Resume

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The Resume and Personal Narrative

Now we're getting to the good stuff.

The Resume page is your chance to show us what an amazing young person you are. You get to list your various achievements and accomplishments which you think make you a strong candidate for MSMS. As always, read the instructions. Make sure you have the required headings: Mathematics and Science awards/Recognition; Other Academic Awards/Recognition; Leadership/Extracurricular Activities; and Special Interests and Hobbies. If you don't know what a resume should look like, talk to your parents or Google "Resume Formats" and find one you like.
Don't forget to write your Personal Narrative! You need only put together a couple paragraphs here, but these paragraphs give you the opportunity to talk yourself up. Tell us why you are the super candidate that we already know you are!

We'll go over the most frequent questions I get about the resume, but first here's something to keep in mind when working on it.

We understand not all students have had access to the same opportunities.

Some kids live in places where they have copious opportunities to rack up on awards in math and science. Other places, not so much. We understand this. We know you can't very well win a Science Fair if your school doesn't participate in Science Fair; we know you can't be in drama club if your school has no drama department; we know you can't be captain of the Math Club if you school doesn't have a math club and so on and so forth. So please don't panic if you don't have a mantle filled with academic trophies.

Mr. Wade should I put [INSERT WHATEVER HERE] on my resume?

My answer to this question is always, "if you think it should be on your resume, put it on your resume." But try to remember, like much of the application, the resume is all about your judgment. Try to think what might look good on a resume to the Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science and run with it. Academic awards, volunteer work, athletic achievements, extracurricular involvement, leadership roles and cool places you've been to are great for putting into your resume. But silly things like "I like talking on the phone and shopping" (and yes, more than one applicant has included that in their resumes) are terrible things to put into your resume.

Mr. Wade, I've never won a math award in my life. Should I even apply to MSMS?

Of course you should. For those of you panicking because you've never won a math award or don't know what a math award even looks like, read the above paragraph. It is okay.

My resume looks a little skimpy, I'm worried I don't have enough stuff in there. What should I do?

There are several things you can do to pump up your resume. Volunteer work not only helps you out in that regard, it also benefits your community. Contact your church or local government for information about volunteering in your area. Taking a leadership role in a school organization is also a great way to get some more stuff to put on your resume. Not every academic achievement comes with a trophy or a certificate. For example, you are probably in the top of your class at your school. Put that on there. You may have done really well on one of the state tests you're required to take. That's a good idea for a resume. Try to think outside the box.

Okay, I've done all that and it still looks like I don't have enough stuff. What should I do?

The resume, like every other part of the application is only ONE PART of the entire application and is worth no more and no less than any of the other parts. A weak resume can be made up for via a dynamite essay and an outstanding work sample. Also remember our reviewers are much more interested in quality over quantity, and simply filling up a page with lots of words does not neccesarilly translate to a strong resume - merely a long one.

Click here to get to work on the application!

Next: The Work Sample