I know for past internships, the verbs should be in past tense. But what about current internships (summer) that I plan to continue part-time during the fall (the date says 06/2009-Present)? Should I make everything in that section present tense, or leave it past tense to be consistent with the rest of the jobs?
Jul 29, 2009
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I'm under the impression you only put accomplishments on your resume. Therefore it should be in past tense. If you've done XYZ modeling at your current internship, put it in past tense. If you're going to do ABC modeling once the semester begins, leave it off until you do it.
I always go with the past tense throughout the resume. I've always assumed that the resume discusses things you have done, whether they were one time things, or regular things that you will still do until you finish the internship, everything on the resume should have happened already and is therefore past tense. I have, however, seen many resumes with the present position in the present tense, and it doesn't seem to hurt them (although you can't be certain) too much - it annoys me when I see it, especially when the current position is entirely present tense even regarding things that have clearly happened already.
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Some tasks are things I have done, some are things I do on a regular basis. All the things have happened already though, and some would not make send in present tense.
But is it ok to have the verbs in past tense, if the date of employment says 06/2009-Present? And speaking of which, should I just make it 06/2009-08/2009 so it appears like an official Summer Analyst position, even if I will be working there part-time in the fall?
If it is something specific you've done, even for your current position, then use past tense. If it's part of your job description (the things you do on a regular basis), and you are currently still on the job, use the present tense. A past tense would imply you're done doing it, which is only true if you no longer have that job.
I think having mixed past and present tenses would appear as if I do not have attention to detail... It's safer if everything is in the past tense, no?
Option 1: All past tense Option 2: Mix of both Option 3: All present tense
Obviously you go with #1.
I too go with the "all past" option. First, I think it does look a bit jumbled and disorganized to use a mix of present and past for one work experience, and 2) treat the resume as an income statement - essentially it is your professional life up to this point - they receive your resume and that's it...finality, unless they give you a job, in which case you begin a new chapter. Everything on your resume, at least in my opinion is something you already did - whether you continue to do it or not doesn't really matter, as it is merely a summary of what's happened in your professional life up til reporting date - when you submit.
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I have a question, can one use different tenses in the same sentence or should every verb be in past tense. It is kind of hard to write sentences where all verbs are in past tense.
quick question about tense of resume bullet points (Originally Posted: 01/19/2012)
Ok I was curious, if you are describing a position you still currently hold should you use past tense (analyzed x, y, and z) or present tense (analyze x, y, and z) for the bullet points
For b-school I used past as that was consistent with the rest of the resume and my bullet points were mainly big accomplishments that have already occured. I wanted to keep the emphasis on concrete things I had done. Not sure if this preferred, but that was the advice I got from resume readers/MBA Admissions guides.
If for a job I would I might use present, but for b-school, with their emphasis on "what have you done" I think past is ok.
If you've finished the project, use past tense. If you're still working on it, use present tense.
RD likes to talk about himself in the third person.
Verb Tense on Resume (Originally Posted: 07/17/2015)
I recently got my resume marked up and edited, and one of the revisions was that all my jobs that I still currently have (e.g. September 2014 - Present) were marked as needing to be moved from present tense to past tense for consistency with past jobs on my resume.
Do you all agree with that? Also, "Present" was crossed out for current jobs, so I was wondering whether a convention was to replace "Present" with the current month and then make the verbs past tense to align with other jobs.
I don't agree with removing "Present", that would entail changing the dates every time an opportunity arose in a different month.. Or putting the month that it is supposed to end in the future, which would be confusing and inaccurate.
However, the changing of present tense verbs to past tense is correct. Assuming it's a bullet point on your current job, it's something that you have already done or worked on in the past, so a past tense is appropriate.
Current Work Experience: Present Tense or Past Tense on Resume? (Originally Posted: 04/28/2015)
When describing what you've done/are doing in the position you currently hold, do you think it's better to write in the present tense or in the past tense?
Traditionally, I've opted for the latter.
What are your thoughts WSO?
I think either one is fine. Personally I'd use past tense just to be consistent with rest of my work experience section.
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