What is a master resume and how to use it
By Jenesy Gabrielle Burkett Fox
When applying for jobs, the resources you’re expected to have prepared can be overwhelming. Everyone has a resume but you’re also supposed to tailor your resume to every position you apply for. I mean, isn’t that what a cover letter is for? Well, don’t worry because there is a tool that makes tailoring your resume easy. It’s called a master resume.
What is a master resume?
A master resume is not a resume you turn into a potential employer. A master resume is a copy of your resume that lists all of your experience including awards, achievements, training etc. You can keep it in the format of your resume that you turn in to potential employers, while keeping all of your experience and all bullet points associated with those positions. This allows you a copy of your resume that has all of your experience in one place to more efficiently sort through it.
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Do I need a master resume?
No, pretty much no one other than maybe a career center counselor will ask to see your master resume. It is purely a tool for you, but it will make it so much easier to tailor your resume and get the job you want.
When to make and update your master resume
One of the great things about a master resume is you don’t have to have a job application in front of you to make it relevant. You can make your master resume whenever it makes sense to you. All you need to do is start with a past resume, make sure you list all of your education, full-time, part-time, and volunteer positions, awards whether academic or professional, trainings and certifications, etc. I like to update my master resume with bullet points for existing positions when I come up with new wording to reflect previous positions that I might want to use in the future. For reference, when I submit a resume I include three to five bullet points for each position but my master resume has anywhere from 10 to 20 bullet points depending on the position.
Who should use a master resume?
Master resumes are especially helpful tools for folks with neurodivergence. This is because a master resume can be as long as you want. Having all of your experiences laid out with any bullet points you’ve used on previous resumes can help you put your experience in perspective. This can be helpful both when trying to make your next resume for a job application and narrowing down what jobs you’re most qualified for. Having a master resume allows you to have a starting point based off of past resumes you’ve already built rather than starting from scratch.
I’ve found that a master resume puts your experience in perspective for you. When applying for jobs, it can be daunting seeing all of the required and preferred requirements for positions can make us feel inadequate. Having all of our experience laid out for us can allow you to see the things you’ve had done and how those contribute to our overall ability for a given position.
At the end of the day, the important thing is to use the tools that will help you succeed when applying for new opportunities. A master resume is one of those tools. The only way to figure out if it’s the right one for you is to try it!
Main photo by cottonbro studio / Pexels
