request or on a separate reference sheet (be sure you have permission to use those references ahead of time).
  • This is a special document meant to be held in one’s hands to read. It is not a poster, visibility from across the room usually means that the type is probably too large in size.

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A lot can be read from your résumé. It is probably the first information that an employer will hear of you and therefore it serves as an introduction to you as a person and as a professional designer. It’s your one-page portfolio. It’s the virtual you.

Your résumé serves as a professional introduction of your related employment experiences, educational history and unique interests in an outline form. It is typically used as a reference sheet by a potential employer to get a sense of your qualifications, interests and experiences related to an employment opportunity. The résumé itself is definitely information, which should demand undivided attention. It needs to be designed. As a designer, it also is an opportunity for you to display your layout, typographic and general visual organizational skills. Therefore, it must indicate clear understanding of grouping and hierarchy, prioritization, and readability of typographic information. Your choice of typefaces and typography, the layout and the organization of information, the paper stock, etc., all contribute to the way you will be perceived as a potential designer. It also shows what you can do on a single piece of paper. But high wire acts are dangerous, so keep it simple and readable. (Even David Carson’s business card is ultimately readable.) No elaborate personal logos, please, especially if you’re just out of school. It’s a bit pretentious. As you create and organize the personal information on your résumé, approach it as a design problem where the subject is you.

Your résumé needs to motivate to ask for your portfolio. Your education and work experiences are very important, but ultimately it’s the live you, your work and presentation, which make someone want to hire you.

Typical organization for a recent college graduate might include:

• A brief sentence which, indicates what type of work you are seeking (an artist’s statement)
• A category for educational history, include software proficiency
• A category for employment history, include your responsibilities
• A category of special interests, hobbies, awards or recognitions

Consistency is extremely important. The order and look you establish for information such as place, address & year for each entry should remain the same for each entry. Use typographic forms of emphasis such as bold or italics on different information in a consistent manner. The rule here is to treat similar forms of information in a similar fashion.

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For example, here are two different formats both showing a consistent order and typographic style being applied to entries from an Employment category and also an entry from an Education category below it;

In the first examples, The name of the place (business or school) of is treated in all caps and bold. This is followed by the city where the place (business or school) is located. The third line contains what was done there (employment) or what was achieved (school). Finally the years are listed separated by an EM dash. If multiple years are indicated, those years are separated by and EN Dash.

In the second pair of examples, the year is indicated first. (again correct dashes must be used). Second lines contain the city and state, the third lines contain the name of the place (business or school) and the last lines contain the title of achievement in italics (academic degree or job title).

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Tutorials: Adobe Illustrator Type

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Let’s face it: first impressions count. And in this digital age, most professional first impressions happen online. By creating a resume website, you can establish your online presence in a way that fits with your personal brand and professional goals. 

A resume website is one way to showcase your experience and interests and can help future collaborators and employers understand the unique value you can bring to a project. The process of distilling your resume or CV into a custom website may even lead you towards a new career path.

Step 1: Choose a template for your resume website 

Squarespace offers a variety of customizable templates that provide the perfect starting point for a personal website. After previewing examples, choose a template and begin selecting the  layout and design elements that speak to your style. Be sure to add visual elements and key messages that will catch visitors’ attention and reinforce your goals. Experiment with curated site styles like custom font packs and color palettes or customize your own. You can use the built-in photo editor to crop photos or source free high quality stock images through our integration with Unsplash to add relevant visual elements to your site. 

Step 2: Craft your pitch 

Once you have a design framework, it’s time to start telling your story. Make your homepage concise and easy to digest while also giving people the opportunity to learn more through examples. Try outlining the ideas that demonstrate your expertise before adding them to your website. Show your experience by highlighting how you have applied your skills to different problems or industries. Make sure you mention a speciality or passion so potential employers or collaborators can see what type of work excites you and where you excel. Consider including your hobbies and side projects as they may relate to your core skill set and ambitions. 

Step 3: Lead visitors to learn more and get in touch

Make your personal site easy to navigate by focusing on what’s most important to visitors—learning about you and getting in touch. You might decide to keep your pitch and work examples on one page or add a Portfolio page to showcase your projects. Encourage potential clients and employers to contact you by creating a contact page or just a section on your homepage. Consider connecting and displaying LinkedIn or your social media accounts if they are relevant. You may also choose to add a downloadable PDF of your resume or CV.  Embedded PDFs aren’t indexable by search engines, but including one makes it easy for visitors to download and print a hard copy if you’d like them to be able to do so. Take a moment to review our SEO checklist for more best practices.

Step 4: Register a Domain

It’s vital to add a custom domain to your personal website. If you already have a domain, you can transfer it to your Squarespace site or you can register a new domain through Squarespace. Either way, be sure to use a domain that includes your full name or your business name. Consider using a domain that ends in .me, .work, .bio, .info, .studio, or .online for your personal website. Read more about domain name considerations in this blog post.

Step 5: Share with Your Network

Once you have your personal website updated with all the relevant information, it’s time to go live. Share your new site with your network so they understand your experience and what kind of professional project or role you’re looking for next. When they hear of a relevant opportunity you’ll be top of mind, and your site will be easy for them to share. Consider creating social posts that announce your new website and add it to your  email footer. This way you’ll make sure that you’re expanding your potential reach to everyone who already knows you or follows you online. If you’re looking to build your brand on social media, be sure to check out this blog post.