A simple formula
Action + scope + outcome or purpose. Start with what you did, add the context that makes it meaningful, and explain what it improved or enabled. If you have a reliable number, use it. If you do not, name the process, audience, deliverable, or decision instead.
These examples are fictional teaching examples. Use only facts you can verify about your own work.
Before: Responsible for scheduling.
After: Coordinated weekly schedules for a 12-person service team, resolving coverage gaps before shifts began.
Why it helps: The reader sees the team size, frequency, and purpose.
Before: Helped customers with problems.
After: Investigated customer billing questions, documented account history, and coordinated corrections with the finance team.
Why it helps: It shows the work and handoff without inventing a satisfaction score.
Before: Worked on a new onboarding process.
After: Drafted an onboarding checklist with hiring managers and updated it after new-hire feedback, giving each team a consistent first-week plan.
Why it helps: It identifies your contribution, collaboration, and usable result.
When you have numbers
Explain what the number measures and the period it covers: “Reduced average response time from two days to one day over a quarter by routing urgent requests to the right team.” Keep the baseline only if you can substantiate it. A bare “improved efficiency by 50%” invites questions it cannot answer.
When you are early in your career
Class projects, volunteering, internships, and part-time work can provide useful evidence. Describe the deliverable, your role, and the audience. For example: “Built a survey summary for a campus organization and presented three programming recommendations to its board.” Do not disguise coursework as paid employment.
Before you keep a bullet
- Could another person in the same role write the identical line? Add a specific detail.
- Does the line start with a weak phrase such as “responsible for”? Replace it with the action you took.
- Would you be comfortable explaining the claim in an interview? If not, revise it.
Further reading: University of Pennsylvania Career Services on describing experience.