Quinnipiac Law Professional Resumes

When preparing a resume, consider the following:

• You are applying to a professional school and your resume should look professional.

• Your resume should be easy to read, structured, balanced and well-organized.

• Be consistent with formatting, spaces, commas, underlining, bolding, italicizing and capitalizing.

• Use a standard font with easy readability, such as 12-point Times New Roman.

• As with any document you submit with your application, ensure you proofread your resume thoroughly. Your resume is another writing sample demonstrating your ability to write well and your attention to detail.

• Make sure you are concise and clear. This is a hallmark of legal writing and is important for your resume and personal statement.

• Use a professional email address, preferably one that is associated with work or school or just uses your name.

• Keep your resume to one page unless you have a significant work history (greater than 10 years in the workforce). Resumes, in general, should be a maximum of two pages.

• Use action verbs in the present or past tense as appropriate.

• Objectives are unnecessary and sometimes highlight your desire to do something other than attend law school.

• Highlight any honors received and note any leadership roles you have held.

• The employment and education sections should be presented in reverse chronological order (most recent first).

• List the jobs you have held, including time at the position and title. This should be for both paid and internship/unpaid experiences. 

• List volunteer experiences or activities. Be sure to highlight any groups or activities where you held a leadership role.

• Include dates of employment, volunteer experiences and activities in a month/year format and, if less than full-time, the hours per week devoted to the position/activity.

• We have no particular preferences as to your activities. You are not required to be part of your school’s pre-law group – participate in whatever activities you are passionate about. If the organization's name does not fully explain the activity, please provide some detail. If the organization name is an acronym, please spell out the group's name – the Admissions Committee may not be familiar with the acronym.

• Similarly, you do not have to work at a law firm. While working at a law firm might provide some good insight into whether or not you want to go to law school, it is not a required element of your resume.

• Do not include activities from high school unless they are significant, such as becoming an Eagle Scout, winning a national competition or performing at a very high athletic level.

• Avoid personal pronouns such as “I” and “My.”

• Do not exaggerate or overstate your credentials.

Consider utilizing your career services office at your undergraduate institution. Colleges and universities often have resume workshops and counseling. Further, these services are generally open to both current students and alumni.