If you consider yourself an artist, the college application process often comes with a pile of additional challenges and hurdles for you. This can be intimidating, but we love a challenge, so we see it as an opportunity to make sure you stand out. One of the ways to do this is through your resume.
If you are applying to art school, you’ll know precisely what the school needs to see your artistic credentials. However, if you’re applying to a liberal arts school with a strong program in your art of choice, it may be less obvious how to set yourself apart. You should certainly be looking into whether you can submit a portfolio, but simultaneously you also need to be working on your artistic resume.
“What is an artistic resume?” you ask. Well, it’s a resume, but tweaked to highlight your creative endeavors.
THE RULES
When you are writing an artistic resume, the end product is going to look quite different than if you were writing a resume to apply for a job or as a potential bio major on a pre-med track. However, there are a few things that remain true.
Stay Focused (on Art)
The core of a successful resume is focus. Resumes are cheat sheets to who you are through a very narrow lens. The application reader does not expect your resume to provide a comprehensive picture of all aspects of who you are. Instead, the resume is the place to underline what is most relevant to the course of study (or course of work) you wish you pursue. In this case, that means your artistic medium, whether it be painting, writing, sculpture, dance, or any other field that you’re planning to focus on in college.
One Page
Perhaps the most controversial rule of the college resume is the one-page rule. We argue with students about this all the time, and we get it. You’re a special snowflake who has accomplished a lot in your short 16 or 17 or 18 years, and you don’t understand why you need to compress it all into one single-spaced 12-pt-font page with standard or narrow margins. But it’s a rule. It’s an unspoken rule, and you won’t find it listed anywhere in the Common App, but if you submit a resume over a page, you’re shooting yourself in the foot. Resumes must be concise, focused, and, especially when you’re so early in your professional career (aka it likely hasn’t started yet), one page.
After you’ve absorbed and embraced the rules of your artistic resume, it’s time to move onto the four core sections. If you don’t think this resume format will work for you, send us an email. We help exceptional students tell their stories.
SECTION I: OBJECTIVE
At the top of your resume, after your name, address, and contact information (pick out a template in Word or Pages to guide this), you’ll include a short 1-4 sentence objective that states what your goal is. For example, you may say:
Young artist trained in watercolor, oils, and acrylics seeking to pursue further arts training at the college level with the goal of building a career as a working artist. Previously exhibited galleries in Germantown and Hudson, New York, and recognized with local and regional awards.
SECTION II: EDUCATION & TRAINING
The next section for your artistic resume is focused on education and training. If this were a standard resume, you’d simply list your high school and GPA. An artistic resume requires a bit more care here, though. In this section, you are going to highlight any formal or informal education you’ve received in your chosen artistic field(s) including classes, workshops, internships, and mentor/mentee relationships. We recommend only including descriptions when an experience is either a) supremely impressive or b) unclear without further explanation.
SECTION III: SHOWS / EXHIBITS
After the Education & Training section, you’re going to include a “best hits” list of shows or exhibitions you’ve taken part in, from regional showcases to having a piece hung in your local library. If you are a creative writer, this may mean listing places you’ve been published. If you’re a dancer, it could be a list of performance experiences. Shape this section to fit your field, and don’t be afraid to include things that are ‘small’. What colleges want to see is that you are actively striving for success in your artistic endeavors. They don’t expect you to be a flourishing artist yet, but they do want to see you trying.
SECTION IV: RECOGNITION
Finally, it’s award show time. If you haven’t won any awards, don’t let that be discouraging. At the very end of your resume, try to include 1-4 significant recognitions, awards, or ‘moments’ in your career as an artist thus far. If there isn’t a medal or ribbon you can include, think about particular experiences in your creative journal that you could mention (in 1-6 words) that you haven’t included yet. Perhaps you had a poem go viral on TikTok, or you were invited to teach a workshop for underclassmen. This is a great place to underline how awesome you are, without getting too full of yourself.
Applying to college as a potential arts major can feel exposing and vulnerable. You’re putting your work out into the world and saying, “judge me,” even as you know that art is subjective. While an A in economics communicates that you had a firm grasp of the concepts taught, an A in art doesn’t mean the application readers will like your work. The best thing you can do is to be respectfully confident, clear, and to present yourself as a burgeoning professional who, with their help, will make their mark on the world.
If you’re worried about how you’ll present your best self to your dream school, send us an email. We help students like you get into the most prestigious colleges and universities in the United States.