CultusIn searching for a job, it is imperative that your first impression be a good one. And, for many of us job-seekers, the resume is the cover of our book which our prospective employers are forced to judge us by. Here are seven ways the cover of your book will wow your potential employer and get you that job!
1. Include the most important information at the top
This is an easy one: at least in English, people read from left to right, top to bottom. And we all know that reading resumes is not the most enjoyable or desired activity for any employer. So, make sure that the most important information on your resume is at the very top.
Include where you graduated from school and any honors you received in addition to the job experience you’re proudest of and will make the employers eyes bug out of his or her head. If the employer is immediately interested, they’ll continue to read your resume, giving you an even greater chance of getting an interview and employment.
2. Get rid of older job information that has become unimportant
If you worked for one of your neighbors one time doing some office cleaning (as I did when I was 16 and looking for some summer cash), don’t include it on your resume. Not only does it not really show any experience, but it also doesn’t have much bearing on whether or not an employer wants to hire you out of college. Include what you’re proud of; don’t just try to make your resume a novel.
3. Try to keep it all on one page (but don’t got below 10.5 font)
You’ve probably heard this one before, but it does have some merit to it. If you haven’t had overwhelming experience, there isn’t really a point in making your resume more than one page. A long resume just filled with “fillers” is not going to impress an employer as much as we’d like to think it would.
So be sure to include only the important information that you think will get you the job. Aside from cutting out the fluff, there are other ways to make your resume a little shorter, like narrowing the page margins, using a smaller font size (no smaller than 10.5), and condensing phrases within your resume. But, if that happens to go a little over a page, don’t stress too much about it.
4. Bulleted style
Making your resume bulleted may seem less formal, but it is a proven way to make it easier to read. And that is a lot of what you want in a resume: make it eye-catching and easy to read, make it impressive, and get the job.
5. Talk about your accomplishments, not your responsibilities
Employers don’t want to know what you were “responsible” for, they are much more interested in what you have actually done. Our world is an accomplishment-driven one, and it’s important to show your potential employer what your accomplishments were. Now is not the time to be humble!
6. Focus on describing previous job activities that accentuate what you want the employer to see in you
Engineering your resume to a specific employer is another easy way to make your resume more appealing to a specific group of people. Thus, it is important that you accentuate the qualities in yourself that you want your prospective employer to see and be impressed by. If you’re applying for a management position, include (at the top, of course) some great achievement you accomplished as manager of something else in the past.
7. Font size of your name…It’s actually important!
Your name is the most important thing on your resume, at least in the way that, if you don’t include it, you’ll never get a call or a job. But, be sure that the font size of your name isn’t overpowering: too large of a font size will show arrogance and over-confidence while too small of a font size will show timidity and shyness. Find a nice middle ground and then make sure the rest of your resume is top-notch.
Good luck!
About the Author:
John Monts is a professional blogger for CareerRelay.com and is currently a student at UC Davis, studying Political Science and Economics. He enjoys blogging on various topics related to career development and education.
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