current job on resume: past or present tense?

Comments

• joyrider8 Alum Member

  September 2017 52 karma

  I'd say present tense and you don't need to include hours per week on your resume
• NotMyName Alum Member Sage ⭐

  September 2017 5320 karma

  No need to include hours per week. If some superfluous feature (such as hours worked), distracts from the succinct bullets of responsibilities and accomplishments then you should cut that superfluidity.

  I would also advise you to use past-tense throughout your resume to be consistent.

  I haven't looked into any of the resume guidelines in 7Sage yet, but I used to lead the recruitment efforts for my department at a Fortune 500 company at UC Berkeley and now I am working with a AI recruitment start up... I've lots of experience working with resumes!
• LSAT Is Coming Alum Member

  September 2017 edited September 2017 530 karma

  @lsnnnnn0011 said:
  Hi

  should I use past or present tense to describe my current job in resume?

  It depends. Anything that has been completed should be in past tense. Anything that is ongoing as a recurring part of your job description should be in present tense.

  Examples:

  "Organized, recruited for, and ran the 35th annual [Insert Conference] with a record-250 attendees"
  vs.
  "Organize daily phone banks and canvasses for teams of volunteers and fellows"

  Keep in mind that you list the dates of each of your professional experiences. If your most recent experience lists "April - Present," then the reader will know that you are in that role currently. This understanding conflicts with the past tense, unless you are referring to one-time events within that role.
• TheMikey Alum Member

  September 2017 4196 karma

  present since you're still there
• NotMyName Alum Member Sage ⭐

  September 2017 5320 karma

  @LSATiscoming

  "Organized, recruited for, and ran the 35th annual [Insert Conference] with a record-250 attendees"

  vs.
  "Organize daily phone banks and canvasses for teams of volunteers and fellows"

  Man I sound like such an arrogant shit in my post! lol too early for me I guess. Yes this is correct.
• Mitchell-1 Member

  September 2017 756 karma

  As someone who's spent a lot of time reading resumes (I interview job candidates), I would say as long as it's consistent it doesn't matter/won't be noticed.

  Though I would also say my preference would be past tense. If you think of the resume as part one of an interview for a new job, they are asking what it is you've done in the past that makes you a candidate for this present job opening.
• NotMyName Alum Member Sage ⭐

  September 2017 5320 karma

  Yes consistency is important. And I think the reason my initial hut response was "past tense" is because most of what you write, even for your current position, should be what you've achieved and therefore in the past tense.
• Gladiator_2017 Yearly Member

  September 2017 1332 karma

  I think it could be helpful to include hours per week/month for volunteer commitments.
• lsnnnnn0011 Alum Member

  September 2017 227 karma

  @"LSAT Is Coming" said:

  @lsnnnnn0011 said:
  Hi

  should I use past or present tense to describe my current job in resume?

  It depends. Anything that has been completed should be in past tense. Anything that is ongoing as a recurring part of your job description should be in present tense.

  Examples:

  "Organized, recruited for, and ran the 35th annual [Insert Conference] with a record-250 attendees"
  vs.
  "Organize daily phone banks and canvasses for teams of volunteers and fellows"

  Keep in mind that you list the dates of each of your professional experiences. If your most recent experience lists "April - Present," then the reader will know that you are in that role currently. This understanding conflicts with the past tense, unless you are referring to one-time events within that role.

  So do you suggest I go with present tense even if that doesn't make the resume "consistent"?

  Thanks!
• LSAT Is Coming Alum Member

  September 2017 edited September 2017 530 karma

  So do you suggest I go with present tense even if that doesn't make the resume "consistent"?

  Thanks!

  100 percent. Consistency is hugely important, but not at the expense of correctness. Think of the dates you put next to each of your job experiences. All of them use months, except for (probably) your current position, with which you replace the end month's name with the word "Present" (i.e. March - Present). That is not, strictly speaking, consistent, but it is both commonly understood by résumé readers and more correct than the alternative.
• stepharizona Alum Member

  September 2017 3197 karma

  @jkatz1488 said:
  No need to include hours per week. If some superfluous feature (such as hours worked), distracts from the succinct bullets of responsibilities and accomplishments then you should cut that superfluidity.

  As an FYI check the requirements for each school, some do require hours worked per job on the resume