Sample résumé and CV
Use a one-page résumé for jobs, internships and MPA/MPP applications, and an academic CV for PhD programs, predocs and research programs. Both are for a fictional QC student: copy the structure, not the content.
ALEX RIVERA
Queens, NY · alex.rivera@example.com · github.com/alexrivera · linkedin.com/in/alexrivera
Education
Queens College, City University of New YorkFlushing, NY
B.A. in Political Science, Minor in Data Analytics · GPA 3.6 · Dean's List (4 semesters)Expected May 2028
Relevant coursework: Research Skills; Applied Political Research; Data Analysis and Modeling; Data Management, Processing, and Visualization; Urban Politics
Experience
Research Assistant, Department of Political Science, Queens CollegeSept 2026 – Present
- Clean and merge three waves of survey data (4,000+ respondents) in R for a faculty project on local turnout
- Built 12 charts and a codebook used in a conference paper draft
Legislative Intern, Office of a New York City Council MemberJune – Aug 2026
- Logged and categorized 600+ constituent cases in Excel; flagged the three most common housing complaints for staff
- Drafted two one-page briefs on proposed tenant-protection bills
Data Intern (CUNY Spring Forward), Community nonprofit, Queens, NYMar – May 2026
- Built a monthly dashboard of program enrollment; cut reporting time from two days to two hours
Leadership
Treasurer, QC Model UN · managed a $4,000 travel budget for two national conferences2025 – Present
Skills
R (tidyverse, ggplot2), Excel (pivot tables), SQL (basic), Qualtrics, Git · LinkedIn Learning: SQL Essential Training · Spanish (professional working proficiency)
ALEX RIVERA
Department of Political Science, Queens College, CUNY · alex.rivera@example.com · alexrivera.github.io
Education
Queens College, City University of New YorkExpected May 2028
B.A. in Political Science, Minor in Data Analytics, Honors in the Social Sciences · GPA 3.6
Honors thesis: "Who Shows Up? Language Access and Turnout in Queens City Council Elections." Advisor: Professor [Name]
Research Experience
Summer Research Fellow, [Program], [University]June – Aug 2027
- Faculty mentor: Professor [Name]. Designed and ran an original survey experiment on language access (n = 1,200)
Research Assistant to Professor [Name], Queens CollegeSept 2026 – Present
- Survey data cleaning and visualization in R
Working Papers and Projects
- "Who Shows Up? Language Access and Turnout in Queens City Council Elections." Honors thesis, in progress
- Replication of [Author (Year)], Table 2, in R. Code on GitHub
Presentations
- Borough of Queens Undergraduate Research Symposium, April 2027
Awards and Fellowships
- [Summer research program], 2027
- Dean's List, 2025–2027
Methods Training
- Graduate-level: [course taken at a summer program]
- Undergraduate: Research Skills; Applied Political Research; Data Analysis and Modeling
Skills
R, Stata (basic), Qualtrics, Git · Spanish (professional working proficiency)
References
- Professor [Name], Department of Political Science, Queens College
- Professor [Name], [Summer program university]
- Professor [Name], Department of Sociology, Queens College
Résumé vs. CV
| Length | Résumé: 1 page. CV: 1–2 pages as an undergrad |
| Leads with | Résumé: experience. CV: research |
| Bullets | Résumé: action plus result. CV: short and factual |
| Extras | CV: thesis, talks, awards, references |
Tips
- Numbers make bullets believable. "4,000+ respondents" beats "large dataset."
- Tailor the top third to the job or program.
- Keep a master CV and cut it down for each application.
- Drop high school once you have college experience.
- Send a PDF named LastName_Resume.pdf.
- Get it reviewed at QC's Center for Career Engagement and Internships (Frese 213).