How do I use bullet points in a resume?

When writing bullet points it is important to go beyond just your “duties” at a job. One way to do this is to think of the “5 w’s and an h” rule you learned in school.

Who – who did your job help? The company? Clients? Customers?

What – what happened with the results of the job? If you did research, was that information published? If you had to do a report what was done with that information?

When – when did this happen? Daily? Weekly, monthly? Talking about how often you did something is a straightforward way to show productivity in your job.

Where – where did your duties occur? Did you have to travel for a job? Were you responsible for interacting with people outside of your organization?

Why & How– why did you do this? How did your job duties help or add to the organizations ability to function? 

Here is a sample of how to add content and valuable details to your resume. The “details” will set you apart from other candidates and highlight your skills and expertise appropriately.

Before

American Marketing Association (AMA) - Fall 2009-present
Member

  • Created personal brand
  • Attended weekly meetings
  • Volunteered at service activities and fundraising events

After

American Marketing Association (AMA) - Fall 2009-present
Member

  • Enhanced skills for future success and created own personal brand shared with 12 area employers
  • Participated in bi-weekly meetings to expand knowledge of marketing concepts
  • Attended and participated in four service activities and three fundraisers to apply learned theory
     

Before

Sal‘S T-Shirt Depot, Any Town, IL - June 2009-present
Sales Associate

  • Assisted with inventory
  • Provided quality customer service
  • Built displays for featured products

After

Sal‘S T-Shirt Depot, Any Town, IL - June 2009-present
Sales Associate

  • Assisted with daily and monthly inventory of over 1200 domestic and foreign products
  • Provided quality customer service by handling customer questions, complaints, and problem solving
  • Managed 200+ cash and credit transactions, balanced drawer, and atm accurately as part of each shift

Another important thing to remember is to quantify. Adding numbers – whether it be money, number of times you did something, or how much of something you accomplished – shows productivity. Productivity is always transferrable.

Bullet point examples

Tippie Buddies

  • Bridged culture gaps between international and domestic undergraduate students through regular interactions in support of social, academic, and professional growth
  • Selected through application process for a semester long fellowship to support global engagement through coordinated activities within the college of business

Teaching Assistant

  • Assisted 100+ undergraduate students with completion of projects and assignments, led small group discussions to review material and enhance test prep
  • Held weekly office hours to support homework and answer questions related to class lectures
  • Collaborated with other tas to complete weekly tasks and materials in preparation for class/lecture and support grading of assignments, projects, and exams

Courtesy Associate/Retail Associate

  • Provide prompt, efficient, and accurate service in all customer interactions; handling inquires related to service and products, pricing, and inventory
  • Assist customers by identifying the appropriate products, securing products that are out of reach and loading or unloading heavy items
  • Perform and manage special projects and requests, across departments, to maximize product displays, accurate pricing, and up-keep and safety of facilities to enhance customer experience

Henry Fund

  • Selected through a competitive application process to manage $11.5m endowed equity portfolio
  • Analyzed equity valuation using discounted cash flows, economic profit, and relative valuation models
  • Presented buy/sell recommendations to advisory board and collaborated with team to determine final portfolio selections

Consulting & projects

Students have the option of presenting their project experience under education or experience section of the resume. It is critical and mandatory we comply with the signed non-disclosure agreements in place for each project. It is your responsibility to avoid disclosing any information that could be viewed as conflicting with both the spirit and letter of the non- disclosure agreement you if you signed one as a member of the project team.

Resume recommendations – Education

Graduate student consultant, Iowa MBA consulting, Client: TIAA-CREF - January – May 2020

  • Define project scope, objectives, and goals. Keep this concise. One- or two-lines max.

Resume recommendations – Experience

Iowa MBA consulting, Client: Aegon – USA Investment Management, LLC  - January – May 2020 
Graduate Student Consultant

  • Define project scope, objectives, and goals. Keep this concise.
  • Mid-final stage: specific actions, desired outcomes/results
  • Mid-final stage: can you demonstrate teaming or leadership skills gained? If so, add a third bullet.