harvard resume template for experienced professionals

Chronological - This is the most commonly used layout. Recommended for a mostly consistent record of employment showing progression/growth from position to position. Not recommended for gaps in employment dates, those out of job market for some time, or changing careers.

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• Template 2 (login required)
• Template 3 (login required)
• Template 4 (login required)
• Sample 1: C-Level Resume (login required)
• Sample 2: Consulting to Operating Company Resume (login required)
• Sample 3: VP with Long Tenure Resume (login required)
• Sample 4: C-Level Biotech resume (login required)
• Sample 5: Exec. Ed. with Long Tenure Resume (login required)
• Sample 6: Financial Services Resume (login required)

Streamlined Chronological - This layout also shows progression from one job to the next, but does not include extra sections such as Summary/Profile or Areas of Expertise. Recommended for recent alumni.

• Template: Streamlined Chronological (login required)

Chronological/Functional Hybrid Resume - In this layout, you can highlight your employment history in a straight chronological manner, but also make it immediately clear you have filled a variety of roles that use different but related skill sets. This is useful to provide a few accomplishments in the beginning to show a theme. Each role would also have specific accomplishment statements.

• Template: Chronological/Functional Hybrid (login required)
• Sample: Accomplishment Focus Resume (login required)

Cover Letter Writing

It is essential to send a cover letter with your resume to provide a recruiter with insight into your qualifications, experience, and motivation for seeking a position. The letter also conveys your personal communication style, tone, and professionalism. An effective employment letter should:

• Be targeted and personalized
• State why you are interested in the company
• Explain how you can fill a need
• Convey your enthusiasm about the opportunity
• Suggest next steps for communication and action

Guidelines & Examples

Investigate your target company. What is the company's "breaking news?" What drives their business? What are their greatest challenges and opportunities? How can you contribute? eBaker can help with your research.

Outline your objectives using relevant information that attracts the attention of the reader.

• Salutation Address the letter to a specific person. Capture the reader's attention and briefly introduce yourself. Mention the referral/company contact, if applicable. State the purpose of your letter.
• Body Describe relevant information you discovered about the company. Discuss the position offered or the position you are looking for. Detail how your skills will benefit the company.
• Closing Convey your enthusiasm. Anticipate response.

Pay close attention to sentence structure, spelling, and punctuation. Always print your letter to check for typographical errors. Have a friend, colleague, or family member review your letter whenever possible.

Cover letters are the place to briefly and directly address the gap in your career. For example, "I am returning to the workforce after a period of raising children." Then address your strengths, qualifications and goals. Emphasize your excitement and preparedness to re-enter the workforce now.

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Branding You

Resume writing tips  , creating visual impact.

A concise, visually appealing resume will make a stronger impression than a dense, text-laden document. Respect page margins and properly space the text. Learn to appreciate the value of "white space." Limit a resume to one or two pages but not one and ¼. Ensure content is balanced on both pages. A CV is typically longer because it includes additional sections such as publications and research.

Use Parallel Construction

Select a consistent order of information, format, and spacing. If one experience starts with a brief overview followed by bullet points, subsequent experiences should follow a similar form. Parallel construction—including the use of action verbs (pdf) (login required) to start all phrases—greatly enhances a resume's readability.

Always Proofread

Pay close attention to margin alignment, spelling, punctuation, and dates. Read your resume backward to check for typographical errors. (You will focus on individual words, rather than the meaning of the text.) Better yet, have a friend, colleague, or family member review your resume.

Use Action Verbs

Action Verbs List (login required)

Improve Your Writing

Common questions, past program resources  .

How to Build a Resume that Stands Above the Competition

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How to Write a Resume That Stands Out

• Paige Cohen

It takes hiring managers less than 10 seconds to decide if you’re qualified.

• PC Paige Cohen (they/them) is a senior editor at Harvard Business Review.

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Harvard Resume: Tips and Templates for Success

Looking for a solid way to showcase your prestigious education and work achievements? The Harvard resume template might be just what you’re looking for. This detailed resume drills into specifics and shows hiring managers why you’re the perfect candidate. Learn the Harvard resume format and tips for using it in this guide.

What is a Harvard resume?

The Harvard resume format is a template made and distributed by Harvard University to help its students better convey their extensive knowledge, experience, and skills. This structure emphasizes high-priority achievements rather than strictly listing experiences in chronological order. This allows recruiters to focus on your strengths because they’re front and center.

Harvard resumes dig deeply into accomplishments and provide quantified achievements to show your impact on companies and school work alike. Generally, this strategy is reserved for work history, but Harvard resumes detail educational accomplishments, too, like the topic of your college thesis.

Because of this extra detail, Harvard resumes are usually a bit longer than a standard resume to give ample space for projects and standout events.

These documents also typically start with education to emphasize its importance. Most resumes list work history first, only providing education first if you lack professional experience.

Our Harvard resume guide shows you the ins and outs so you can build a strong application. Then you can simply grab your favorite resume template and apply these best practices.

Harvard resume vs. regular resume

The primary difference between a Harvard resume template and a standard resume is how it's structured. Harvard resumes list your professional accomplishments by importance, providing your most impressive and impactful experiences first. Regular resumes list everything in chronological order – even crucial senior roles get pushed to the back if they happened years ago.

Harvard resumes are also longer documents as they dig into details, including educational accomplishments like GPA, honors, and projects.

Besides these two main points, both resume formats are very similar and include a header, personal details, work experience, education, and skills.

Benefits of using the Harvard resume format

This template was designed by Harvard experts to showcase qualifications and help their alumni get better jobs, so it carries powerful benefits. Let’s take a look.

Allows you to detail your experience

It’s more than a little frustrating when you have a lot to say and little room to say it. What if you omit the one detail the hiring manager needs to see?

Long resumes are generally frowned upon, but with Harvard resumes, details are encouraged. This means you have space to describe your achievements, skills, and outcomes in great detail. This gives the recruiter insights into your impact and helps them understand why you’re a powerful candidate.

Conveys professionalism

A Harvard resume format is about as professional as they come, helping you make a strong first impression. This is especially important for academic roles, like university professors or high-level executive positions that require prestigious degrees.

We recommend pairing your Harvard resume with an expert cover letter to display more professionalism and business acumen.

Flows naturally and boosts readability

When you list the most important achievements first, the employer doesn’t have to look hard to find impressive accomplishments, senior job positions, and impactful college projects.

Hiring managers only have so much time to devote to each resume, and a Harvard resume gives them precisely what they need with little effort.

How to structure your Harvard resume

It’s easy to build a Harvard resume – you can even edit your current resume to follow the Harvard format. Let’s do it step-by-step. 

This section is largely the same as a regular resume. Provide your full name, job title, phone number, email address, and location (just city and state is fine). We also recommend you add your LinkedIn URL for easier networking.

This should be a two- to four-sentence description of your professional background, focusing on your top skills and standout accomplishments. Use action language and make this engaging to encourage the recruiter to keep reading. Try adding a strong metric to catch their eye and their interest.

Start your resume with your education and make it detailed. For every degree you include, provide the institution’s name, relevant coursework, honors, and your GPA if it’s above 3.5. We also recommend you add memberships to college clubs and abroad study.

Work experience

Provide your work experience and start with your most powerful roles. Which positions are you most proud of? Which ones have made a real impact? Write them in order of importance, then list your job title, the company name, location, and date of employment for each.

Read the job description you’re targeting and discover which skills the employer is looking for. Add relevant hard and soft skills, as well as language proficiency and your level of fluency.

Tips for writing a Harvard resume

Harvard resumes are easy to read, professional, and organized, but adding a little extra effort will make it stand out further. Here are our top tips:

• Use action words : Use powerful verbs like “evaluated” and “coordinated” to increase engagement. These are critical for a Harvard resume – some people even call them “Harvard resume words.”
• Quantify achievements : Attach measurable metrics to your achievements to show the exact outcome, like “ leading to a 15% increase in sales .”
• Review other resumes for inspiration : Study resume examples from other professionals to get ideas for achievements and formatting.
• Make your application complementary : Make sure your resume and cover letter complement each other, and don’t repeat the same information.
• Tailor each resume : No resume is “one-size-fits-all” – review the job ad you’re targeting and personalize your resume for each application.

That last point is crucial. Discussing the right skills and achievements in each resume conveys your relevance to the position. The employer won’t know you have the ideal capabilities unless you take the time to tell them.

Mirroring job descriptions also helps you build an ATS resume . These resumes are optimized to pass a company’s applicant tracking system (ATS) by mentioning the right job titles, qualifications, and accomplishments.

Expert Tip:

The Harvard resume format is long and detailed, but make sure it doesn’t get cluttered. Include all the necessary sections and critical achievements, detailing each one with powerful metrics – just ensure you leave white space. This makes it easy on the eyes and encourages the reader to finish each section.

Harvard resume do’s and don’ts

We’ll finish up with a few do’s and don’ts for making an excellent Harvard resume.

• Keep your resume to one page if possible. It can spill over, but it’s best kept to just one.
• Maintain consistency in formatting, capitalization, and fonts.
• Use a Harvard resume PDF over other file types. They’re much easier to process by company systems.
• Use a Harvard resume template Word document or Google Doc to get started quickly.
• Ask a friend or colleague to review your resume and give their honest opinion on what to add or remove.
• Never use a colorful, modern template for this style of resume. This should be reserved for creative resumes .
• Don’t forget to grammar-check and proofread each resume. You could destroy the professionalism you tried so hard to convey with just one typo.
• Don’t use a narrative style with a lot of personality. Keep this as professional as possible.
• Don’t include references or even the sentence “references available upon request.”

This is just the tip of the iceberg – we cover the top 10 resume mistakes in-depth, including irrelevant information, unattractive formatting, and exaggerating skills and qualifications.

“Harvard resumes are usually a bit longer than a standard resume to give ample space for projects and standout events.”

Make a winning first impression with a Harvard resume template

A Harvard-style resume is the ideal way to literally put your best foot forward, leading with your most important accomplishments and grabbing the hiring manager’s attention. This helps you and the recruiter focus on your greatest impacts and what you can do for your new job.

This format is easy to use, and you can try it today. Head over to CVwizard’s Resume Builder to make your own Harvard resume by following our guide. Start from scratch or simply rearrange your current resume to emphasize your most crucial achievements.

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How to Write a Resume That Stands Out

You finally found it! The perfect job for you. Now, all you have to do to get the process started is to submit your resume. The problem is that hundreds of your peers are probably thinking exactly the same thing. How do you stand out?

You finally found it! The perfect job for you. Now, all you have to do to get the process started is to submit your resume. The problem is that hundreds or even thousands of your peers are probably thinking exactly the same thing about exactly the same job. So how do you create a one-page document that will make you and your accomplishments stand out from the crowd?

Your resume is a key part of the job application process: it is the first document that an employer reviews to determine whether they will interview and eventually employ you. Remember that employers often have very limited time to perform this duty. Crafting a strong resume really matters!

Resumes communicate who you are and what you have accomplished. They may be the only document an employer sees to evaluate your record before making a decision to move forward with your application, or they may be used in conjunction with resources like LinkedIn or professional networking profiles and/or a cover letter. A resume that “stands out” in a positive way is one that has been written thoughtfully, clearly and concisely, effectively communicating your abilities and strengths in a very brief space.

Six basic tips will help you build an outstanding professional resume. Note that resumes may vary by professional field (e.g. engineering vs. non-engineering), by location or by other factors such as professional degree. These tips are designed around some of the most common sections and most useful points for resumes across different types.

Tip 1: How to Write an Education Section that Stands Out

The education section demonstrates that you have the academic qualifications for the position. The key questions you should ask yourself while writing this section is, “Have I clearly communicated the strongest and most relevant aspects of my educational experience?” The next question is, “Is this section organized in a way that is easily readable by the employer?”

The education section is important for all applicants but may be weighted differently depending on how long it has been since you graduated from a degree program. For instance, an employer may have a different level of interest in the educational history of a college senior, compared to someone who has been professionally working for several years after college. Understanding this fact may influence where you choose to place this section on your resume.

In general, you should include all of the higher education that you may have had, including undergraduate, graduate, or professional schooling.  You may also consider including online courses, certificates, and completed programs through companies like Coursera. Most people list their experiences in an order called reverse chronological, meaning that they list the most recent experience first, and work backwards down the page.

For each listed school, provide the full name of the school or online program, the years of your attendance, your major or majors, if applicable, as well as a minor if applicable. Include the type of degree received (e.g. a Bachelor of Arts or Master of Science) and the year of graduation. If you are graduating soon, include the month and year of graduation so employers know when you will be available to work. If you have studied abroad, include the institution, program of study, and any relevant coursework.

You may want to include which semesters you qualified for special academic recognition, if any.  Other special awards, scholarships, or competitive grants can also be listed in this section. If you have non-academic awards, such as for sports or community service, you may choose to create a separate section of your resume for honors and awards.

Tip 2: How to Make the Experience Section Stand Out

Along with education, your experience is one of the most important ways to show that you are qualified for a position. Use this section to clearly convey your strongest professional experiences, whether paid or unpaid. Be sure to give detailed aspects of your roles and responsibilities for each listed position. Emphasize any relationships or similarities between your past experiences and the job you want. You should also include the start and end dates of your involvement with each organization, and any key accomplishments from the role. Don’t forget to include where the company is located, including city and state/province, or even country if different from your home country.

Ask yourself: while involved with the company, did I win any awards, get any special recognition, make new discoveries, start a new program? If so, what happened and what were the results? Quantify your experiences when you can! As the expression goes, “Show don’t tell.” In other words, you can more effectively convey a point by giving concrete examples, rather than through vague descriptions. Consider the following examples.

Instead of:

Improved worker productivity significantly, leading to recognition from upper management.

(A resume reader may ask: What does ‘improved’ mean? What does recognition mean? How much have you improved it by?)

Improved quarter returns by 25%, exceeding projections and leading to the Top Manager Award, given to only one manager in the company per year.

When it comes to language, be honest about your job functions while thinking of professional ways to present your experiences.

Sometimes people fall into a trap of thinking that their job or internship experience won’t sound impressive enough to list. The job may have felt like “sitting at a desk, answering the phone.” True, but you may have been performing other responsibilities or developing useful job-related skills without realizing that you were!

When you were at a desk, were you at the FRONT desk? Were you the only person or the main person in this position? Were you overseeing anything while you were sitting there? Were you the sole person responsible for any tasks? Did you have to learn how to deal calmly and confidently with any customer issues? Did people occasionally ask you to take on additional responsibilities, even for a short time?

It is fair to say that a person sitting at a front desk, may have been MANAGING the front desk, or even managing the desk when the person’s boss was away. Time during which an individual is placed in charge of a business or an office, even if for a limited time, can convey responsibility to a prospective employer.

Look at your accomplishment bullet and ask yourself:

• What did I do in the job?
• Using what?
• To what extent or impact?

Sometimes you may need to pare down your list in order to avoid making your resume too lengthy. Try to select the accomplishments based partly on how impressive they are and partly on how well they relate to the position you want. To describe your experience, always use more than one sentence or bullet. That said, word economy in your bulleted descriptions is also important. Try to keep each bulleted description or sentence to one or two lines at most. You can often rephrase a description, eliminating words while keeping the meaning. The more information you can present clearly and concisely within the short resume format, the more the employer will understand what you can do for them.

Remember that by providing relevant details in each statement of your experience, you will give the employer enough information to evaluate you and also provide them with ideas of what they might want to discuss with you in an interview.

Tip 3: How to Create a Leadership and Activities Section that Stands Out

For many people, especially students and recent graduates, a Leadership & Activities section can be a fantastic differentiator for your resume. If you have not been in the workforce for long, or if you have only worked summers and part-time, then you may not have much relevant content to add to your Experience section. A strong Leadership & Activities section can help you fill that gap while also telling an employer something about you as a person.

When creating the section, you should first consider what student organizations and activities you would want to include. Then, you should consider what you would want to write about each one. In general, this section is much like the Experience section, except that it is about what you have done in a personal, rather than professional, setting.

Of course, because student organizations and activities are personal, you should be careful about which ones you choose to list; they should be appropriate to a professional setting. For example, you should probably not choose to share that you were chosen “Top Drinker” of your college’s “Beer Keg of the Day” club. On the other hand, if you volunteered at a food bank, wrote for a school publication, or had a membership in an honor society, those accomplishments would be worth sharing.

Most importantly, you should include student organizations and activities where you have made significant contributions or held leadership positions. Just as you did in the Experience section, you should think about what you did in the organization, any responsibilities you had, any skills you used, and any knowledge you gained. If you made improvements to the student organization or activity, definitely include concrete examples. Make sure to consider if any of your experiences with student organizations and activities could be related to the position you are applying for. Could any of the skills you have learned be useful in the job?

Because student organizations and activities can offer students leadership opportunities and experiences that are often limited to experienced professionals in companies, this section is your chance to show not only that you are qualified for the position but that you have even greater potential. Make the most of this opportunity to show the employer what you can do!

Tip 4: How to Highlight Your Skills

Another important component of what defines an attractive candidate in the modern economy is their skill set. Because employers want people who can quickly start being productive, they care about what skills a job prospect has, particularly in certain technical fields. In most cases, skills are incorporated into the Experience section, if you acquired skills as part of your internship or job, and in the Education section, if you obtained the skills through coursework, research, or projects. Sometimes people with additional skills, such as technical skills, foreign language, or certifications obtained outside of university, will place them into a separate section at the end of the resume. Whichever format you choose, you still need to emphasize the skills you have, so that an employer can easily see how you can help them.

You should ask yourself a few important questions. What skills do I have? What skills are my target employers looking for? Are my skills hard skills (i.e. technical, like computer programming) or soft skills, such as the ability to listen?

Make a list! Separate the skills into hard skills and soft skills. What skills are most in demand (on both lists) for the position you are interested in (One good way to decide this is to look at job listings for many similar positions and note how often a particular skill is listed.)? How can you highlight your proficiency in these skills?

Lead with your strongest skills and/or the ones that seem the most marketable. Let’s say you know the programming language Python. How well do you know it? How many years have you used it? Do you have any specialized knowledge and ability that may set you apart from a competing applicant? Do you have demonstrations of your work anywhere for a prospective employer to see?

Here’s an example of a skills entry that might be included into the Experience section:

Programming: 8 years of experience with Python and similar scripting languages, wrote MyFirstPythonProject software available on GitHub

Useful tip: Artists may have portfolios for their artistic work. Examples of appropriate work, such as for coding, may not be a bad idea to have available in addition to a resume!

Even if your field is not technical, you may still have important hard skills. Do you have experience with popular office software, such as Excel, PowerPoint, or Access? Do you know any foreign languages, even at a basic level? Think about not only what might be required in the day-to-day performance of the job, but what other skills could potentially be useful to the employer.

You will want to include all the relevant skills to demonstrate your qualifications, without including too much less-relevant information which could distract from your message. Think carefully about which skills you want to include, and which could be left out. Remember to choose your words economically to maximize content in a minimum of space. With a little effort, your skills details can transform your resume from a simple list of accomplishments to a document that gets an employer thinking about all the great ways you could contribute!

Tip 5: Formatting and Making the Resume Look Professional

Believe it or not, the appearance and organization of a resume can greatly affect the response. The first hurdle for any resume is to get the employer to read it. An attractively presented, concise resume is easy for a recruiter to pick up. On the other hand, if a resume is 5 pages, written in 6-point font, a prospective employer may not think that it is worth the time to find a magnifying glass and read it. In most cases, a resume should not exceed one page (sometimes two pages, mostly for more experienced candidates, or in scientific and technical fields where publication lists can be lengthy), which has a few key sections that are separated from one another or clearly delineated.

Here are some suggestions to make the format stand out positively:

• Use 10-12-point font or larger. (10 point may even sometimes be too small, and the choice can depend on the chosen font.) Your audience should easily be able to read the size of the writing. Often prospective employers may not have perfect vision, so readability may create problems if the text is too small.
• Use a clean, professional-looking font. Don’t use fonts that are overly artistic and hinder the ability for the reader to understand them. Some find fonts like Times New Roman most clearly readable; others find competing fonts better. The font is just an aspect of the writing; don’t let it overpower the words themselves.
• Use respectable margins. Don’t try to deviate too much from 0.5 margins at either side. Also, don’t make the margins too large, beyond 0.75 or 1 unit on either side. Around 1 unit on the top and bottom should be acceptable.
• Use adequate spacing.
• Abbreviate months of employment.
• Include proper contact information. Most people include full name, address, email address and at least one phone number at the top of the document.

Tip 6: Revision and Review 

One of the most important steps to writing a good resume is having others you trust look it over. A small spelling or grammar error on a resume could cause problems by making it seem like you lack attention to detail.

You can start with standard spelling and grammar checking programs. However, while these programs are very helpful, they are not enough by themselves. For example, the programs may not flag errors with homophones (e.g. hair and hare). They also have difficulty with uncommon, technical, or foreign words that may not be in their dictionaries. In addition, they are not looking for formatting inconsistencies or at the overall appearance of the resume. While computer programs can help with many issues, there is still no substitute for the human eye.

Start by printing a copy of your resume and looking for errors and inconsistencies yourself. Then, present copies to others along with a description of the job or educational opportunity that you are applying for. When presenting your resume to others, consider at least two kinds of people: a peer, and an experienced professional or teacher. Each may identify different issues with the resume.

Ask the reviewers to provide two types of notes: technical revisions and feedback on the writing, organization and effectiveness of the resume.

Once you get feedback, discuss it with them for a few minutes. Remember, don’t take constructive criticism personally! They are trying to help you, and their points of view may be similar to that of the employer. Your goal is to create a resume that most people will appreciate.

Once you obtain proper feedback, you can work on improving your resume. Try to incorporate your reviewers’ suggestions. Their ideas may even make you think of other ways to improve your resume! Most importantly, always remember that once you have made your revisions, review your resume again before you send it out!

The stronger your resume, the better your chance of getting an interview and landing a meaningful job. Just by following these simple tips, you will be well on your way to resume success, creating a clear, detailed, and concise document designed to impress employers. So, get writing and get yourself noticed!

A good resume can help you land an interview, but even minor errors can take you out of the running.  Schedule an appointment with a counselor  to ensure it will be effective.

Quick Resume Tips:

• Use the position description to decide what to include.
• Pick a standard and consistent format.
• Describe your experiences with specificity and strong action verbs.
• Record accomplishments and contributions, not just responsibilities.
• Revise carefully!
• Don’t include personal information about your age, religion, health or marital status.
• Photos are generally not preferred for U.S. resumes.
• Typically, you will not be expected to share past salary information on a resume.
• Employers assume that “references will be available upon request,” so you don’t need to include them on your resume unless asked.
• Employers may use keyword scanning on resumes, so know what words are relevant to the industry and position and ensure they appear in your resume.

Resumes/CVs

Harvard Resume — Tips and Templates for Success

The Harvard resume template is one of the most structured and professional template formats. It showcases your qualifications — and particularly your academic achievements — in a concise and digestible format. Below, you’ll learn how to use the Harvard resume template to structure your resume and stand out in the hiring process.

What is a Harvard resume?

A Harvard resume is a type of resume that stands out for its clean, professional layout with clearly defined sections. The Harvard resume format was created by Harvard University in order to help graduates of prestigious higher learning institutions showcase their skills and academic achievements. Typically, a Harvard resume template Word document includes the following features:

• Header: Your name and contact information 
• Summary: A brief professional summary highlighting key qualifications 
• Education: Details of academic background, including degrees and institutions
• Experience: A chronological list of work history, focusing on achievements 
• Skills: A section dedicated to relevant skills 
• Additional Sections: Certifications, awards, and volunteer work

There are two major differences between a Harvard resume template and a standard resume. Most notably, a Harvard resume prioritizes accomplishment statements (one-line statements that outline specific achievements). Under the Harvard resume model, each statement should be backed up with quantifiable results. 

For instance, if you say you helped your last employer improve operational efficiency, back up the statement by describing efficiency gains as a percentage or detailing the cost savings they enjoyed as a result of your efforts. 

Additionally, the Harvard resume usually puts the education section before your work experience. This is a direct contradiction to the traditional resume format. However, it demonstrates that the Harvard resume template has slightly different priorities, which include highlighting prestigious educational accomplishments. 

The education section typically includes a bulleted list under each achievement. For instance, if you list your bachelor’s degree, you may include your GPA, minor studies, and any awards/recognition you received (e.g., the dean’s list). 

Benefits of using the Harvard resume format

The Harvard resume format provides several advantages over traditional options, especially if you have significant academic achievements. Some of the key benefits include:

Professionalism

The format’s clean design exudes professionalism, which helps you make a strong first impression. By pairing the Harvard resume template with a crisp, clean cover letter, you can further elevate your odds of landing an interview. 

Readability

The Harvard resume template also features clearly defined sections and a logical flow to make the resume easy to read. Hiring managers can quickly scan the document to find out more about you and your credentials. 

That’s not all. The bulleted list format also helps you draw attention to the right areas of your professional and academic experience. You can use hard data to position yourself as a top candidate. 

Clarity 

By organizing content into distinct sections, the Harvard resume ensures that important details are not overlooked. This clarity plays an essential role in effectively communicating your qualifications. 

On that note, it’s important to not be too wordy. The Harvard format relies heavily on bulleted lists, which can promote scannability. However, if your bullet points are too long, it may make the document cumbersome and bloated. Therefore, you must be concise. 

How to structure your Harvard resume

If you want to transform your existing resume to align with the Harvard format, you’ll need to include the following sections: 

The header section is a staple of every resume format. Place your full name at the top of the resume, followed by your phone number, email address, and, if applicable, a personal website or LinkedIn profile. Carefully review your information to ensure there aren’t any typos or errors in your contact details. 

Write a concise summary that highlights your most significant qualifications and career goals. Tailor the messaging and tone to the specific job you’re applying for. Don’t get too wordy, but instead, treat the summary as a sneak peek of the information included in the subsequent sections. 

List your degrees in reverse chronological order, including the name of the institution, degree earned, and dates of attendance. As mentioned above, the Harvard resume template typically includes bullet points for each degree, such as your GPA, honors, awards, or notable coursework you completed. 

Organize your work experience in reverse chronological order. For each position, include your title, company name, location, and dates of employment. Focus on achievements and responsibilities, using bullet points to enhance readability. 

Here is your chance to add in any relevant abilities that make you a strong candidate. You can include technical skills, languages, or soft skills like communication and leadership. 

Additional Sections 

These sections are optional. If desired, include additional information that positions you as a great candidate, such as certifications, awards, volunteer experiences, or professional memberships. 

Tips for writing a Harvard resume

Simply adopting the Harvard resume template can help your application stand out. However, if you truly want to differentiate yourself, it’s important that you:

• Use Action Verbs: Start each point with a word like “developed,” “led,” or “achieved”
• Quantify Achievements: Use numbers to support your stated achievements 
• Use Bullet Points: Use bullet points to make your content easy to skim 
• Choose the Correct Formatting: Ensure consistent formatting throughout your resume 
• Tailor Each Resume: Customize your document for each job application

Also, make sure that your Harvard resume compliments your cover letter . A common mistake involves including lots of overlapping information in these two documents. In reality, your resume should be a concise rundown of what you’ve achieved. Conversely, your cover letter gives hiring teams a glimpse into who you are as a person and employee. 

For more tips on writing a great resume, explore our resume articles . You’ll find everything from what not to do in a job application to how you can identify the best content structure for your career field.

Expert Tip:

Customize your professional summary and key sections of your resume for each job application. Tailoring your resume to the specific requirements of a position can significantly increase your odds of getting noticed. Additionally, a customized resume demonstrates you’ve familiarized yourself with the position and company.

Common Harvard resume tips to avoid

It’s easy to make a mistake when completing your resume, especially if you’re using a plug-and-play template. With that in mind, here are some common mistakes to be wary of:

• Information Overload: Including too much information can overwhelm the reader 
• Formatting Inconsistencies: Inconsistent fonts, bullet points, and spacing can make your resume look unprofessional 
• Not Using Keywords: Several companies use applicant tracking systems (ATS ) to screen resumes — make sure to include relevant keywords to pass an ATS

This is not an exhaustive list of common resume mistakes. Make sure to review resume and cover letter examples for a better look at what you should and shouldn’t be doing. Remember, even seemingly small mistakes can stand out to experienced hiring teams and push your application to the bottom of the pile. 

“By organizing content into distinct sections, the Harvard resume ensures that important details are not overlooked.”

Harvard resume vs. regular resume

Let’s wrap up our Harvard resume guide with a head-to-head comparison with regular resume documents. The Harvard resume differs from traditional job application documents in its structure format and emphasis on educational achievements. Naturally, someone who has graduated from Harvard or another prestigious university will want to highlight this achievement at the very top of their resume.

Additionally, the Harvard resume template leans heavily on bullet points and a skimmable layout. While regular resumes also use bullet points, they don’t incorporate them as heavily into the achievements section of the document. 

For a better comparison of how the Harvard resume PDF compares to a regular resume, explore our resume examples . You’ll find a wide range of examples that you can use as a reference tool when filling out job applications. 

Is the Harvard resume template right for you?

The Harvard resume template can be a valuable addition to your job application tool kit. But remember that a Harvard resume, Word’s free templates, and other generic options aren’t your only choices when creating your resume. 

While the Harvard resume template is a great tool, it’s not the best choice for every job seeker. If you’d like to explore other options, check out Jobseeker’s growing library of cover letter templates and resume templates . 

Get ahead of the competition

Make your job applications stand-out from other candidates.

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Criteria for Success

• It takes less than 60 seconds for your resume to convince a targeted employer that you are qualified for the target job.
• A resume is no more than 2 pages (1 sheet of paper).
• You show a select group of skills and experiences that match those required by the job.
• The organization and formatting help the reader find the information that shows you are qualified.
• Your experiences are concrete and quantified.
• There are absolutely no typos or errors.

Just to clarify: A CV is a kind of resume

A curriculum vitae (CV) is a special kind of resume intended for academic or research positions. In this article, we say “resume” to mean “resume or CV” except when we contrast the two.

Resumes must quickly convince readers that you are qualified

Your resume and cover letter are the first parts of your application that your potential employers will read. Your resume is designed to make the person reading your resume move your application forward in the recruiting process by, say, inviting you for an interview. Your resume should quickly convince your potential employer that you are a well-qualified candidate for the specific job for which you applied.

Analyze your audience

Your resume should be tailored to the job for which you’re applying and—if possible—to the specific people who will be reading it. Do research to find out who will be reading your resume and what they hope to see in it. If the job has explicit job requirements, make sure your resume makes it obvious that you meet all those requirements. Customize the content so it will excite your specific readers.

Your resume shouldn’t tell your whole story. In many cases, the people who read your resume will be reading a whole pile of them. Make it easy for them to put you in the “yes” pile. You can share your life story during the interview.

Make a custom resume for every application

First, read each job posting carefully. Make a list of what qualifications are required for the specific role you for which are applying. For example, a job posting that says you will “drive independent research” might require very different skills from one that says you will “work closely with an interdisciplinary team”.

Next, highlight the skills and accomplishments that demonstrate that you have those qualifications. To do this, you can:

• include different experiences in your resume
• put more bullet points under the most relevant experiences
• move important experiences earlier in the document.

Resumes in particular have limited space, so you should be critical about what experiences you should include and which you should leave out.

Concretize and quantify

Give concrete—preferably quantitative—evidence that you are a qualified match for the organization you want to work in and the specific role you are applying for.

Use verbs that illustrate impact over verbs that make you sound passive and are more specific to the actual contribution you made.

When describing research experiences, it’s okay to include a brief overview of the lab, but it’s critical to characterize your individual contributions.

If you are applying for a research position, include your PI’s name. Your academic pedigree is important currency in the scientific community.

Make your document easy to skim

Recruiters will skim your resume in 30 to 60 seconds. You need to make relevant information easily identifiable.

Use headers that package your experiences in a way that best shows you are qualified for the job. For example, if the job involves teaching or entrepreneurship, make sure to include the relevant header to highlight your experience in these areas.

Order your headers  so that the sections that have the experiences that are most relevant to this job come first.

Use white space to make it easy for a hiring manager to read your resume. Use indentation and bullet points to partition information. A dense resume has more information in it but is hard to read. A spacious resume might have less information, but your reader will understand more of it.

Bold important words so the reader can quickly find the important content.

Proofread! Spell check!

A single mistake can be enough to get you put in the “no” pile. Have a detail-oriented friend help you catch things you missed.

This content was adapted from from an article originally created by the  MIT Biological Engineering Communication Lab .

Resources and Annotated Examples

Annotated example 1.

Example Job Posting 49 KB

Annotated Example 2

Example Resume 53 KB

Harvard CV example

Are you hoping to secure a spot at the prestigious Harvard University?

Unfortunately, these places can be very competitive, so to give yourself the best chance of getting an interview, you need a CV that perfectly showcases your grades and best characteristics.

If you’re not sure where to begin, let us help. Check out our guide below, bursting with our top CV-writing advice and complete with a Harvard CV example to inspire you.

CV templates 

Harvard CV example

This is a good example of a Harvard CV which contains all of the information that a hiring manager will need to be impressed, and presents it in a well- structured, easy-to-read format.

Take some time to study and understand this CV, and refer to it throughout the writing of your own CV for best results.

Build your CV now 

Harvard CV layout and format

In a highly competitive job market, recruiters and employers are often inundated with applications. If they can’t find what they’re looking for in your CV quickly, they may skip past your application and move on to the next one in their inbox

So, it’s crucial to structure and format your CV in a way that enables them to find your essential details with ease, even if they’re pressed for time.

Tips for formatting your Harvard CV

• Length: Even if you’ve got tons of experience to brag about, recruiters don’t have time to read through overly lengthy CVs. Keep it short, concise and relevant – a CV length of 2 sides of A4 pages or less is perfect for the attention spans in today’s job market.
• Readability : By clearly formatting your section headings (bold, or a different colour font, do the trick) and breaking up big chunks of text into snappy bullet points, time-strapped recruiters will be able to skim through your CV with ease.
• Design: It’s generally best to stick to a simple CV design, as funky or elaborate designs rarely add any value to your application. A clear, modern font and a subtle colour scheme work perfectly and allow your skills, experience and achievements to speak for themselves.
• Photos: You can add a profile photo to your CV, if you want to add some personality to it, but they are not a requirement the UK, so you don’t have to.

Quick tip: Creating a professional CV style can be difficult and time-consuming when using Microsoft Word or Google Docs. To create a winning CV quickly, try our quick-and-easy CV Builder and use one of their eye-catching professional CV templates.

CV structure

As you write your CV , work to the simple but effective structure below:

• Name and contact details – Pop them at the top of your CV, so it’s easy for recruiters to contact you.
• CV profile – Write a snappy overview of what makes you a good fit for the role; discussing your key experience, skills and accomplishments.
• Core skills section – Add a short but snappy list of your relevant skills and knowledge.
• Work experience – A list of your relevant work experience, starting with your current role.
• Education – A summary of your relevant qualifications and professional/vocational training.
• Hobbies and interests – An optional sections, which you could use to write a short description of any relevant hobbies or interests.

Now you understand the basic layout of a CV, here’s what you should include in each section of yours.

Contact Details

Tuck your contact details into the corner of your CV, so that they don’t take up too much space. Stick to the basic details, such as:

• Mobile number
• Email address – It should sound professional, such as your full name.
• Location -Just write your rough location, rather than your full address.
• LinkedIn profile or portfolio URL – If you include these, ensure they’re sleek, professional and up-to-date.

Harvard CV Profile

Recruiters and hiring managers are busy, so it’s essential to catch their attention from the get-go.

A strong introductory profile (or personal statement , for junior candidates) at the top of the CV is the first thing they’ll read, so it’s a great chance to make an impression.

It should be a short but punchy summary of your key skills, relevant experience and accomplishments.

Ultimately, it should explain why you’re a great fit for the role you’re applying for and inspire recruiters to read the rest of your CV.

CV profile writing tips:

• Make it short and sharp: The best CV profiles are short, sharp and highly relevant to the target role. For this reason, it’s best to write 3-4 lines of high-level information, as anything over might be missed.
• Tailor it: If recruiters don’t see your suitability within a few seconds, they may close your CV straight away. Your CV profile should closely match the essential requirements listed in the job ad, so make sure to review them before you write it.
• Don’t add an objective: Avoid discussing your career goals in your CV profile – if you think they’re necessary, briefly mention them in your cover letter instead.
• Avoid generic phrases: Cheesy clichès and generic phrases won’t impress recruiters, who read the same statements several times per day. Impress them with your skill-set, experience and accomplishments instead!

Example CV profile for Harvard

What to include in your harvard cv profile.

• Experience overview: Recruiters will want to know what type of companies you’ve worked for, industries you have knowledge of, and the type of work you’ve carried out in the past, so give them a summary of this in your profile.
• Targeted skills: Make your most relevant Harvard key skills clear in your profile. These should be tailored to the specific role you’re applying for – so make sure to check the job description first, and aim to match their requirements as closely as you can.
• Key qualifications: If you have any qualifications which are highly relevant to Harvard jobs, then highlight them in your profile so that employers do not miss them.

Quick tip: If you are finding it difficult to write an attention-grabbing CV profile, choose from hundreds of pre-written profiles across all industries, and add one to your CV with one click in our quick-and-easy CV Builder . All profiles are written by recruitment experts and easily tailored to suit your unique skillset.

Core skills section

Underneath your profile, write a core skills section to make your most relevant skills jump off the page at readers.

It should be made up of 2-3 columns of bullet points of your relevant skills.

Before you do this, look over the job description and make a list of any specific skills, specialisms or knowledge required.

Then, make sure to use your findings in your list. This will paint you as the perfect match for the role.

Important skills for your Harvard CV

Academic excellence – Demonstrating strong academic performance, as reflected in test scores, grades, and achievements in coursework or research projects.

Critical thinking – Analysing, evaluating, and interpreting complex information, and applying sound reasoning to solve problems.

Research – Conducting independent research, collecting and analysing data, and producing high-quality academic work.

Academic writing – Articulating ideas clearly and persuasively in essays, research papers, and other academic writing.

Collaboration – Working effectively in diverse teams and communicating ideas clearly, negotiating differences and building consensus.

Leadership – Leading projects or initiatives, taking on leadership roles in student organisations or community activities.

Relationship management – Establishing positive and productive relationships with peers, professors, and other stakeholders, demonstrating empathy, and working collaboratively towards common goals.

Quick tip: Our quick-and-easy CV Builder has thousands of in-demand skills for all industries and professions, that can be added to your CV in seconds – This will save you time and ensure you get noticed by recruiters.

Work experience section

Next up is your work experience section, which is normally the longest part of your CV.

Start with your current (or most recent) job and work your way backwards through your experience.

Can’t fit all your roles? Allow more space for your recent career history and shorten down descriptions for your older roles.

Structuring each job

If you don’t pay attention to the structure of your career history section, it could quickly become bulky and overwhelming.

Get in recruiters’ good books by creating a pleasant reading experience, using the 3-step structure below:

Provide a brief overview of the job as a whole, such as what the overriding purpose of your job was and what type of company you worked for.

Key responsibilities

Follow with a snappy list of bullet points, detailing your daily duties and responsibilities.

Tailor it to the role you’re applying for by mentioning how you put the target employer’s desired hard skills and knowledge to use in this role.

Key achievements

To finish off each role and prove the impact you made, list 1-3 stand out achievements , results or accomplishments.

This could be anything which had a positive outcome for the company you worked for, or perhaps a client/customer. Where applicable, quantify your examples with facts and figures.

Sample job description for Harvard CV

Reporting to the Finance Manager and responsible for supporting with financial duties for the daily operations of the firm.

Key Responsibilities

• Processing purchase ledger transactions and ensuring the ledger remains up to date
• Supporting with bank reconciliations
• Processing manual and electronic purchase order numbers
• Investigating payment queries over the phone and via email

Quick tip: Create impressive job descriptions easily in our quick-and-easy CV Builder by adding pre-written job phrases for every industry and career stage.

Education and qualifications

Although there should be mentions of your highest and most relevant qualifications earlier on in your CV, save your exhaustive list of qualifications for the bottom.

If you’re an experienced candidate, simply include the qualifications that are highly relevant to Harvard roles.

However, less experienced candidates can provide a more thorough list of qualifications, including A-Levels and GCSEs.

You can also dedicate more space to your degree, discussing relevant exams, assignments and modules in more detail, if your target employers consider them to be important.

Hobbies and interests

Although this is an optional section, it can be useful if your hobbies and interests will add further depth to your CV.

Interests which are related to the sector you are applying to, or which show transferable skills like leadership or teamwork, can worth listing.

On the other hand, generic hobbies like “going out with friends” won’t add any value to your application, so are best left off your CV.

A strong, compelling CV is essential to get noticed and land interviews with the best employers.

To ensure your CV stands out from the competition, make sure to tailor it to your target role and pack it with sector-specific skills and results.

Remember to triple-check for spelling and grammar errors before hitting send.

Good luck with the job search!

The Mignone Center for Career Success will be closed on Monday, September 2 in observance of Labor Day.

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Harvard College Paragraph Resume Template

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Word (.docx) version.

Download or make a copy to edit (do not request edit access): Google Docs version.

Use this paragraph template to build out your first draft of your resume.