Starting your career can be overwhelming, especially when you are trying to prove what you are capable of doing to your potential employers. One of the skills that you can include in your resume leadership experience. But what are you going to say about the leadership experience when you are still a student? You need not worry because, with this guide for resume writing tips for students, you will be able to prepare a resume that, in the best possible way, highlights your executive skills.
The first page of your resume must be eye-catching. Compose a summary (3-4 lines) with references to your leadership abilities. Rather than saying, 'I am a hard-working student,' one can say,
Final-year student with demonstrated skills in team leadership and project management. Holding three college events with more than 200 participants and a team of 10 students in competitions between colleges successfully.
Strong words that demonstrate action should be used when you write your summary. Such words as 'led', 'organised', 'managed', 'coordinated', and 'headed' work quite well. These words at once inform the reader that you are in charge.
Do not invent or exaggerate. Write about what you actually did. Tips for writing a resume honestly as a student always include being honest about your experience. When you did have a team of 5 people, do not claim that you had a team of 20.
Rather than combining all the rest with resume leadership experience, designate a separate section for Leadership Experience or Leadership Roles. Recruiters have it easy finding what they need.
Under this section, list your leadership positions with:
Let's look at an example:
Cultural Committee Head, ABC College, Mumbai, June 2023 - Present
Notice how each point starts with an action word and includes specific numbers. This is one of the best resume writing tips for students.
People can write; I was the team leader. But what did you actually accomplish? Making the results visible makes your resume leadership experience that much stronger.
Rather than: Managerial level in charge of the debate club. Write: Raised by 15 to 35 students in six months of debate club membership.
Rather than "Led fundraising activities", type: "Raised Rs. 25,000 for charity due to three fundraising events."
Consider the way your leadership improved it. Did you:
Talk about these additions in your resume. This demonstrates that you are not a leader on paper, but one who gets things done.
In the explanation of your leadership positions, remember this simple formula:
While having a dedicated leadership section is excellent, you should also demonstrate leadership qualities throughout your resume.
In your Education section, mention:
In your Activities section, highlight:
In your Skills section, list leadership-related abilities like:
When listing achievements or awards, include any recognition you got for leadership. This could be:
Your classes and courses offer many chances to show leadership. Think about times when:
Write about these experiences using specific details. "Formed a study group of 8 students for the mathematics exam, created shared notes, and helped improve the group's average score by 15%" sounds much better than just "good at helping others".
Your activities outside the classroom are gold mines for resume leadership experience. Consider:
Sometimes the best leadership stories come from things you started yourself. Did you:
These self-started projects show initiative and leadership, which employers love to see.
Formatting is always a key factor in writing a good student resume. Your resume is supposed to be seen with the eye of the beholder. Use:
Your student resume should not exceed one page. This makes you omit any information that is not the most important regarding your resume and leadership experience. When it does not add value, then drop it.
Many companies also use resume-scanning software before a human scans a resume. This software searches for words of a particular nature. This is why it is worth using terms such as 'leadership', 'team management', 'organised', 'coordinated' and 'managed'. But make them natural; do not force your resume full of keywords.
Spelling errors or grammatical mistakes are the last things that will destroy a good resume. After writing your resume:
Writing a good resume is not the only step in your career preparation. At Mentrovert, we recognise that students in grades 9-12 are in particular need as they strive to achieve their career objectives. As experienced counsellors, we will work with you individually to recognise what you can do well, develop your skills and talents, and demonstrate yourself to colleges and employers with confidence.
Mentorvert provides Indian students with one-on-one online career counselling, whether it's help preparing your resume, selecting the appropriate career, or overcoming the anxiety of board exams and competition preparation. We also believe that all students should have access to expert advice, which is why we provide free counselling services to students who require assistance.
This is the beginning of your leadership career. Having the right direction and a resume that shows what you can do is one step closer to achieving what you can.
Visit Mentrovert today for resume writing tips for students and meet the counsellors who know what you are going through and are here to help you make it.
Q1. What about writing leadership experience when I have never held an official position?
A leader need not necessarily be given a formal position. Cite informal situations in which you have taken up leadership roles, in a group project or in helping to organise a party for a friend, or in leading a study group.
Q2. How do you distinguish between teamwork and leadership on a resume?
Teamwork can be defined as the skill to work as a bunch of individuals. Leadership is concerned with the leadership of that group, making choices and being responsible for the outcomes.
Q3. Should I add leadership positions in the early school years?
Typically, one should focus on the previous experiences since year 9. Nevertheless, in case you had a very significant role once (organisation of a district-level event), and you cannot think of many recent examples, you may write it.
Q4. What leadership experience ought I to add to my resume?
Good is not the amount of what you have. Include 3-5 good leadership experiences that show different skills. It is better to have three well-defined roles with specific achievements as compared to ten roles with no specifications of what you had accomplished.
Q5. Does online leadership qualify on my resume?
Yes! Being the leader of an online study group, the manager of a social media page of some sort of club, arranging a virtual event or mediating an online community – all of them are considered to be leadership.
