A resume is a crucial document that gives prospective employers a snapshot of your professional history, skills, and qualifications. It’s your first impression, and it needs to be impactful. Crafting the perfect resume can be challenging for everyone, which is why this article provides valuable resume tips to help you make a positive and impactful impression on potential employers and grow your career.
What to Include in a Resume
One of the most common questions of job seekers is, “What to include in a resume?” One of the most common questions of job seekers is, “What to include in a resume?” Here are some crucial resume tips to follow: Include these five main sections: professional header, professional summary, education, experience, and skills. These components showcase your contributions and determine if you meet the employer’s requirements.
Professional Header
The professional header is a crucial part of your resume, as it should clearly show your name, phone number, and email address, making it easy for employers to reach out to you. Ensure your contact information is accurate and current.
Professional Summary
Your resume should include a professional summary that highlights your career history, key skills, education, and work experience. This section should demonstrate why you are the perfect candidate for the position. For example: ‘Constructive Laborer with over 4 years of experience in leading teams to the successful and safe completion of housing projects.’
Education
Your educational background is another important component to add since most employers have minimum requirements for specific roles. Depending on the job you’re applying for and your career stage, you should include:
- The school and its location
- Minor (if applicable)
- Graduation year
- GPA
- Any relevant honors or academic recognition
Experience
Work experience is a vital section of your resume, highlighting your achievements and the skills used and ensuring your experience aligns with the job requirements. Use bullet points effectively to make your resume easy to read and save more detailed explanations for your cover letter.
Skills
Don’t forget to include your skills section in the resume, as it will highlight and determine what you’ve learned throughout your career and your key traits. As part of these resume tips, you can also add certifications and additional accomplishments to enhance your qualifications. Including volunteer work, community awards, and memberships in professional associations further demonstrates your work ethic and commitment to the community.
Learn more about the importance of a resume in detail here!
What not to include in a resume
It is important to ensure that your resume doesn’t include any unnecessary or controversial elements to give yourself the best chance of being invited for an interview:
- Avoid including too much information. While it’s tempting to be thorough, too much detail can cause the reader to lose interest. Focus on the most important points.
- Your resume should focus on your achievements and relevant qualifications.
- Avoid including personal details like age, height, marital status, or other information that doesn’t pertain to the job.
- Avoid addressing why you left a job or expressing dissatisfaction with a previous position. Focus on the positive aspects and the role you are looking for to reflect professionalism.
- Don’t reduce the font size to fit in more information. It may make your resume harder to read. Stick to a readable format and only include the most relevant information.
- Use action words to describe your career achievements. Your resume is your chance to make an impression on a hiring manager, so take full advantage of action verbs to show why you are the ideal candidate.
Resume Do’s and Don'ts
To create a professional resume that captures a recruiter’s attention, focus on presenting clear, concise, and strategically chosen information. Consider these resume tips: use specific examples to showcase your achievements, customize your resume to match the job description, and maintain a clean, easy-to-read layout.
Resume Dos
- Keep your resume clear, concise, and limited to two pages, focusing on the most relevant information that highlights your qualifications.
- Proofread your resume multiple times to avoid grammar and spelling mistakes, as even a small error can prevent you from getting the job.
- Tailor your resume to the position you are applying for by highlighting relevant work experiences or achievements. This shows the employer that you understand the job description and its requirements.
- Be truthful: Overstating your skills will mislead the employer. Confidence in your abilities demonstrates integrity.
Resume Donts
- Don’t use an inappropriate or unprofessional email address. It should be easy to read, type, and professional, typically based on your name.
- Don’t include unnecessary personal information like age, height, weight, marital status, or other personal details that could lead to bias.
- Don’t use personal pronouns like ‘I’, ‘My’, or ‘Me’. Write your resume in the third person, as if someone else is describing your achievements.
- Don’t simply list your job responsibilities; instead, highlight your main achievements by providing specific examples.
- Don’t include references unless requested by the employer. Keep them in a separate document and provide them when asked.
Resume Mistakes to Avoid
Common Mistakes
- Including a Resume Objective
- Grammatical or formatting errors
- Including salary requirements
- Using Jargon and Cliches
- Listing Hobbies
- Attaching a Photo
- Mislabeling the File
Resume Tips to Avoid
- Resume Objective: A resume objective is a brief statement about what you are hoping to achieve in your career. Instead of writing a resume objective, provide them with a professional summary that describes your unique qualifications to show them how you can benefit their organization as a new employee.
- Grammatical or formatting errors: Before you submit your resume to your employer, ensure that you review it thoroughly for any grammatical or formatting errors. Sending a clear and well-written resume
- Including Salary Requirements: One of the things you should not include in a resume is your salary requirements. Salary negotiations are typically discussed during the hiring process. Instead, research the average salary for your field, experience level, and location to be prepared for these discussions.
- Using Jargon and Cliches: Using frequent industry terminology shows that you have some industry knowledge. However, cliches or other repetitive vocabulary detract the reader from the relevant information. Hence, use specific, actionable language to describe your experience and qualifications clearly and concisely.
- Listing Hobbies: With limited space to describe your qualifications, avoid listing hobbies that are unrelated to the position.
- Attaching a Photo: Refrain from including a photo on your resume, as it can affect how ATS software scans it. Only include a photo if it is common practice in your industry. Research the industry standards before making a decision.
- Mislabeling the File: It’s common to upload a resume to a website or email the document to potential employers. However, it is important to choose an appropriate resume file name, as it allows the employer to easily locate your application during the review period.
These resume tips provide a clear guideline on what to include in a resume. By following these resume dos and don’ts, you can ensure your resume stands out and avoid common mistakes.
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