Many students want to get scholarships to pursue the education without fearing the long-term implications of students’ loan. But, they make resume mistakes that cost them their scholarships. This article highlights mistakes to avoid in scholarship resume.
In high school, many students are worried about getting homework done. Perhaps, you always said to your parents, help me get my homework done. But, you face a different challenge when it comes to joining college. That’s when you come to terms with the reality of the rising tuition expenses cost as well as the long-term impact of the students’ loan. It’s at this point that you consider the available alternatives to students’ loan such as scholarships.
Generally, students’ scholarships provide a great source of financial aid for college students. Nevertheless, getting a scholarship is not easy. The scholarship committees expect applicants to submit great resumes that clearly show why they should be considered. Fortunately, you can get help with your scholarship resume. Just like you can check research papers online, you can get help from experts with your scholarship resume. However, whether you write the resume or seek assistance, there are killer mistakes that you should avoid in your curriculum vitae.
Here are the top 10 killer mistakes that you should avoid in your scholarship resume:
- Stuffing a Scholarship Resume with Information
One of the most common killer mistakes people make when writing a resume for a scholarship is including too much information in this document. A resume should be short and precise. Ideally, it should be a single page. Maybe you are simply a complex person with many skills and fascinating interests. However, scholarship committees are not interested in knowing you personally. They just want to know what makes you the most ideal applicant to be awarded the scholarship.
In simple terms, don’t include things like hobbies that are not directly related to what you are applying for. To include relevant information in a clear manner, use bullet lists. Start with the most important information and include interesting hobbies and clubs if there is a spare room for that.
- Using Garbage Language
A scholarship resume is a principal document that should market you to the scholarship committee. It’s not a legal document. Therefore, avoid the mistake of filling your scholarship curriculum vitae with garbage language. One of the worst resume mistakes that people make is to use the most robotic, blandest terms in their resume. The most common garbage language that people use in their resumes is saying that they are results-oriented with the bottom-line orientation. Unfortunately, thousands of resumes are written with this statement.
Other common linguistic mistakes that you should avoid in your scholarship resume include saying that you are a motivated self-starter and a team player. Also, avoid saying that you have great communication skills and a proven track record of success. A resume that has bureaucratic terms could be saying nothing. Thus, it might not impress the scholarship committee.
- Using a Bad Resume Template
There are great resume templates that you can consider thanks to modern Word Processing programs. But, if you pick and use a template without making some changes, you will make a resume mistake. For your scholarship resume to stand out, adjust the resume template that you choose. For instance, reorder sections and change the template font.
Using a standard template for resume depicts you as an application that lacks creativity. Therefore, work on the template to ensure that your resume is tailored for the application. Nevertheless, make moderate adjustments because being extreme with adjustments can present your resume as a non-professional.
- Using the Wrong English Level
Using the wrong English level is also one of the most common resume mistakes that you are likely to make in your scholarship curriculum vitae. This is particularly a common mistake among non-native English speakers. Unfortunately, language is very important when it comes to connecting with the audience. That means the language that you use in your resume for a scholarship should be professional, precise and clear. A mistake that you can make in your scholarship resume is to use too technical or too casual language.
Being too technical means filling your resume with jargons and acronyms that some members of the scholarship committee may be unfamiliar with. Using too casual language implies using slang in your resume. Bear in mind the fact that the scholarship committee has several resumes to go through. Thus, the committee members do not have much time to struggle to understand what you say in the resume. Therefore, make it easy for them to understand by using the right English level.
- Including Wrong Contact Details
You most likely think that you can’t make this mistake in your scholarship resume. After all, you want to be contacted by the scholarship provider with good news. Unfortunately, some people include wrong contact details in their resumes.
For instance, some people fail to use their full names, mailing address, phone numbers, and email addresses. Essentially, many students use old contact details or inappropriate contact details in their scholarship resumes. This makes it hard for the scholarship providers to contact them even when they choose them.
- Misplacing Vital Information
Your scholarship resume should have a clear organization in terms of where you place information. A common mistake that people make when writing a scholarship resume is burying vital information. Vital information should be at the top fold of your resume. If you don’t place it at the top, you will bury it where it won’t catch the attention of the scholarship committee. Since the committee has many resumes to consider, its members look at the top of the document to decide whether to read the other parts.
Essentially, the top third of your resume is the place where you should convince the committee to award you the scholarship. Contact information should come at the bottom since the committee will decide to call you when convinced that you deserve to be awarded the scholarship.
- Grammar Mistakes and Typos
Other resume mistakes that will get your application rejected immediately no matter what you are applying for is grammar mistakes and typos. You know that your scholarship resume should be error-free. But, your spelling and grammar may be weak. This is particularly the case for English language learners.
Essentially, don’t depend on Word Processors exclusively to fix grammar mistakes and typos when writing your scholarship resume. Most typos tend to be valid English words. However, including them in your scholarship resume depicts you as a person that doesn’t pay attention to details. This is a message that you don’t want to send to the scholarship committee.
An ideal way to avoid such mistakes in your resume is to ask a family member or friend to review it. Make sure that you submit a resume with perfect grammar and free of typing errors.
- Providing Generic Information
A resume with generic information can be used for any application. Providing generic information is a killer mistake that you should avoid in your scholarship resume. To ensure that your resume stands out, include information that appeals to your audience. In this case, the scholarship provider or committee is your audience.
Essentially, take time to know what the scholarship committee will be looking for in the resumes of the applicants. Make sure that the information that you include in your resume will convince the committee that you are the most qualified applicant to be awarded the scholarship.
- Providing Incomplete Information
There are aspects of a scholarship resume that catch the attention of the committee. A mistake that you can easily make is to provide incomplete information on such aspects. For instance, you may be in a hurry to complete the resume. After providing interesting information, you may forget to include references. This implies that the scholarship committee can’t confirm the truth of the provided information. This will ruin your chances of being awarded the scholarship. To avoid this, go through the scholarship resume or ask somebody else to do it for you to find out if there is information that needs completion.
- Including Unnecessary Information
There are many things you shouldn’t put in your resume. Basically, the scholarship committee doesn’t have time to review unnecessary information. Therefore, don’t include information unless when certain that it is relevant. For instance, avoid annoying buzzwords and some hobbies. Also, don’t include blatant lies in the resume because your application will be rejected right away if the committee suspects lie.
Avoid these killer mistakes in your resume for a scholarship to stand a higher chance of being considered by the committee. If you are not confident in your ability to write a great scholarship resume, seek assistance from experienced professionals.
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