RESUME

Rubric 

This resume should effectively land an interview.

This resume could land an interview (borderline case).

This resume is average and needs improvement to be considered for the qualified applicant pool.

This resume needs significant improvement.  Candidate likely screened out of applicant pool.

Format

This resume fills the page but is not overcrowded. There are no grammar or spelling errors. It can be easily scanned.

This resume almost fills the page, but has some uneven white space. There may be a single spelling or grammar error.

The font and spacing of this resume are not appealing and cannot be easily scanned. There are spelling errors and grammatical mistakes.

This resume is either one-half page or two to three pages long. The font is too big or may be hard to read. There is more white space than words on the page. There are multiple spelling and/or grammar errors.

Education Section

This section is organized, clear, and well defined. It highlights the most pertinent information and includes: institution and its location, graduation date, major, degree, GPA, study abroad (as appropriate), and any relevant course work.

This section is well organized and easy to read. It includes institution and its location, graduation date, major, and degree. GPA and “extra” information, such as study abroad and course work are missing.

Information such as institution and its location, graduation date, and major are included, but degree and GPA are not listed. This section is not well organized and there is no order to how information is formatted.

This section is missing the most crucial information. Institution is listed, but not its location and graduation date is missing. The major is included, but not degree. No GPA is stated.

Experience Section

This section is well defined, and information relates to the intended career field. Places of work, location, titles, and dates are included for each position. Descriptions are clear and formatted as bullets beginning with action verbs. (This section could be split into related and other experience.)

Places of work, location, titles, and dates are included for each position. Descriptions are formatted as bullets beginning with action verbs, but are not detailed enough to help the reader understand the experience. Information does not relate 100 percent to the intended career field.

Descriptions are not presented in bulleted lists that begin with action verbs. Instead, complete sentences in paragraph form are used to describe positions. Places of work are included for each position, but not locations, dates, and titles.

There is no order to the descriptions of each position. Descriptions are not detailed and don't illustrate the experience. No locations and dates of employment are listed.

Honors/ Activities

This section is well organized and easy to understand. Activities and honors are listed, and descriptions include skills gained and leadership roles held. Dates of involvement are listed.

This section includes all necessary information, but is difficult to follow. Leadership roles within organizations are listed, but skills are not defined. Dates of involvement are listed.

This section is missing key information such as leaderships positions held or dates of involvement. Organizations are listed; the organization, not individual involvement in each, are described.

This section is missing—or contains very little—information. Organization titles or dates of involvement are not included, and there are no descriptions.

 COVER LETTER

Rubric

This cover letter should land the interview.

This cover letter could land an interview. As an average letter, it is not strong for a competitive applicant pool.

This cover letter needs significant improvement.

Candidate likely screened out of the applicant pool.

Business Format

This letter uses correct business format with date and addresses at the top, and a signature at the bottom. This letter is clear and concise, and grammatically correct. There are no spelling errors.

This letter uses correct business format with date and addresses at the top, and a signature at the bottom. There are minimal grammar and spelling errors. While its content is decent, this letter does not convince an employer to call.

Business formatting is not used in this letter. There is no address or date at the top. This letter is not signed. There are multiple grammar and spelling errors. The content of this letter does not make sense to the reader.

Introduction

Paragraph

This section identifies the position for which you are applying and explains why you are interested in the job. You have described how you heard about the opening. The wording is creative and catches an employer’s attention quickly.

This section identifies the position you are seeking. This letter does not describe how you heard about the opening. You vaguely describe why you are interested in this job. This section is bland and might not catch someone’s attention fast enough.

This section does not clearly identify what position you are seeking. There is no description of how you heard about the position or why you are interested. This letter definitely will not grab an employer’s attention and keep him or her reading.

Second Paragraph

Identification of skills and experiences as related to position

This letter identifies one or two of your strongest qualifications and clearly relates how these skills apply to the job at hand. This letter explains specifically why you are interested in the position and this type of job, company, and/or location.

This letter identifies one of your qualifications, but it is not related to the position at hand. This letter restates what is on your resume with minimal additional information. You explain why you are interested in the position but are too vague.

This letter does not discuss any relevant qualifications. You have not related your skills to the position for which you are applying. This letter does not state why you are interested in the position, company, and/or location.

Closing

Paragraph

This letter refers the reader to your resume or any other enclosed documents. This letter thanks the reader for taking time to read this letter. You are assertive as you describe how you will follow up with the employer in a stated time period.

You thank the reader for taking time to read this letter. You do not refer the reader to your resume or application materials. This letter assumes that the employer will contact you to follow up.

This letter does not thank the reader for taking time to review this letter. There is no reference to a resume or other materials. This letter does not mention any plan for follow up.