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Harvard resume template

Harvard resume template: the bullet-point format from Harvard career services

One page, Times-style serif, a centred name over a single rule, Education first, then each role with its organisation and city on one line, title and dates under it and action-verb bullets.

Template preview

The preview uses sample data and the exact layout of the PDF you will download.

Harvard resume

The Harvard bullet-point resume is the format Harvard College career services gives students for a first draft. It is plain, one column and easy for both recruiters and ATS software to read. This template prints it as published: centred headings, the school or employer with its city on the right, the role with its dates on the right, then results written as short bullets.

Edit your resume online, no software needed

Each section has its own form and the score updates as you save. The preview and the PDF always use the same layout as this template.

Template structure

Sections in this template and how to write each one

Required sections are what recruiters look for first; recommended sections round out the resume when you have real data for them.

  1. Education

    Required

    School and city on the first line, degree and concentration with the graduation date under it. Add GPA only if it strengthens your application.

  2. Work Experience

    Required

    Organisation and city, then title and dates. 3–5 bullets, each starting with an action verb and ending with a result.

  3. Organizational & Volunteer Experiences

    Recommended

    Printed as Leadership & Activities: club or organisation, your role and dates, and one or two bullets on what you led.

  4. Awards

    Recommended

    Scholarships, competitions and honors with the year.

  5. Skills

    Required

    Use categories such as Technical, Laboratory and Interests: “Technical: Excel, SQL, Power BI”.

  6. Languages

    Recommended

    Give each language a level (Fluent, IELTS 7.5, Native).

Editing guide

Write your resume with this template, step by step

Write everything in English. Education comes first; save after each section so the ATS score updates.

  1. Fill in contact details

    Your name as written on LinkedIn, a personal e-mail, a phone number with country code and your city. They print on one centred line under your name.

  2. Education first

    School, city, degree and concentration, GPA if it helps, graduation date. Add relevant coursework, honors or a thesis in the description.

  3. Experience in bullets

    Newest role first. Start each bullet with an action verb, no personal pronouns, and quantify where possible.

  4. Leadership & activities

    Clubs, volunteering and student organisations go in Volunteer experience, formatted like your jobs.

  5. Skills & interests

    Group skills as Technical, Laboratory or Interests, list languages with a level, then preview and download the PDF.

ATS score

What the system checks for this template

In the editor every check shows as passed, needs work or missing, with a hint to fix it right in the related section.

  • Complete contact details

    Full name, email and phone at the top so software and recruiters can reach you right away.

  • Work experience with complete details

    Every experience entry has a title, company and start date so the ATS can compute years of experience.

  • Achievements with numbers

    Most job descriptions include numbers: revenue, %, team size, time.

  • Job descriptions as bullet points

    Job descriptions written as bullet points, each starting with a verb.

  • Enough skills to match keywords

    At least 5 skills using the exact keywords from the job posting.

  • Education

    Education present: school, degree, graduation year.

  • All required sections of the template

    Every required section of the template has content.

  • Appropriate length

    250–900 words, one to two A4 pages.

  • Complete dates

    Every experience and education entry has start and end month/year, or is marked as current.

Quick answers

Frequently asked questions

Is this the official Harvard template?

It follows the layout of the bullet-point resume template published by Harvard College career services (Mignone Center for Career Success). X-Interview is not affiliated with Harvard.

Do I need to have studied at Harvard to use it?

No. The format is a widely used, clean one-page resume style that suits any student or graduate, especially for internships and roles at multinational companies.

Why is there no summary or photo?

The Harvard format lets your education and bullets speak for themselves, and US-style resumes leave out photos. If you add a summary it prints under your contact line.

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