The Fashion Resumé Restyled.

Applying for jobs in the fashion industry is very unique. Let me first say that this may be one of the most frustrating and worrisome thing that I will ever put myself through.  Meeting deadlines and getting your resume and portfolio perfect is a very stressful thing.  When that is all over, all you can do is just sit back and wait.  You wait and wait to here back from a potential employer.

At the University of Cincinnati, as a fashion student in DAAP, I am required to go on a COOP (Cooperative Education) every other semester.  Coops are a formal integration of classroom theory with work experience designed to expand, enhance, and enrich a student's academic training.  So in basic words, every other semester I go work full time for a fashion related company.

So for those of you out there you may be in the same situation looking and applying for jobs, keep reading because I am going to share with you my struggles and what I have learned in this process.

Your Resumé

Your resume is probably one of the most vital things that you need to apply for a job.  It should be clean, professional, and most importantly, informative.  You want to include your education, experiences, awards or honors, any activities you participated in, and qualifications.

Okay first thing is first, your name should be the largest thing on the page.  Now, that doesn't mean make your name size 36 and the rest of your text size 12 font. Just make sure it stands out.  Keep different text sizes to a minimum.  There should only be 2 to 3 different sized fonts in your resumé.

Having a fashion resumé gives you an opportunity to be creative with how you present your information.  That being said, it is acceptable to put a color other than black in your resumé, just do not make it the primary color or the focus.  Adding touches of SLIGHTLY visible pink or blue in the background is okay.  Notice how I emphasized slightly?

Your resumé should also include only one font.  Make sure it is readable and is not annoying to read.  Most people typically use Times New Roman, but if there is an appropriate font that shows a bit of your personality, go for it.

Somewhere on your resumé there should be your name, full address, email, phone number, and a link to your portfolio whether it is online or on a website.  Double and triple check to make sure it is an accessible link.

• Include dates, years, cities and states when you are filling out your resumé.
• Make sure there is white space.  Do not clutter your paper!
• Organize your resumé from most recent to oldest.  This goes for your education, work experience and awards. 
• For work experience, you want to consider how long you were with a specific company.  Example: I worked for a restaurant last summer for some extra cash.  I worked there for only 3 or 4 months.  I decided not to include that in my resumé to make room for experiences that were related to the field I was applying for.  

Here's a picture of my current resumé: 

I did blackout some of my information for privacy reasons. 

As you can see, at the bottom of my page I included my availability and that recommendations would be available upon request.  I also included a Thank You!

So these are a few tips that I have for creating a fashion resumé.  If I ever think of more information, I will update this post at the bottom of the page.  If you have any ideas or recommendations, feel free to share them in the comments!