Master’s Student Resume Samples

Your resume is just one part of your overall application for professional opportunities and/or continued education, but often the very first document you’ll be preparing for your next steps. Your resume is unique to you, and given it’s typical one-page structure can capture only a limited, curated version of your professionally-oriented experiences, skills, and education as they relate to your intended career or continuing education goals. One common challenge, especially at the graduate level and with several years of education, projects and potential work experience to share, is that it becomes difficult to fit all of the information you want to share, particularly if you are considering more than one potential path.

To address this challenge and help you determine what may be best to include, start by reviewing position descriptions of interest, or checking out details of your potential role on O*Net. Once you’ve reviewed a few possibilities, focus on the commonalities of the expected work and the qualifications or requirements for each of the type(s) of roles to which you are applying. For example, will your role involve analytical skills in practice, and require that you know a particular type of analytical tool? You might amplify areas in your background where you have demonstrated your analytical capabilities, as well as highlight the known tools and technologies you’ve used. For another path you’re considering, perhaps a different skill set is prioritized – just remember, it is a better practice to have several versions of your resume to suit your different career goals than to try and fit everything in for use in any and all applications. Lastly, be sure to think strategically about who will be reviewing your resume and how it will be submitted (i.e. via email, with a larger dossier, through an online application or ATS system, handed to a career fair representative, etc.).  

As you begin to craft or update your own resume, feel free to refer to the samples below for ideas on organization and what to include – remember, these are not templates to copy. Several of the sample resumes below show both strengths and areas for improvement, which are listed to the right of the document. For more information and assistance with writing an effective resume, we recommend that you view the formatting checklist and resume resources below. You’re encouraged to schedule an advising appointment on our Handshake platform to have your resume reviewed by Career Services advisors. And of special note, for several of our career fairs throughout the year we offer Resume Books to attending employers, so be sure to check if your fairs of interest offer a book and upload yours in advance.

Getting Started on a new version or updating an existing resume

• Begin with the section that is your best qualifier – for most current students or recent graduates, that is likely your Education section.
• Next, what do the qualifications sections of your targeted opportunities detail next? You can often determine what order of interest your sections will hold by what order requirements are described.
• As you venture into capturing experiences or detailing projects, you may consider writing using a bulleted style. To craft the most effective bullet points, remember – you and the contribution(s) you’ve made are the main object of the point; start your descriptions with action verbs, and use each 1-2 line bullet to provide context/details, highlight transferable skills, and include results/impacts – adding quantification when the context of that number reflects your work’s added value, or if there is a shared understanding for your reader to be able to gauge your impact.

General Formatting Tips

• Be as consistent as possible – dates written the same, same font style and size throughout, etc.
• Use margins at least 0.5” on all sides and font size no smaller than 10pt.
• Carefully spell-check – especially if you’ve used ALL CAPS for section headers as these are often not caught by spell-checking tools.
• Provide the name of your official degree and program of study (e.g. “Candidate for Master of _____”). Ensure that any education information is also reflected on your transcript(s) and written exactly as it is provided there.
• Include location(s) as relevant and format those consistently. This would typically be a city, state and/or country for each entry. Make sure locations are listed in the same spot across your document (i.e. all locations on the right margin), and use the generally accepted two-letter state abbreviations for locations within the U.S. (i.e. Pennsylvania is PA, etc.)
• Double-check that all of your experiences have dates, including months (i.e. August, or Aug. or seasons, like Fall or Spring) and are formatted consistently.
• Be especially mindful of the “little details” – alignment, spacing, how you use dashes: – versus -, and any other small potential inconsistencies. Remember, your ability to show attention to detail here, on what is arguably a very important personal document, reflects the care and attention you’ll likely give to your contributions in your next role.

Additional Resources

• How to Write a Resume (Beyond Graduate School platform)
• How to Modify Your Resume for Each Job (Beyond Graduate School platform)
• 5 Resume Tips to Get You Started
• 10 Ways to Improve Your Resume Today
• How to Write Effective Resume Bullet Points
• Making the Most of Targeted Resume to Robot-Proof Your Resume
• Resume Tool Lesson on Big Interview

SEAS Master’s Degree candidates, you also have access to a Google Drive hosted by Penn Engineering filled with resumes organized by programs of study offered at the Master’s level in SEAS – please visit here to review.

Also be sure to check out our Career Services YouTube Channel for more videos on resumes!

Resume Sample Type

Master of Environmental Studies
Master of Public Health
Master of Behavioral & Decision Sciences
Masters in School of Engineering & Applied Science
Master of Architecture
Master of Landscape Architecture
Master of City Planning
Master in Law

Master of Environmental Studies (MES)

Master of Public Health (MPH)

Key Features for MPH resume:

• 2 pages due to extensive experience and background
• Clear descriptions within the bullets and uses good action verbs to describe the skill/responsibility/project.
• Includes result/impact/outcome when possible
• Includes Presentations section given the nature of the field and if applicable for a research based role
• Dates placed on the right-hand side to keep the reader’s focus on the position title and experience – not when it was done

Advice we might give for this MPH resume:

• Move the dates from the degrees in the Education section to the right side (so that it is consistent alignment with the dates in the other sections)
• Include relevant coursework under the Master’s Program in the Education section
• Include a Summary Profile at top of resume to help give overview and highlights of experience

Master of Behavioral & Decision Sciences (MBDS)

School of Engineering & Applied Science

Key Features:

• Each version is one concise page with consistent, easy-to-read formatting
• Sections are ordered by expected impact – many employers identify education needed, then technical skills, and then each section that follows is at the candidate’s discretion as to which experiences are most relevant to the career goal.
• Bullets include result/impact/outcome when possible
• Clear descriptions are offered within the bullets and each uses action verbs to describe the skill/responsibility/project
• Dates placed consistently yet subtly keep the reader’s focus on the position title and experience – not when it was done

Advice we might give for this resume:

• When adding “Relevant Courses,” ensure the class title shared includes key terms relevant to future opportunities – otherwise, it’s just “nice to know” information and doesn’t actually capture what you learned or, more importantly, how you demonstrated that learning (i.e. through a project)
• It’s always a great practice to include reference to the size of a team involved in a project you’re including – your ability to work effectively in a small or large team, independently, remotely vs. in-person, etc. can truly provide your reader with valuable context for how you successfully navigate a variety of demands
• Expand whenever possible beyond the fact of the experience, especially when that work may have particular relevance. For example, “Designed and manufactured fully functional Gamma-Type Stirling Engine using aluminum” could be expanded to include challenges addressed, details on the full lifecycle of the project, how the final presentation of the project was delivered and the highlights revealed during the demo – and may even have a link to the project in a portfolio so your reader can see your work from concept to fabrication to testing to finished product – all things you may do on a future product design and development project!
• Consider grouping an experience, project and/or activity together to highlight a particular nuance of your interest and expertise. For example, a section header may be Robotics Experience, and include an internship, a role as Teaching Assistant in a related course (demonstrating subject matter mastery in guiding peers), a course project from an advanced elective and personal involvement being part of or coaching a FIRST LEGO Robotics Team and tutoring West Philadelphia high schoolers through the Access Engineering program! Strive for cohesive groupings as they serve you best and help your reader see all of your connected pursuits.

Master of Architecture

Click here for the Design Resume Guide

Master of Landscape Architecture

Click here for the Design Resume Guide

Master of City Planning

Click here for the Design Resume Guide

Master in Law

For more info on how to write a resume, click here