perfecting your resume
helpful hints to make your resume better
You can apply for tons of jobs, but if your resume has spelling or grammar issues, is 15 pages long, or uses incorrect tenses, you may not even get a call for an interview. It doesn’t matter if you’re applying for a remote position or in-office position – your resume needs to pop, stand out, and be noticed (in a good way!). There are some great templates online and in Word; pick one that showcases you and your experience.
You don't have to list every single duty you performed at every single job, but be sure and list the skills you excel at, as well as keywords that employers might look for.
Be sure and include volunteer work on your resume, especially if you don't have a lot of paid experience.
Get at least three references - and let them know you're using them as a reference. A lot of companies request references during the application process, so make sure you get their address, phone number, and email address. Letters of Recommendation from previous employers/managers are great! You don’t have to have references listed on your resume, but you should have them ready to go when you are asked for them.
Proper capitalization is a must! Make sure addresses, company names, and schools have proper capitalization.
Enlist the help of a friend, family member, someone in recruiting or human resources to take a look at your resume and check it for errors. It never hurts to have another set of eyes on your resume before sending it out…better to catch and fix any errors before potential employers catch them!
If your resume template includes a photo of yourself, make sure it’s a professional looking picture. You don’t need to have professional headshots done, but you should lean towards what you would wear and present yourself like you were working in an office…not the beach! A link to your LinkedIn profile is smart to include, but again, be sure that profile is professional, with a nice picture of yourself.
High School is two separate words. Please don’t write Highschool.
Bachelor’s Degree should be corrected it you have spelled it Batchlor’s Degree.
Personal information should only be included if it could pertain to employment.
Don’t be afraid to have different resumes for different positions. For example, you may have one resume really geared towards admin, another geared towards accounting and financial, and another geared towards a marketing position, if you are seeking and have experience in all those areas. Each resume would focus on your strengths and duties for each position, while still listing relevant experience in other areas.
If you are changing career paths, you’re going need to revamp your resume to the career you want…not the career you had. For example, you’ve been a teacher in the education field for ten years. You now desire a position as an administrative assistant in an office. If you write your resume and highlight your experience and skills as a teacher, that does not show a future employer your transferrable skills. You would want to include skills and duties you performed as a teacher that would transition over to admin work; for example, filing documents, creating spreadsheets, documents, and presentations…copying, faxing, scanning (document control), data entry, typing speed, etc.
When listing out job duties at former employers, do not copy and paste job descriptions. Write using your own words.
You can do this! It might seem like a daunting task, but you will get more responses if you have a great looking resume.
After perfecting your resume, what's next? Getting it out to the world to be seen, of course! If you need some help with getting - and keeping - organized, I've created a handy checklist for you to use on your journey!