Resume Summary Or Objective
Its not a secret for anyone that first impressions matter, whether theyre in your personal life, or your career.
If you leave a bad first impression, chances are, its there to stay. After all, its very hard to change someones opinion of you.
The same applies to your job search – the HR manager spends around 6 seconds scanning each resume. Yep, your carefully-worded, hand-crafted resume only gets 6 seconds of attention. Unless, of course, you manage to leave an amazing first impression.
The way you accomplish this is through either a good resume summary or objective. Both are placed at the top of your resume, right around the contact information section:
So, heres what you need to know about the two:
Resume Mistakes That 95% Of People Make
Most resumes that come through an online portal or across a recruiter’s desk are tossed out because they violate a simple rule.
When recruiters scan a resume, the first thing they look for are mistakes. Your resume could be fantastic, but if you violate a rule like using an unprofessional email address or improper grammar, it’s going to get tossed out.
Our goal is to fully understand the triggers that cause recruiters/ATS systems to make the snap decisions on who stays and who goes.
In order to get inside the heads of these decision makers, I collected data from dozens of recruiters and hiring mangers across industries. These people have several hundred years of hiring experience under their belts and they’ve reviewed 100,000+ resumes across industries.
They broke down the five most common mistakes that cause them to cut resumes from the pile:
Begin With Your Professional Summary
Your professional summary should be a list of about 4-5 bullet points or a short paragraph that summarizes your relevant skills, experiences, and achievements.
You can think of it as a teaser for the rest of your resume. Make sure its interesting enough to hook the hiring manager right in.
But how do you write a good professional summary?
If you do everything right, you should end up with something like this:
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How To List Education On Your Resume
The next section were going to cover is your Education. Lets start with the basics – how to format the education section & what to mention there. Then, well move on to tips & tricks thatll help you stand out
- Program Name. E.g.: B.A. in Business Administration
- University Name. E.g.: New York State University
- Years Attended. E.g.: 08/2008 – 06/2012
- GPA. E.g.: 3.9 GPA
- Honors. E.g.:Cum Laude, Magna Cum Laude, Summa Cum Laude.
- Academic achievements. Any interesting papers youve written, courses youve excelled in, etc.
- Minor. Minor in Psychology
Here’s an example:
Tips on perfecting your education section:
- If you dont have any work experience, mention your education section first.
- Mention your latest educational entry on top.
- If you have a university degree, dont mention your high school at all.
- ONLY mention GPA if you had a very impressive academic career .
Can I Use Any Of These Examples To Help Write My Own Resume
Yes, we have plenty of examples you can use. Select any resume example from the list on this page, and youll find the following:
- A professional template with job-specific bullet points and information
- Sections to present your skills, experience, education, and professional accomplishments
- A free download in Microsoft Word format for you to personalize
- All resume information provided in text format ready for you to copy and paste
- Writing tips for creating a resume in that particular industry
We also have guides on how to write your own resume introduction, how to use resume action verbs, and articles outlining every other part of resume writing and formatting imagineable. Theyre all accessible on our resume help blog.
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Write A Resume With Our Free Resume Templates & Resume Builder
If you’re ready to start implementing all of the tips and strategies from this article, check out how to write a resume using our free resume builder.
Like ResyMatch, ResyBullet, and all of our tools, there are no limits, fees, or subscriptions to use it:
You can choose from 8 free resume templates that are ATS-friendly and have been approved by recruiters from the world’s best companies including Microsoft, Google, Barclays, and more.
Next, we give you complete control over the content and style of your resume. You can edit the sections, colors, font, sizing, margins, and a whole lot more!
Finally, you can export your resume as a PDF, a TXT file you can import into Microsoft Word, or you can save it to your Google Drive.
We recently analyzed 125,000+ resumes to answer one question:
How many candidates are following best practices and where are there opportunities to create a better, more effective resume?
We looked at file types and formatting. We looked at contact information, education, and interests. We looked at keywords, skills, and experience. We even looked at the specific language used to write these resumes.
The analysis of these resumes led to some pretty interesting results and the goal of this article is to share them with you so that you can understand how to write an effective resume and get an edge on the competition.
Choose The Right Resume Format
Once you know what the company and job entails and youve identified your strengths and weaknesses, you should be ready to pick the right resume format.
Are you a seasoned professional? Then you should pick a resume format that emphasizes your experience.
A fresh graduate? Then your resume should emphasize any transferable skills youve acquired during your studies.
Or perhaps youre changing careers. Then a combination of the two will produce the best results.
There are three dominant resume formats in use today:
- Chronological resume format. Probably the best choice for experienced professionals. Lists the candidates jobs and accomplishments in a chronological order. Main resume section: Work Experience.
- Functional resume format. Great for fresh graduates, IT professionals, or other skill-based professions. Emphasizes skills instead of experience. Main resume section: Skills.
- Combined resume format. A combination of the previous two. Requires a good understanding of what you want to achieve with your resume.
The resume format you choose will determine how you organize the information on your resume.
It will also attract attention to some things and away from others. Take time to understand your strengths and weaknesses and choose accordingly.
Ultimately, its mostly about which resume section is going to be the longest that comes first. For more, check out Resume Format: How to Pick the Best and Get Hired in 2021.
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Resume Writing Tips For 2020
Think you’re following the best resume writing tips for 2020?
You may be missing the mark if you’re not hearing back from companies that should have been a perfect fit.
In this article, I’ll use my expertise as an executive resume writer to share what may be holding executives like you back when it comes to resumes. And you’ll learn what to do about it.
The Role Of Artificial Intelligence In The Hiring Process
When most people think of artificial intelligence , Siri, Alexa or even Tesla come to mind. In each case, engineers designed AI to make the user’s job easier.
So it should come as no surprise that employers and hiring managers figured out that AI could do the same for them in a business setting. But many executives I work with are surprised to learn just how prevalent artificial intelligence really is in the hiring process.
The most common AI in this realm is called applicant tracking software . Using algorithms and proprietary code, ATS scans a giant stack of virtual resumes to identify candidates meeting specific criteria.
Once the AI finds potential candidates matching those presets, the program whittles down that huge stack to a smaller, more manageable pile. Then only these applications get passed along to hiring managers.
Since ads garner nearly 250 applications per job posting, AI saves countless hours of work. That’s part of why these programs have grown in popularity so rapidly.
Stats show:
There are hundreds of different ATS in operation.
Resume Writing Tips To Help You Land A Job
Employers use resumes throughout the hiring process to learn more about applicants and whether they might be a good fit. Your resume should be easy to read, summarize your accomplishments and skills, and highlight relevant experience. Below are 10 tips to help you write a great resume.
If you’re interested in professional and personalized resume feedback, learn more about Indeed’s free and paid resume review options at indeed.com/resumehelp.
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Add A Skills Section In Your Resume
Lead with the good stuff. The top of your resume should include “critical keywords and a quick snapshot of your core strengths, Leavy-Detrick says.
Hard skills, tangible attributes that can easily be measured, take precedence here, so highlight them accordingly. If youre in a tech-driven field, software and programming expertise is what employers want to see on your resume. If youre in a creative industry, design and communication skills might be your best bet.
Keep Your Cover Letter Personal
Last but not least, lets talk about cover letters. For these, you want to capture the readers attention right away. One foolproof way to do this is to address the reader by their actual title.
You can usually find this information through a professional networking site like LinkedIn. Robbins recommended identifying a shortlist of 15 to 25 target employers. Reach out to current employees in similar roles. Remember, though, that online networking is not unlike real-life networking, so pitching yourself early isnt usually a good idea, she said. Take time to build trust and engage with others in a supportive way. Let people know youre available and would love to be considered for a current opening.
A few suggestions:
- I noticed from your LinkedIn profile that youve been at the company for X years. What do you love most about being there? What has kept you from pursuing work somewhere else?
- On the company careers page, I read that X is one of your company values. What does that look like for someone in your role? How do you see it in practice?
- Are there any skills or practices that youd recommend I brush up on to find a role like yours at your company?
Now ask yourself, Knowing this, how can I contribute to those areas if I were hired for the role? What makes my contribution unique? Write that in your cover letter.
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Common Sections To Add On Your Resume
Resumes tend to have some common sections that employers are used to seeing. Here’s a list of what’s generally expected as best practice:
- Heading / Name
- York Work Experiences
- Your Skills
Of course not all people are alike. Thereâs no one-size-fits-all model for resumes. Depending on your job, you might want to include more unique sections. Remember any information you include on your resume should have valuable insight into your experience. Employers want to know why you would be a great hire.
Other sections to include on your resume
If you don’t have enough information for the sections described above, you can try to add some of these sections below. Keep in mind that you should only add it if it’s relevant to the position you’re applying for.
- Hobbies
- Certificates
- Publications
As you can see, there are many sections to add depth to your resume. So donât be alarmed if youâre lacking skills or experiences, there are other ways to let employers learn of your potential.
Tip: Only add information thatâs relevant to the job youâre applying for. As a best practice, always remember that the most valuable details is the information that recruiters are specifically looking for in the job description that youâre applying to.
Letâs break down each of these sections and how to add the most value to them.
Highlight Your Relevant Work Experience
Your work experience section is the most essential part of your resume because its the best representation of your qualifications.
If you lack formal work experience, however, dont worry. Simply title this section Relevant Experience and use it to highlight details about your volunteer work, extracurriculars, or relevant school coursework.
To create a logical and informative work experience section, list your relevant experience from most recent to least recent . For each job, list the following information:
- Your title
- Company location
- Dates of employment
If youre still currently working at a company, you can simply write , present for the employment dates.
A general rule is that each job title includes about 35 bullet points of your main duties and achievements working in that role.
3 parts of a strong bullet point:
- 1st: Action verb
- 2nd: Quantifiable point
- 3rd: Specific and relevant job duty
Example 1:
Trained5+ cashiers, managing their cash limits and guaranteeing quality customer service at all times.
Example 2:
Spearheadedthe development of the first media kit amalgamation for all company projects, increasing national sales by 8%.
One reason the above bullet points are effective is that they use action verbs to grab the attention of hiring managers. Describing your experience using strong action verbs helps illustrate to employers what youve accomplished and what kind of skills you have.
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Just Follow These 5 Tips And Youre On Your Way To Getting That Job You Want
1. Tailor it to the job
Dont send the same resume to a hundred different employers and expect one of them to get back to you. Unless youre applying for 100 generic jobs like sandwich hand its a waste of your time, and theirs.
Whether its a program or a person reading your resume, the main thing they are looking for is your suitability for the role. Dont just demonstrate your experience and competencies you need to show them youre the perfect person for that specific job.
Each resume in your professional career should be uniquely crafted for the job, in two important ways.
Firstly, the information you present needs to respond to the job description and criteria. They are basically giving you the blueprint for their dream candidate, so read it carefully, and tailor your resume to speak to their needs as much as possible
- Emphasise roles and workplace achievements that match the job description in your work experience section.
- Tailor your personal skills or key competencies section to match their skill requirements.
- Add any additional information such as certification or volunteer experience that may be relevant specifically to this position.
- Alter your summary to suit the role
Secondly, you need to make sure your resume is scattered with searchable keywords, relevant to that role. Youll find hints on what keywords to use in the job description itself, just look for the most important words in the document.
2. Keep it trim and on-point
4. Design is important
Top 5 Resume Formatting Tips
1.Keep your format simple: Remember, you have 10-20 seconds to snag a hiring managers attention. Presenting them with a resume thats overly crowded, hard to read, confusing or just plain messy isnt going to get you the jobits going to get you thrown out. Watch your spacing, font size and margins. Keep it legible!
2.Keep it professional: Avoid cute fonts, gimmicks, scented paper, glitter, odd shapes, or anything that could potentially make an employer look at your resume and question your sanity. Dont print on cheap paper. Show an employer youre serious about the job.
3.Focus on what you did for past employers, not just the job you held. Anyone can push a button. Why were you the best button pusher there was? What set you apart from every other button pusher who came before you and will come after you? Dont just outline the job description. What were your accomplishments while doing that job?
4.Make sure youre selecting the resume format that best reflects who you are, your work history, and the job youre applying for. Keep in mind employment gaps, career trajectory, where you are in your industry, and where you plan on going. Make sure youre selecting the right format resume .
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To Improve Or Maintain Status In An Industry Or Field
In many industries, it is crucial to have a standing in ones professional community.
A recommendation from a competitor can often carry more weight than one from a friend or customer.
Visibly impressive qualifications communicated well often ensure that few people will have ill words to speak. To do so would be to risk dissent.
Only Include Subheadings And Sections You Need
Whether youre using a resume template or creating your own, you may find there are some recommended sections you do not need.
For example, you may need a resume summary or a resume objective, but you should not include both. If you are just graduating from college or high school and have not yet held a professional position, do not include an empty work history section. Instead, you might replace the experience section with relevant coursework, academic achievements and other experiences like internships or extracurricular projects.
You may also find it useful to combine sections if you are having trouble filling a section with more than two bullet points.
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