Daniela joined the Office of Career Development in July 2018 as a Graduate Assistant Career Advisor. She is currently pursuing a Master of Science in College Student Affairs here at Nova Southeastern University. Through her passion of student success, she strives to connect students at NSU with catered opportunities and is especially excited to support them with achieving their goals.
The fall season always has me focusing on two things: Halloween and all things spooky. But nothing is spookier than searching for a job when your resume doesn’t reflect how amazing you are. A great resume is a snapshot of what you’ve done, where you’ve studied, and an overall summary of what you bring to the table. Nothing describes you better on your resume than having strong FrankenBullets, a term coined by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
FrankenBullets can help you take resume bullet points to the next level. Not only are you taking the best parts of your positions, but now you’re also taking a look at the job description. As surprising as it may seem, sometimes the job or internship description can help you write the perfect resume for them by using their own words!
Gather the key points and skills from the job description that the recruiters are looking for, then take the best chunks of your of your experiences, and combine them to create something new. One stellar, tailored FrankenBullet.
Step 1: Take a look at the job description and pick out the most important parts.
Here’s an example of a job description you might see for a student assistant position here at Nova Southeastern University. Try to look for keywords that can help you write your FrankenBullets later.
Nova Southeastern University (NSU) is looking for a student assistant to work at the front desk in the Office of _____. The primary functions involve communicating with fellow students, parents, and alumni over the phone to build rapport and learn about their experiences with NSU. Callers will be working in a team oriented environment to further the development of the student. Students are expected to act professionally while building relationships between the University and its constituents. This position is a great opportunity to build upon public relations and fundraising skills, as the student will be raising support for the NSU annual fund.
Some highlights you may have noticed are words like “communication”, “rapport”, “team oriented” and “building relationships”. Regardless of whether you have experience in fundraising, I can guarantee that you have either classroom, volunteer, or work experience that involve one of those four skills. Next, we’ll dig in to your past experiences that relate.
Step 2: What have you done that involves the skills they’re looking for?
Dig back and write down the key projects, research, or job duties that involved those keywords mentioned in the job description. We can start building FrankenBullets from there.
Each FrankenBullet should start with a strong action verb. For example, if you are a Resident Assistant, you’ve communicated and built relationships with the students on your floor, so you may want to use verbs like “Fostered bonds” or “Counseled students”.
Also think about the what, the how, and the why to your bullet points.
● What was the project or accomplishment that you want to write on your resume?
● How were you able to achieve this goal?
● Why is it worth mentioning, and can you explain the end result?
And make them relevant to the job position! In this case, one relevant FrankenBullet to the NSU job description may be,
“Fostered the development of relationships among 55 residents by offering support through academic and personal concerns”
The bullet points are the most important lines in your resume that tell the story of who you are. They showcase your strengths and skills and you should feel proud to list down everything you’ve done! FrankenBullets help you make your points more relevant and land you that job. Dr. Frankenstein would be proud of your bullet creations.
