SEE ALSO: Sample Personal Statement Fulbright Pakistan
Write down your achievements rather than your job description: Your graduate resume is an advertisement of yourself and therefore must be presented in a convincing manner that ‘sells’ your skills and motivation. No one would be impressed by your Microsoft Office skills. Everything mentioned should add something to your chances. Don’t waste words. I have seen many resumes that simply say: “Worked in a team of 5 people and did financial forecasting” or “Responsible for carrying out day to day activities”.
Unfortunately these are not very powerful phrases – moreover these are just descriptions of things you did at work – more important is what you achieved while doing them. Instead of writing these canned phrases, write something like “Directed financial activities for 95 advertising campaigns that generated Rs. 2 billion in profits”. Now this is much better – it not only relays what you did at work but it also tells the reader what you accomplished out of it. Therefore focus on your accomplishments.
Don’t include an objective: “Obtain a position where I can maximize my BLA BLA BLA”. Well there is no need to include ‘Objective’ in resume. Flashy objective lines are very bland and they don’t do much good. Everyone in Pakistan writes one and I think it is just a filler that has no value – one can tell what your objective is by looking at the rest of your application – so better not waste lines by including an objective in your Fulbright or graduate school resume.
Don’t include personal information: Your contact information, your name, age etc. can be found in other parts of your Fulbright application forms – therefore no need to rewrite those in your resume.
Avoid writing irrelevant things: Consider the range of your academic and professional experiences and be creative about how you translate your skills and experiences. Don’t include degrees, diplomas, internships, volunteer work, jobs etc. that are irrelevant to your field of application – an irrelevant experience may go against your application since it may confound the admissions committee about your interests.
Don’t just list down things: I have seen applicants list things in their resume. Make sure that your Fulbright resume is organized and easy to read. You shouldn’t make a list of things that extend to 5 pages or so.
Don’t list references: References shouldn’t be included in your resume. Avoid adding line that states ‘References are available upon request’. It only takes up space and besides, all graduate programs and Fulbright scholarship require reference letters anyway.
It is important to brainstorm first before you start penning down your achievements. After all, it is important that you believe in yourself before anyone else will.
Sample 1: Here is a Sample Resume that is very compact and powerful.
Sample 2: Here is a Sample Resume of a successful Fulbright applicant.