Student-Athlete Resume Writing: Five Principles

The process of creating your resume may be confusing at times, and it may be difficult deciding what to include. For student-athletes, an overall lack of free time may lead to few extracurricular activities, e.g. internships, volunteer, experiences, part-time jobs, to include on your resume. The goal, however, is to focus on what you have done and to use your athletic experience as a springboard to describe the transferable skills that you possess, i.e. leadership skills, communication skills, motivation, time-management skills, etc.

Following the tips below is a great starting point to drafting your resume.

1. Highlight Relevant Coursework
   It’s important to focus on what courses are most relevant to the position for which you are applying. Read job descriptions carefully and customize your resume to include the courses that are truly most relevant to that specific job. You can also include courses that led to the development of any core workplace skills.
   
   
2. Describe Relevant Experience
   This section may consist of internships, research, volunteer experiences, or part-time jobs that have allowed you to gain knowledge, skills and experience that relate to the opportunity you’re seeking. If provided, it’s important to use the job description to help determine which aspects of your background are most relevant. We can assume that Peter Playoff, whose resume is found below, is seeking to work in broadcasting, event promotions, marketing or public relations given what he included in his Relevant Experience section. Should he seek a coaching position, the best strategy would be to replace his 97.1 internship description with his basketball camp job.
   
   
3. Include Volunteer Work Done with your Team
   If you have done any type of volunteer work or community outreach as part of your team requirements, be sure to list them on your resume. Volunteer experiences can help build valuable, transferable skills and show that you are able to balance being a student-athlete with the additional responsibilities you have outside of your team.
   
   
4. Include a Key High School Experience
   Due to a lack of extra time, many student-athletes are unable to participate in internships, research, or other key resume builders. Because of this, it is permissible to include a key high school experience, e.g. part-time job, volunteer experience that either highlights your transferable skills or represents a stand-out accomplishment. Including his work with the Norwin School District allows Peter to document development of communication skills.
   
   
5. Highlight Athletic Experience/Awards
   Many recruiters target student-athletes for available opportunities due to their tremendous leadership, dedication, and time-management skills. Be sure to list the number of years you’ve been a part of the team, how much time you dedicate to the team, and any awards or achievements you’ve garnered as part of that team, e.g., Big Ten Scholar Athlete Award, participation in NCAA tournaments, years of captaincy, etc.
   

This material was provided by Ohio State University.