How To Write A Good Resume
Your resume must clearly, concisely and strategically present your qualifications to get a recruiter interested in meeting you. It should convey your skills, work experience and assets. The resume is used to describe what you can accomplish professionally in a manner that also illustrates what you can do for an employer. Job opportunities can arise unexpectedly. An updated modern resume is the key to a successful job search. Here are some do’s and don’ts of how to write a good resume and what to include.
Creating A Resume Skills Section
The skills section is an essential part of your resume. However, there are several different ways to approach creating yours.
Here are a few examples demonstrating the different ways you can format your resumes skills section:
Example 1
If you have many relevant hard and soft skills, add them to your resume skills section using separate bullet points, like this:
If youre a student or recent graduate and have no significant job skills yet, there are still plenty of things you can list in your resume skills section. Heres an example of a skills section written by a candidate with no work experience:
Example 2
Another way to organize your skills section is by using bars to provide employers a rough estimate of your proficiency.
This type of skills section is particularly popular with more creative professions, like graphic design or social media management:
How To Build A Great Resume As A College Student
We are often told that a college degree can open doors. In truth, a college degree is more like a key you can open many more doors with a key than without, but it is still up to you to find the doors and to turn the handles. Having a great resume is the first step in opening those doors, but as a college student, you may not know how to write a winning one. If so, consider these tips:
Choose a clear template
Individuals who are just starting their careers often face two competing imperatives. On the one hand, they want to include as much information as possible in the hopes that their audience will see how talented they are. On the other hand, they are told to write a single-page resume. The natural temptation is to balance these goals by utilizing a small font and minimal white space.
However, research shows that most hiring managers spend mere seconds reviewing a resume. This means that you must display the most important information in a way that hooks your reader and is clearly visible. A crowded resume may contain a wealth of great information, but your audience likely will not have the time to locate it. When you choose a template, keep in mind the importance of being able to quickly scan your resume.
Lead with your qualifications
Place your education next
Continue with work experience
Conclude with volunteer and extracurricular experiences
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Curate A Sleek Uncluttered Design
Another way to impress a recruiter right off the bat is with a sleek, easily digestible resume design. Dont be afraid to cut out irrelevant experience for the sake of improving readability. White space can go a long way toward making a resume more appealing.
Use a simple font such as Times New Roman or Arial in 10-, 11-, or 12-point size. If youre seeking a creative position, you could benefit from incorporating a unique design element into your resume. Otherwise, stick to a simple, elegant design.
You have one minute or less to make a stellar first impression, said Hill. Utilize bullet points, short paragraphs, measurable achievements, and industry-specific keywords to stand out above the rest. If its important, its your responsibility to make sure the recruiter sees it.
Write A Resume Summary Statement
You may have heard of a resume summary statement. Theyre not super common, but they can be useful to include near the top of your resume if youre looking to add clarity or context to your resume. If youre a career changer, you might find a summary statement helpful in explaining your leap and tying your experience to your new path. Or if youre a more experienced professional, you can use a summary statement to highlight a theme that brings your career trajectory together.
Overall, you probably wont need a summary statement if your career is pretty linear and your bullet points do a great job of emphasizing what you have to offer in terms of skills and experience. But if you think it makes sense to include one, Take the time to think about what the person reading your summary wants to know before you write it, says McGovern. Good summaries explain why you do what you do and how it can help. For instance: Merging a background in ABC, I help companies improve XYZ through 123. Summaries shouldnt be any more complicated than that.
So, taking McGoverns example, you might say:
Merging a background in social media marketing and PR with seven years in the consumer tech space, I help companies improve their internal and external communication and brand awareness through data-driven, quality content and strategies that align with the modern trends of the space.
Read More:3 Resume Summary Examples Thatll Make Writing Your Own Easier
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S To Writing The Perfect Resume
Your resume is only as good as the information you provide. Make sure you’re prepared with this list.
Are you struggling with writing the perfect resume? If the answer is yes, you’re not alone. According to a recent TopResume study, only 24 percent of professionals described themselves as confident in their resume-writing ability. This means that 76 percent of professionals are insecure about their resume and resume-writing skills as a whole.
With that said, whether you’re planning to use a professional resume-writing service or give it a go on your own, it’s important to take some time to prepare for your resume rewrite. Your resume will only be as good as the information you or your writer has to work with. Gather the following details ahead of time to craft a powerful document that effectively tells your story and markets your qualifications to help you land your dream job.
Hard Vs Soft Skills: Whats The Difference
Heres the difference between hard skills and soft skills:
Hard skills
Hard skills are quantifiable, job-specific abilities learned through education, training, or on-the-job experience. Language skills, computer skills, and being able to operate heavy machinery all count as types of hard skills.
Heres a list of 24 popular hard skills to put on your resume:
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List Your Soft And Hard Skills
Take a moment to consider which skills make you a great fit for the job. Review the job description and highlight keywords that you have had proven success with in the past. Consider both hard and soft skills, as well as transferable skills you can use when changing careers or industries. Create a skills section with the keywords that are relevant to the employer. List any required skills like certifications or licenses first.
To Ease This Process This Article Shares Inside Information On Effective Objective Statements That Will Result In More Interviews With Video And Written
To ease this process, this article shares inside information on effective objective statements that will result in more interviews (with video and written. How to create an objective for a resume. But for the experts’ best advice, howstuffworks knows best how to write a resume that’ll land an interview. Here’s a list of common innocent mistakes to avoid. There are many tips on how to write a resume. A resume is your introduction and. Writing a meaningful objective for a resume can delay the completion of the document. Jane mcgrath you always heard not to judge people on first impres. Although some people use their objective to summarize their education and work experience, telling a. Michael has career development experience, having worked for various governmental and business organizations, locally and int. Does your resume have any of these? An objective statement is not a required component of a resume, but many job seekers use objective statements to let employers know the specific type of job they are seeking. A career objective summarizes your career goals.
To ease this process, this article shares inside information on effective objective statements that will result in more interviews (with video and written. Everyone talks about what should be on a resume, but never about what shouldn’t be there. No longer than one sentence, you typically place it near the top of your resume, under your name and contact information.
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Bonus Tip Your Resume Contains A Link To Your Personal Website
Weve been seeing an interesting trend in 2017. Job seekers who add a link to a personal branding website are getting more job interviews and in turn getting more job offers. The fact is, having a simple personal website that highlights your skills and more importantly your personality go a long way to creating a three dimensional persona for the hiring manager. A personal website makes you stand out when compared to all the other candidates who just hand in a resume and cover letter. To find out more check out this blog post.
Make Sure Youre Not A Fashion Faux Pas
Just like you wouldnt show up to a job interview wearing jeggings or a suit with super-wide lapels, you dont want your resume to appear inappropriate or out-of-date.
So delete that opening objective sectionand replace with a summary, which is now preferred. Cut that references available upon request cliché at the bottom. And while youre hitting the delete button, Salemi says to expunge basic computer skills like Microsoft Word and only include specific skills to your industry, like C++ programming. Youll also want to switch out that crazy font you think will help your resume stand out.
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Resume Layout & Formatting
Okay, now that youve got your font picked out, its time to focus on your resume formats . Dont worry if you cant remember all of this stuff, because we summarize it all on our Perfect Resume Checklist we made for you. Simply click here to get your copy.
The first rule of layout is, keep it clean and clear. You want a resume thats easy to read and easy to follow.
Again, remember, you get 10-20 seconds to catch a hiring managers eye so handing in something thats messy, unorganized or confusing is going to end up in the trash.
Keep your margins to ½ to 1 inch on all sides of the paper, especially if youre sending your resume to anyone you think might print it out. The last thing you want is to have a printer crop your resume and leave off important information!
Font Size With the exception of your name which can be larger, you want to keep your font size at between 10 and 12 point. Keep in mind that some fonts are larger and/or smaller than others so an Arial 12 is larger than a Times New Roman 12. Ideally you want your resume to be a single page so feel free to tweak your font size a bit to make it fit but remember, keep it readable! Dont sacrifice legibility in order to get everything on the page.
Spacing Generally single spacing works the best, with a blank line between each section of content.
What Is A Resume
A resume is a summary of your career, whether yours is just getting started or has been going on for years. Coming in at around one page in length , it showcases the jobs youve held and currently hold, the responsibilities youve taken on, the skills youve developed, and the qualities you bring to the table as an employee. Together, those things make it super easy for any hiring manager to see your qualifications and fit for a role.
For all the work you may put into writing one, hiring managers actually spend very little timemere seconds in many caseslooking at your resume. But despite this sad fact, its safe to say that creating a great resume still matters.
If you miss the mark, your resume may never be read. Even worse, you might be removed from the applicant pool by a computer before a human even knows you exist, says Muse career coach Heather Yurovsky, founder of Shatter & Shine. So you want to get it right because, as she explains, isnt the goal to spend less time looking for a job and more time in a role you love?
And although LinkedIn has plenty of benefits, a resume has one clear advantage: While your LinkedIn is usually a broader picture of your career trajectory, your resume gives you the opportunity to tailor your career story to a specific role or company .
Oh, and youve probably heard of something called a CV? Its slightly different from a resume, and usually more common with academics and job seekers outside the U.S.
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Extracurricular Activities Sports And Clubs
After you awards and achievements, create a section for extracurricular activities. List anything you are passionate about that shows your positive attitude and aptitude for the job youre applying for, such as playing a musical instrument, clubs, sports and other activities. In your resume, list the relevant activity and include a brief description.
Example of how to list extracurricular activities, sports and clubs:Piano Has played piano for 8 years and practices, on average, 4 hours per day.Babysitting Babysits neighbors, 8 and 3 years old, twice a week.Swimming Competitive swimmer, having won multiple gold and silver medals in state competitions.
Start With Your Basic Information
Your contact information should always go at the top of your resume. In this header youll want to include anything that could be helpful for a recruiter to get in touch with you. Usually, this means adding in:
- Your full name
- Your phone number
- Your personal email address
You might also choose to include other basic information, such as your LinkedIn or personal website URL, your GitHub , your social media profiles , or your address. If youre looking to move for a job, you may choose to leave out your address or write open to relocating to better your chances of getting an interview.
The key is to make this part as clear as possible. If a hiring manager cant reach you, theres no point in perfecting the rest of your resume.
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Importance Of A Good Cv
Think of your CV as your own living, breathing personal pitch a pitch that succinctly answers all the questions a recruiter or hiring manager has about you. The degree to which you present the reader with the information they require to make an informed decision can determine whether you are invited to interview.
This includes why you are applying for this job, with this organisation and in this industry, what value you can bring to the organisation and whether you have what is required to be successful in the role.
To leave the reader with no doubt about your suitability, you must present a strong CV that clearly conveys this information.
To do this, below youll find our tips on how to write a resume. Alternatively, you can download our resume template.
How To Write An Effective Resume Objective
So how do you write a GOOD resume objective?
One thing every one of these bad examples has in common is the fact that not a single one of them is tailored to the position youre looking for.
Any hiring managers who looks at a resume with objectives like those in our bad examples are going to immediately toss them into the trash and move onto the next candidate.
Why? Because whoever those potential hires are, theyre not ideal candidates.
You need to not only catch the hiring managers eyeyou need to make sure that they look at your statement and say Whew! Finally! After all those other resumesHERE is one where the applicant not only knows what were looking forbut theyre the PERFECT FIT! Quick! Lets get them on the phone and set up a face to face!
Okay, enough with the bad resume objective samples! Do you know what I really need? I need to know how to write an objective for my resume that will get me noticed!
Fine. Well do it your wayas long as you promise to write your resume objectives our way!
A really good place to start is by looking at the job description for the position you are applying for. Why?
According to international job search website Indeed.com, when you include an objective thats specific to the job role, the recruiter is more likely to dig deeper and learn more details about your professional experience.
Start out your statement by being specific! Make sure its tailored to not only the position, but the company as well.
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Summarizing Your Job Experience
Your resume experience section is the most important aspect of your entire resume. It’s a summary of your career experience and progression that outlines your responsibilities and achievements.
This is the section that you’ll most likely spend most of your time on. It’s good practice to make sure you consistently jot down any new experiences you’ve had, even if you’re not looking for a job.
For example, if you recently landed a $200,000 deal by bringing on a new client at your firm, write that down somewhere you can remember. Over time, you’ll have dozens of bullet points you can copy over to your resume when you are ready for a new job.
Here’s a simple example of work experience
Server, Red Lobster
- Greeted incoming guests and directed them to comfortable seating.
- Memorized and informed guests of daily menu specials.
- Made recommendations about food and beverages as well as other services provided by the restaurant.
- Provided exceptional and friendly customer service by taking food and beverage orders and entering them in our PoS system.
Here are the key pieces of information that your resume objective should include:
- Job Title = e.g. Server
- Company Name = e.g. Red Lobster
- Start & End Dates = e.g. November 2018 – Present
- Location = e.g. New York, NY
- Responsibilities & Tasks = e.g. Made recommendations and answered questions about our food, beverages and other restaurant functions and services.
This is a simple example, but it can be improved by adding more detail.