I remember sitting at my desk looking on the web for resume writing tips and becoming very frustrated. I had to go from site to site looking for the right answers.
A lot of sites were just trying to sell me their templates.
Who has time for that? Not you. So here are some resume writing tips that I have picked up over the years which I hope will help you get that interview!
These tips are for anyone. You can be going for a public defender position or any other job in the legal profession.
Also, pick and choose what works for you. try out a couple formats and run them by a mentor, career counselor, or even me GideonsSoldiers@gmail.com.
Does My Resume Need To Be One Page?
Of all the resume writing tips out there, this one is the most controversial. But the reality is that most employers want to see a one page resume.
As a member of a state-wide hiring committee that sees hundreds of applications a year, I do prefer the one page resume. It is easy to read and can be digested quickly.
Unless you are an experienced attorney, there really isn’t any reason why your resume should be longer than a page. Are there exceptions to the rule? Of course. But I find that for second and third year law students, one page is more than sufficient.
Should I Have An Intro Paragraph?
One of the best resume writing tips that I ever received was to put a short, but powerful, intro paragraph at the top of my resume. It’s like a two or three sentence cover letter right at the top of your resume.
This intro paragraph should be captioned as “Summary of Experience.” Here is an example:
“Honors student, dedicated to indigent defense, as demonstrated by multiple internships with public defender agencies. Currently enrolled in Michigan Law’s Criminal Defense clinic as student attorney. Fluent in Spanish.“
or,
“Honors student and aspiring corporate attorney seeking associate position with mid-sized firm. Editor of Harvard International Law Review. MBA from Harvard Business School.”
Now, this intro paragraph won’t be found on every resume that passes my desk. And that’s ok. But it will make you stand out.
Of course, if you are lacking space, or do not feel comfortable departing from the standard format, by all means, go with what you know. But it may be worth a shot using it for a couple of applications that may otherwise be long shots.
Should I Include My Interests?
If you have the space on your resume, you should definitely include some interests (don’t call them hobbies). bear in mind, that this is not a reason to expand your resume from one page to two. If that is going to push you over the edge, cut it.
Don’t put “political activism,” “foreign languages,” “travelling,” “art,” or any other kind of generic description. Generic descriptions indicate a generic candidate. Who doesn’t enjoy international travel? Be specific and be interesting.
You are not including this information to talk about yourself. You are including this information for two reasons.
First, you want the employer to think you are an interesting person. “Hey, this applicant plays in a jazz band. That’s pretty cool” or “Oh wow, they run marathons. I can’t even run a mile!” You want something that makes you stand out.
Second, you want to inspire a question that is not directly related about the job, but gives you the opportunity to connect with the interviewer. “So you have a blog about French cuisine? How did you find yourself doing that?”
Professional Affilliations
What I like to see, more than a person’s general interests, are their professional associations. As a law student, you have the opportunity to join student groups, like Michigan University Law School’s MDefenders. Your membership in such groups has a number of benefits to you, such as relationship building and skills development, but it also further demonstrates your commitment to indigent defense.
Law students can also join professional organizations, such as the ABA Criminal Justice Section, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, or local criminal defense organizations. Having these memberships on your resume, especially if you are active in the group to any degree, will certainly set you apart from the rest!
Should I Include Other Languages?
If you speak a second or third language, you should definitely put it in your resume. I find that in the footer, in bold italics, is the perfect location. Of course, if you do an intro paragraph, add it in there too.
But what if you’re not fluent? If you are conversational, you should still put it in there. Just be sure to qualify it. i.e. Fluent in Spanish. Conversational in Arabic.
Second or third languages are a huge attraction for employers. It speaks to your intellectual abilities. It also means you will be able to communicate with that many more clients in their preferred language.
Naturally, if your employer has a significant number of clients who speak one of the additional languages you speak, you are all the more attractive of a candidate.
Maybe now is a good time to get yourself Rosetta Stone ?
What Experience Should I Include?
This is one of the most commonly asked questions. In short, you should include any relevant experience, and ONLY relevant experience.
All too often I see a resume with some random, non-legal, post college, pre-law school career listed. If you are just out of college and applying for an internship, your work history will be limited so this may be all you have.
If you are a 2L or 3L, unless it somehow relates to the profession you are seeking a position in now, or was a high level position you held for over a year, leave it out. For example, if you managed a cleaning company for 9 months before law school, nix it.
However, if managing the cleaning company inspired you to enter a career in labor law, or corporate actions, then maybe include it. Or, if your experience helped you learn how to interact and make connections with a diverse group of people, maybe include it.
In the end, I think it is better to reference something like this in your cover letter.
What you should leave off, and I learned this the hard way, is any prior experience working for a political campaign. Politics in America, especially nowadays, is contentious.
Sure, you may think that everyone loved candidate X, but what if the person interviewing you did not? What if they voted for the opposition?
You can imagine the kind of stink that will leave on your application. Unless it is absolutely necessary, because leaving it out would create a gap of a year or two, you should leave it off.
How Much Detail Should I Include?
Having a one page resume means nothing if you use 10 point font and write a novel about every prior experience. I’ve seen resumes with three prior job/internship entries with a sea of bullet points below them. It’s not effective.
You don’t need to list each and every thing you did at prior position. Internships for example will include a lot of different experiences, but you may have been assigned those tasks once or twice.
The key is being concise and broad in your descriptions. For example, if you were a student attorney at a public defender’s office, don’t list out every single detail of your internship. Here’s what I mean:
Colorado Public Defender – Student Attorney
- Represented clients at arraignment.
- Met with clients at local jails and state prison.
- Conducted client meeting in office.
- Researched memorandum of law for motion to dismiss on XYZ grounds.
- Second chaired jury trial in robbery case.
- Wrote sentencing memorandum for client convicted of robbery.
You simply do not need to do this. As a member of a state-wide public defender hiring committee, I know who the Colorado Public Defender is, and I have a pretty good idea what they have their interns do. Here’s what I would like to see.
Colorado Public Defender – Student Attorney
- Represented clients at all stages of their case.
- Researched and drafted memorandums of law for staff attorneys.
- Participated in court proceedings, including trial, with senior attorneys.
Three lines, it tells me the scope of your internship, and it doesn’t list out every task you performed in excruciating details. And most importantly, it broadens your description without overselling.
Do I Tailor My Resume to the Employer?
Yes! But the real question is, how?
You first want to look at your prior experiences and and make sure that the most relevant experiences have the most thorough explanations. This means that if you are applying for a public defender position and have an internship with a public defender office and an internship with a prosecutor’s office, or vice-versa, you keep the description really short for the job type you are not seeking.
This does not mean you should go overboard, (see above), but you definitely want to draw attention to the relevant experience and detract from the less relevant.
If you do an intro paragraph, you will obviously want to tailor it to the job you are seeking, just like your cover letter.
Proofread! Proofread! Proofread!
You don’t want errors on any of your application materials., especially your cover letter and resume. We are all human, and mistakes happen.
Heck, I find minor typos in this blog every time I go back to update articles. But when it comes to your cover letter and resume, you need to be as perfect as possible.
Proofread on the computer. Print it out. Proofread it again. And maybe have a friend take a look. Measure three times, cut once!
Contact Me For Help
I hope these resume writing tips are helpful. As with anything else address on this site, if you have a question or want me to take a gander at your resume, cover letter, or writing sample, just shoot me an email GideonsSoldiers@gmail.com or tweet me @GideonsSoldiers
