
What to Put on a Resume: Good Things You Should Include
Find our what you need to put on your resume and what recruiters are looking for. Use these tips and examples to make a perfect resume.
Some say studying abroad looks good on a resume. Others see it as “academic tourism.” Here’s how to put it on your resume to get that job—no matter who reads your application.
Your study abroad experience gave you useful skills and broadened your horizons.
The bad news is—
If you don’t show it right on your resume, employers won’t care.
To really boost your chances of getting hired, you need to show how your international experience can benefit them—when they give you that job.
Don’t worry.
You’re about to learn how to nail it.
This article will show you:
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Sample resume made with our builder—See more resume examples here.
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1
First things first:
Not all types of resumes need to include your study abroad experience. For example, an executive resume will be just fine with a brief mention of your most recent educational background.
Putting study abroad on a resume makes perfect sense when you’re preparing a:
In other words, when your professional experience on a resume isn’t huge yet.
Now that you know when to add study abroad to a resume, let’s take a look at where to put it.
This is the most typical place to put your study abroad experience on a resume.
Put it right below the school you attend or graduated from. Just make sure the formatting is consistent across all entries.
Remember to put the school name and location, dates, and degree earned.
And—
If you have little or no professional experience, you might want to put the resume education section before the experience section.
Pro Tip: If you’re using our resume builder, you don’t have to worry about inconsistent formatting.
Here’s how you can add study abroad to your resume education section:
2015–2018
U.C. Berkeley, CA
BA in English and Psychology
Dean’s List all semesters
2016–2017
University of Warsaw, Poland
Concentration in Language Studies
Fulbright U.S. Student Program—English Teaching Assistant
Remember: you can expand your resume education section to accommodate all information relevant to the position. These include relevant coursework, Dean's List, GPA on a resume, or cum laude on a resume if applicable.
This resume section is a perfect place for listing study abroad on one condition:
If you managed to combine work and study.
Should you choose this option, just see to it that the formatting is consistent for all entries.
Here are some basic rules for making a powerful resume experience section:
Take a look at the example below to see how to include study abroad in your resume work experience section:
2017–
SEO Juice, Los Angeles, CA
Content Specialist
2016–2017
Best English School, Warsaw, Poland
English Teacher
Pro Tip: Don't forget to highlight your key achievements for a resume in a dedicated subsection of your resume job description section.
The benefits of study abroad programs for your future career development are massive.
The Learning Abroad Center at the University of Minnesota has identified a skill set you may gain during your study abroad program. Some of the skills include:
Remember: focus on your top skills on your resume, don’t list everything you can do.
And—
Pick out the skills you can easily prove by making a reference to your resume education or experience sections.
The resume objective is a short opening paragraph that introduces you to the recruiter in the form of a written elevator pitch.
A well-written resume objective should focus on your transferable skills, and show the recruiter how they make you a perfect fit for the role.
Here’s what your resume objective could look like:
A tech-savvy and hard-working fresh graduate from U.C. Berkeley with a Bachelor’s Degree in English and Psychology. Eager to support XYZ Media as a content specialist with strong communication and research skills. Previous study abroad experience as an English language tutor in a cross-cultural environment.
Obviously, depending on what position you’re applying for and what company you want to join, you will need to highlight different aspects of your study abroad experience on a resume.
Pro Tip: Don’t forget to mention your knowledge of foreign languages on your resume. It’s also a skill you developed thanks to your international experience.
When making a resume in our builder, drag & drop bullet points, skills, and auto-fill the boring stuff. Spell check? Check. Start building a professional resume template here for free.
When you’re done, Zety’s resume builder will score your resume and tell you exactly how to make it better.
2
Should you write a cover letter?
Yes!
Over 50% of recruiters would like to read yours.
A cover letter is another opportunity for you to put study abroad experience in the limelight.
Especially when it’s pretty recent, and you don’t much professional experience to brag about.
Just like in the case of your resume, focus on what’s relevant and leave out all the rest.
Follow these tips and learn how to write a cover letter quickly and effectively:
Here are some ideas on the phrasing you could use to describe your international experience in your cover letter:
It makes the most sense to include such information either in the second or third paragraph of your cover letter.
Why?
This is where you’re explaining why you’re a great fit for the position or describing the value you’ll bring to the company.
Pro Tip: Learn how to answer the toughest interview questions to show your study abroad experience was an opportunity for you to develop.
Plus, a great cover letter that matches your resume will give you an advantage over other candidates. You can write it in our cover letter builder here. Here's what it may look like:
See more cover letter templates and start writing.
How to put study abroad on a resume:
Not sure if studying abroad looks good on a resume? Still have mixed feelings about how to put study abroad on your resume? Give us a shout out in the comments below! Always happy to help.
Find our what you need to put on your resume and what recruiters are looking for. Use these tips and examples to make a perfect resume.
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