Are you someone who just graduated? And now on the job hunt? Well most of the people have already made a resume even before graduating, but it doesn’t matter if you have graduated or not, a resume is one of the most important pieces of paper for a student. In the resume, you mention everything you have done, from academic to extra curricular.

Landing your first job is one of the most exciting milestones for any student or recent graduate in UK. But before you can step into the professional world, you need a well-structured resume and that is why we have come with this blog. In this blog, we are going to teach you to write a resume so you can land your first job very smoothly because a resume is the thing that gets you inside the door. This is what Uninist does for students in UK, from finding suitable student accommodation to how to write a resume, we cover it all! So, without any more delay, let’s get right into it.

How to Write a Resume?

Understand What UK Employers Are Looking For

• UK employers like skill-based resumes (or CVs) that contain brief and punchy information.
• Because you’ve been at your first job already, your potential employers understand that you won’t have that much experience, but they are after transferable skills like problem solving, collaboration, and communication. Education and academic qualifications, and volunteering, part-time employment, and intern.
• Make your resume a single paragraph at a maximum two pages – refrain from stuffing it with too much information.

Select an Appropriate Resume Format

To prepare your resume, choose the structure that best characterises your profile:

• Chronological resume which focuses on work experience, ideal if you do have experience.
• Functional resume which emphasizes skills instead of experience like best used by first time job seekers.
• Combination resume which combines skill and work/academic experience.
• For your initial employment, a functional or a functional/combination resume will do.

Begin with Good Contact Info

• Include your contact information prominently at the very top of your resume.
• Include your full name, mobile phone, Business email and not casual emails like cooldude123@gmail.com, LinkedIn profile as applicable.
• Do not provide uninvited personal information such as age, marital status, etc., nor a photo which is not requisite in UK resumes.

Write a Compelling Personal Statement

• Personal statement/profiling statement which is extremely brief 3-4.
• You can use it to explain who you are, your professional goals, as well as why you fit the job.
• For example: “Self-assured Business graduate with strong organizational and teamworking skills, looking for a first marketing job. Proven experience of social media management and willing to contribute creative potential towards company development.”
• This statement makes your recruiter understand your passion and potential from the first read.

Begin by Naming Your Education

• Since you yourself are an inexperienced jobholder, your greatest marketing asset is education.
• Record your credentials in reverse chronological order like name of degree or diploma, university/college name, study dates, appropriate projects or modules.
• Example: BCom (Hons), University of Oxford (2021-2024) with main modules like Economics, Marketing, Business Communication.

Stress Work Experience Even if it is Minimal

• You do not need an extensive work history for your first job. Simply add Part-time activities like cafes, shops, internships, volunteer service, university society or event work.
• Example: Event Manager in University Society (2023), held a student photo exhibition, multi-channel social campaigns increased visitors by 40%.
• This shows transferable skills but not precisely a job.

Stress Transferable Skills

• Skills matter far more than experience when creating a first job resume.
• Create a resume skill list that showcases things like teamwork and communications, problem-solving, time management, and computer/technical abilities like Microsoft Office suite, Canva, social media programs.
• Tip: Make skills specific to the job description – avoid generic abilities.

List of Achievements & Extracurricular Activities

• Employers desire to see industriousness and commitment outside classes.
• Include things like scholarships, prizes, or certificates, club memberships (debate team, sports teams, student union), online courses on LinkedIn Learning, Coursera.
• Example: Obtained Google Digital Garage Certification in Digital Marketing, University football team captain (2022–23), etc.

Keep It BRIEF and Relevant

• Applicants are read by recruiters for less than 10 seconds.
• Do not write very elaborately – bullet points.
• Do not include unrelated hobbies such as “Netflix binging” or “spending time with friends.” Rather, create transferable hobbies that become marketable skills such as blogging, coding, or volunteering.

Bring a Resume to Life with Action Verbs

• Begin bullet points with vigorous active verbs like Organised, Developed, Managed, Led, Created.
• Change “Supported social media” to “Developed Instagram campaigns that grew followers by 20%.”
• Action verbs strengthen achievements and present them professionally.

Proofreading Before Submission

• Spelling errors or poor grammar will ruin an initial impression.
• Spelling check always, UK spellings specifically for e.g., use of “organisation” instead of “organization”.
• Ask a friend, professor, or mentor to read over prior to submitting.

Customize Each Resume for Each Job

• Don’t send the same resume everywhere.
• Read the job description carefully and relate that with your skill.
• Example: If you are interviewing for a marketing position, emphasize communications and social media. If you are interviewing for finance, emphasize numerals and analytical skills.
• Customisation places you higher on the short list.

Use a Resume Builder for Extra Help

• If you’re unsure of the structure, then do a resume builder.
• You may also use UK-style templates from free online sources like Canva, Zety, or Novoresume.
• Resume creators take the guesswork out of format, giving you a way to create a professional-looking resume.

Don’t use very stylized templates – use basic, minimalist, and ATS – friendly templates

• Make It ATS-Friendly Many UK employers sort resumes through programs of Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS).
• To ensure your resume will be seen, employ usual fonts such as Calibri or Arial.
• Don’t use high-quality images or graphics, formatting. You need to incorporate job posting keywords.

Add References (Optional for First Job)

• Either add references at the end of your paper or simply state: “References upon request.”
• One who has referred an inexperienced worker may be a head of the university lecturer, Internship supervisor, and Head of a volunteer organization.

Conclusion

Remember that a good resume plays a very crucial role in landing your job and it is important to make a great resume which gets selected right away. In this blog we have answered your question of how to write a resume and now you just have to stack skills and experience to make a very highly selected resume.

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