The Student Leader Fellowship Program hosted a Skill Builder! Workshop on modern resumes to help those attending create an effective resume.

The workshop was open to all students and alumni and discussed cover resume content, writing techniques and how to avoid common resume missteps. SLFP hosted the event from 5-6:30 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 20 in Jamrich room 2319.

According to the Skill Builders! webpage, the SLFP offers a dynamic series of 25-30 workshops on aspects of leadership development every semester.

“Topics have included public speaking, working with youth, assertiveness, electronic networking, team-building and communication,” the Skill Builders! webpage said. “Other workshops have included kayaking, ropes courses, snowshoeing and dining etiquette.”

Grant Langdon, assistant director of Career Services, said the work of creating a resume makes the stress of applying for jobs minimal while building confidence for when it comes to getting the interview. Langdon said that resumes are also a good way of preparing for an interview and making that step easier.

“The process of creating a resume well before it is ever used does two main things. One, it creates a philosophy of looking for and tracking accomplishments in your classes, volunteer experiences and jobs,” Langdon said. “Two, you will have those accomplishments, workshops and conferences recorded to quickly add to the individualized custom resume you will actually use to apply.”

Langdon said that because more companies are using AI to screen resumes before a human sees them, the workshop will focus on being able to be read and understood by a computer, then shine in the hands of a human.

“Computers are not good at reading a deeper meaning and most templates found on the internet do not work with the AI doing the screening.” Langdon said.

For Marlie Fowler, junior elementary education and secondary Spanish education major, creating resumes is something important for entering the professional world but is also something she knows little about.

“I am looking forward to gaining insight on how to create a clear and professional resume that lets employers know who I am,” Fowler said.

Like Fowler, Gwendolyn Feamster, sophomore political science major, said that she is looking forward to gaining insight from the workshop. Feamster said she has a lot of jobs and is not sure which ones to put on to make her resume not overcrowded.

“I think it is going to make me look like a better candidate having a clean, concise resume,”  Feamster said. “This will hopefully set me ahead when it comes to looking for a career or applying for a position within the University.”

For those who have many jobs under their belt and are not sure how to add them all in without overcrowding the resume, the workshop will be a good resource to learn how to balance that information.

“I have so many years of work, volunteer and educational experience, my resume is like 7 pages long,” Mandy Bonesteel, junior sociology major said. “I want to be able to trim it down but not lose vital information.”

While students can learn aspects of creating a resume for job opportunities during their time at NMU, the workshop also serves those looking to create a resume for the professional post-education world.

Faith King, junior social media design management major, said that the workshop will build off of concepts she has already learned in classes.

“I think a lot of people have a specific idea of what a resume should look like—clean, concise and to the point. However, I personally believe that there is a lot of room for creativity in a modern resume,” King said. “If the intention is to market yourself, you should be able to allow your personality to be a significant component of it. After all, a resume is intended to hire a person, not a list of skills and achievements.”

Those who are unable to attend the workshop and are looking for resources on resume building can make an appointment with Career Services by calling them at 906-227-2800. Langdon said that Career Services will be able to review a resume so that those looking for help can have the best advantage when applying for jobs in the future.

“You never know who you’ll work with or for that could present an opportunity you’d otherwise be unaware of,” Langdon said.