How to list accomplishments on your resume

In this article, we’ll get into more detail and provide actionable guidance on how to write your resume accomplishments. First, what do we mean by “accomplishments”? Your resume is a one-page (usually) curation of your accomplishments that best demonstrates you are the person for the job. Basically, they are everything below the header in your resume, though the guidance here is primarily focused on writing the bullets under your Work Experience and Additional Experience sections. These bullets will be the meat of your resume.

Often, resume first drafts are a set of completed activities or tasks, rather than a set of accomplishments. Because of that, we recommend going into writing and editing your resume with the mindset that you are writing accomplishments. We highly recommend beginning every bullet with an action verb (in the past tense), followed by the outcome of that action. We also highly recommend quantifying the action and, especially, the outcome whenever possible.

Let’s dive into some examples of how to list accomplishments on your resume:

Example #1:

First Draft

Supported the research team in running key experiments to understand the effects of magnetics of the new testing apparatus for a high-speed transportation device

Revised

Conducted key experiments in partnership with the research team to evaluate the success of a new testing apparatus for a high-speed transportation technology

Our review

Starts with an action verb! ...but, almost always, there is a better choice than "supported." Supported does not lend itself well to demonstrating ownership, which is key
Doesn't include a quantified outcome, but in this case it may be okay (especially if they quantified most other bullets in the resume)
Highlights analytical skills and teamwork skills - both critical to consulting
Wording is a bit too technical (unless you're applying to a specialized role). There is probably a better way to highlight those analytical and teamwork skills without distracting with technical language

Our review

Starts with an action verb in past tense. "Conducted" also implies much more ownership than "supported"
Not quantified, but in this case, the bullet is impactful without numbers. Resume writing is an art, not a science
Highlights analytical skills and teamwork skills - "in partnership" is a great way to highlight those teamwork skills, while maximizing credit with "conducted"
Small tweaks may make this more digestible for the typical reader. "Success" is cleaner than "the effects of," and "technology" will jump out in a great way to any reader (more so than "device", which sounds quite specific)

Example #2:

First Draft

Responsible for cleaning and analyzing large datasets to enable the team to identify $65M in potential cost savings if the client were to improve the efficiency of its production lines

Revised

Cleaned and analyzed large datasets on the clients production lines, enabling identification of $65M in potential cost savings

Our review

Does not start with an action verb...delete the "responsible for"
Includes a quantified outcome! $65M in potential savings is excellent
Highlights analytical skills - critical to consulting
Too many words, which distract from the point. "Responsible for..." "to enable the team to..." "if the client were to..." are all unnecessarily wordy and keep this impressive bullet from crisply communicating an impressive accomplishment

Our review

Starts with an action verb in past tense
Includes the quantified outcome
Highlights analytical skills
Written in a concise and impactful way!

Example #3:

First Draft

Created company-wide deliverables on the division's strategy, priorities, and goals for 2020

Revised

Created company-wide communications that clarified the division's strategy, priorities, and goals for across the 3,000-person organization

Our review

Starts with an action verb in the past tense!
We're missing the outcome...instead, we have the task that was completed (creating the deliverables)
While you don't have to quantify everything, this feels like a missed opportunity. What did the deliverables enable? Who did they go to?
Highlights communication and strategic thinking skills -- excellent! These are both critical to management consulting
Wording is concise and easy to understand

Our review

Starts with an action verb in the past tense!
We see the outcome of the work - the deliverables clarified key information for a large organization
The outcome is quantified in an effective way! 3,000 people is significant, those people now better understand the company strategy due to this person's work
Highlights communication and strategic thinking skills - excellent! These are both critical to management consulting
While we added words, the bullet is still concise and clear

Want even more examples and guidance on revisions? Watch our experts review a resume line-by-line here.