With the Fall Career & Internship Fair right around the corner, hundreds of employers are actively preparing to review UMBC talent. But when a recruiter scans a resume, they spend an average of five to seven seconds before making a decision.

A strong resume does not just list past job duties — it translates your experiences into measurable outcomes that prove you can hit the ground running. By making a few strategic adjustments to your document today, you can ensure your resume effectively highlights your potential.

Shift from Duties to Achievements
The biggest mistake candidates make is writing resume bullet points that read like a job description. Recruiters already know what a research assistant, tutor, or retail associate generally does; they want to know how well you did it. Replace passive phrasing like "responsible for handling customer calls" with active, result-driven statements like "resolved 30+ client inquiries daily while maintaining a 98% satisfaction rating."

Quantify Your Impact with Industry Competencies
According to NACE data on candidate selection, employers look heavily for evidence of problem-solving, teamwork, and technical aptitude. Quantify your achievements whenever possible to add credibility. Did you analyze a dataset? Mention the size or software used. Did you organize a campus event? Include the attendance numbers or budget managed. Numbers give scale and context to your hard work, and look impressive.

Tailor Bullet Points to Target Roles
Sending the exact same resume to a variety of different job roles dilutes your impact. Review the job descriptions of your top employers visiting campus this fall, identify their recurring skill-based keywords — such as specific programming languages, project management methodologies, or research approaches — and demonstrate your competency in those areas in the bullet points of your resume. Tailor your document per role, as companies hiring for the same roles will have similar responsibilities. This prevents you from ending up with 100+ different resumes in your file folders. 

Keep Layouts Clean and ATS-Friendly
Fancy multi-column designs, graphic skill-rating bars, and text boxes can confuse applicant tracking systems (ATS) and make your document difficult for recruiters to skim quickly. Stick to a clean, single-column layout using standard reverse-chronological order, clear section headers, consistent margins, and bulleted lists. We want to make their jobs easier, not harder, to hire you.

Ready to Get Started?
Don't wait until the day of the career fair to find out if your resume stands out. Drop in the Career Center today at Resume Rescue between 10 AM and 4 PM to get a quick, expert review from our staff before fall recruiting events begin.