A “Must Have” Tool for Savvy Latino High School Students

By Quetzal Mama • July 4, 2013

The Résumé

A “Must Have” Tool for Savvy Latino High School Students
copyright 2013 Roxanne Ocampo

Back in the day, only job seekers understood the value of a resume.  This was because the purpose of the resume has historically been to get an interview, and hopefully land a job.  Today the resume is a must-have tool for college-bound high school students.  It serves two purposes.  First, it is a great timesaving tool for the intensive college application period.  Second, it is also an important component for the critical scholarship portfolio.

Think of the resume as a “work-in-progress” that evolves over four years of high school.  The goal of building a resume is to capture real-time information in preparation for the college and scholarship application period.  Therefore, students should begin “building” their resume in the freshman year of high school.  Why so early?  I’ll tell you!  Four years of high school will fly by.  Consider recalling four years of community service, awards received and distinction earned, officer and leadership roles, sports activities, music programs, summer internships, class projects, and membership in academic organizations.  Clearly, this is not something that can be easily (nor accurately) recalled.

Start this process early by preparing a “bare bones” resume.  This early sketch should project future anticipated categories consistent with either the Common Application or the UC application.  For example, anticipate that students will be asked the following questions:
 
"List all college/university affiliated courses you have taken since 9th grade.
Provide examination dates and best scores for
SAT, ACT, AP and IB examinations.”

Rather than rummaging through old files, recalling passwords to access online scores, estimating the hours spent on volunteer and community service activities, or paying the cost to expedite transcript requests, wouldn’t it be easier to simply cut and paste the information from a Word document?  Of course it would.  This is the beauty of having an evolving, real-time resume.
 
The sample college application questions (above) only require straightforward, objective data.  What about the following question:

“List Educational Prep Programs, Volunteer & Community Service,
Awards & Honors, Work Experience, and Extracurricular Activities.
Include organization and description, title and responsibilities,
and dates (time spent) on each activity.”

 Whoa.  Answering these questions requires a bit more work.  In my practice, I see the benefit of students compiling this information proactively.  It really pays off.  Here is why.  Students have a limit to the number of activities provided (generally 10 to 12), ranked in order of importance.  The activities must include the name of the organization, their title, a brief description of their duties, the length of their assignment (start and end dates), and the total number of hours worked.  In addition to recalling this important information, there is also a character limit.  As you can imagine, once the pressure of completing applications has begun, it is extremely time-consuming (and frustrating) for these students to try and remember important details from years ago.

Let’s see how simple it is to begin populating a resume.  First, the student should request their official transcript from the high school registrar (counseling office).  Next, the student should visit collegeboard.org to obtain test scores for any applicable examinations including SAT, Subject Tests, and AP scores.  Ditto for an ACT exam, found at actstudent.org.  Then, grab a folder and pull together all award certificates, and a tally the number of community service hours performed.  Community service hours are critical for scholarship consideration!  Now, visit the websites for all organizations related to volunteer and/or paid experience, internships, leadership programs, campus officer, and honors and awards received.  Write a brief description (in the student’s own words) of the organization’s mission and the student’s contribution.  Finally, obtain statistics from awards and/or honors earned to qualify the distinction.  For example, if the student earned the title of “Best Defense Attorney” at the annual county Mock Trial Competition, include how many students were considered for the award and the criteria required to earn the distinction.  Once the student has compiled this information, begin plugging this data into a Word file.  Update the file twice per year.  Voila, now you have a working resume!
 
Quick overview of the basic resume “to do” list:
 
1.     Order official high school transcripts and SAT or ACT examination scores, Subject Test scores, and AP or IB scores.

2.     Go online and obtain mission statements from all organizations worked/volunteered.

3.     Compose a brief description of the organization’s mission statement and student contribution.  What does the organization do, and what did the student do?

4.     Include titles, hours worked, and duration of assignments (e.g. Jan—May 2013).

5.     Grab a folder and pull together all award certificates, and a tally of community service hours.

6.     Rank the activities in order of importance.

7.     Organize resume in topics/sections that are meaningful for the student (see sample below)
 
Below is a sample of possible topics to include on a student resume.  This is not an exhaustive list.  The italicized text represents the types of items that would be included with these topics.  The actual student resume should include additional information (see #3 & #4 above).
 

Academics


(3.83 GPA, class rank 83/537)


Discipline-Specific Accomplishments

(Outstanding Achievement in Science Award, Sandia National Laboratories)

Athletics

(Captain of Varsity Track Team, Varsity Soccer)

Leadership


(President of MEChA; Key Club Activities Director)


Awards

(National Hispanic Scholar & AP Scholar by the College Board)

On-Campus Activities

(Marching Band, Science Olympiad, Key Club)

Public Speaking/Presentations


(Guest Speaker at Kiwanis Club, Presenter at Science Blast, University of the Pacific)

Community/Volunteer Experience

(Tutor at Boys & Girls Club, Homework Club Tutor at McHenry House Homeless Shelter
Total Community Service Hours = 310)
 
Mission Statement Examples

(These statements will be used for the college application and as the basis
for supplemental essays and scholarship essays)
 
1.     Outstanding Achievement in Science Award, Sandia National Laboratories.  This annual award is given to one student (junior level) from participating high schools in the Tri-Valley region of California, nominated by Science staff members, and demonstrated outstanding achievement in the field of science.

2.     Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlán (MEChA):  As President of my high school campus chapter, my role has been to provide leadership, activities, and event facilitation.   MEChA was founded on the principles of self-determination for the liberation of our Chicano students.  Central to our mission is that political involvement and education is the avenue for change in our society.

3.     Boys & Girls Club of Tracy:  I provided 160 hours of volunteer service to students at North Elementary School, tutoring in the subjects of English and Mathematics.  My role was to design and implement instructional plans, and to monitor student progress.
 
      Students who invest time and thought into each component of the college application will have a superior application.  One way to achieve this goal is to proactively prepare a “work in progress” resume.  Students who prepare their resume in advance will save valuable time, increase data accuracy, eliminate stress, and have critical information prepared for the scholarship process.  In addition to having a superior application, the student will also have the framework to respond to many essay prompts!  Finally, most scholarship organizations require a resume, so jump on it. --Quetzal Mama
(Copyright 2013 Roxanne Ocampo)