Winter 2026 Resume + Cover Letter for Grad Students & Postdocs - Cover Letter and Resume Writing Strategies

Sep 13, 2026

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Winter 2026 training materials for graduate students and postdocs on building a job-application resume and cover letter. The session focuses on organizing resumes to highlight role-relevant qualifications, understanding how readers including AI and HR screen applications, and using targeted structure and formatting. Guidance covers effective bullet points with action verbs, clear section selection, concise length expectations, and developing vivid professional stories for cover letters, interviews, and beyond.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLetters

FormatPDF

Pages57

Reading Time20 min

AccessFree to download

What is a resume?

Who is reading them?

Why?

CV vs Resume

Audience and goal

Structure, focus, and length

Resume format

Font, layout, and emphasis

Consistency and dates

Common resume sections

Contact information

Education, experience, skills

Role-relevant content

Resume tools & resources

Resource list for resumes and cover letters

Strategy topics

Updated Winter 2026 Resume + Cover Letter For Grad Students & Postdocs Erin Brown, PhD Associate Director, Graduate Career Services [ebrown@career.ucla.edu](ebrown@career.ucla.edu) Gaby Barrios, PhD Assistant Director, STEM PhD Students [gbarrios@career.ucla.edu](gbarrios@career.ucla.edu) Eddie Cleofe, PhD Assistant Director, Masters Students [ecleofe@career.ucla.edu](ecleofe@career.ucla.edu) By the end of this session, you’ll learn how to: Organize your resume to emphasize your most relevant qualiﬁcations Structure cover letters toeﬀectively connect your experiences to the roles you are applying to Develop bullet points that eﬃciently describe your experiences and achievements Develop vivid professional stories to use in cover letters, interviews, and beyond 1. What is a resume? 2. Who is reading them? 3. Why? 1. Focused summary of relevant skills, experiences for a speciﬁc role 2. Read by AI then people (HR, Hiring Manager/Committee, ATS-Applicant Tracking System, etc.) 3. To decide who to interview 7 seconds. Average amount of time a hiring manager looks at a resume on a ﬁrst pass Resume: Diﬀerent than a CV | | CV | Resume | | --- | --- | --- | | Audience | Academics, researchers | Employers and networking contacts | | Goal | To obtain an academic/research position, grant, or fellowship | Any non-academic industry | | Structure & Format | Complete history of your academic credentials, including research, teaching, awards, funding, and service | Snapshot of most relevant work experiences and skills. Targeted towards a specific job posting. | | Focus | Academics achievements and scholarly potential | Relevant experiences and skills that demonstrate accomplishments | | Length | Multiple pages, no limit | 1-2 pages | | Unnecessary Info | Non-academic related pursuits (i.e. personal information, hobbies, non-work experiences) | Unabridged list of publications, presentations, conferences, courses taught. Any non-relevant experiences or accomplishments. | Resume: Format • Should look boring/standard • Length: 1 page (rarely 2) with 0.5-0.75 inch margins • Font: Easily readable font,(ie Helvetica or Calibri) • Font size: 10-12 pt for content, larger for headings and name • Bold, underlined, and italicized font sparingly, for eﬀect • Abbreviations/acronyms are ok (when previously deﬁned) • Dates on the right-hand side • Consistent titles, organizations, abbreviations, and dates • Content in bullet points that start with action verbs Resume: Common Sections • Contact Information ○ Name ○ Email Address ○ LinkedIn, Website, Github, etc. ○ Address (city) ○ Phone number • Education ○ School & program • Experience ○ Reverse Chrono ○ Functional ○ Hybrid • Skills ○ Grouped by themes like Technical, Management, etc. • Role-Relevant Content ○ Selected Projects ○ Certiﬁcations ○ Presentations ○ Publications ○ Leadership/Service ○ Honors & Awards • Section order should emphasize the most relevant information ﬁrst. • Example order: Education, Technical Skills, Professional Experience, Selected Projects • Do not include personal info (photo, age, race, sex, height, weight, nationality, marital status, etc.) Resume: Tools & Resources ● GCS Resume / Cover Letter Resource List ● GCS Master’s Resume Book ● GCS PhD Resume Book ● CV vs Resume Fact Sheet ● Harvard PhD Resume & Cover Letter Guide ● Harvard Master’s Resume & Cover Letter Guide ● Creative Resume Considerations ● Resume Whitening ● Listing Potentially Controversial or Partisan Experiences ● Addressing Resume Gaps Resume Writing Strategies

FAQs

How should a resume be organized to match the target role?

Emphasize the most relevant qualifications for the specific position and order sections so the most relevant information appears first. Use targeted content aligned to the job posting.

Who reads resumes, and how long do they typically spend on the first pass?

Resumes are read by both AI and people, including HR, hiring managers/committees, and ATS systems. Hiring managers spend about 7 seconds on a first pass.

What is the key difference between a CV and a resume?

A CV focuses on academic achievements and scholarly potential for academic/research roles, while a resume highlights relevant work experiences and skills for non-academic industry positions, typically in 1–2 pages.

Sep 13, 2026

Upload by Noah