Listing Your Accomplishments on Your Resume

If you were an employer looking at a new college graduate’s resume, which of the following entries would impress you more?

• Wrote news releases,
  or,
• Wrote 25 news releases in a three-week period under daily deadlines.

Clearly the statement that quantifies effort and results is the more appealing. Here are some simple rules to follow to enhance your chances for getting an interview.

• List “Accomplishments” not “Responsibilities”. Every administrator has similar responsibilities. It is what you did with those responsibilities that set your resume apart from other candidates.
• Before listing your accomplishments make a list of ways you have saved money, secured additional funding, managed money effectively, improved district performance, reduced dropouts, etc.
• Then, develop a statement in measurable terms showing how you were successful. The statement should begin with an action verb, e.g. developed, initiated, organized, etc. and should include, if possible, with quantifiable results. Numbers are powerful tools that will draw attention to your success. Never use a personal pronoun, e.g. I, my, etc.

Listed below is an example of how an “Accomplishments” section might look when listed under on of the jobs you have held:

ACCOMPLISHMENTS:

• Initiated a “Stay in School” campaign that cut the dropout rate in half and increased attendance by a percentage point. This action resulted in $87,000 annual increase in state aid.
• Increased the number of minority faculty members by forty two percent.
• Moved the district from “Acceptable” to “Recognized” status in three years with all sub populations increasing their scores on all tests by a minimum of 22 percentage points