Writing Effective Resumes
Writing Effective Resumes Most recruiters and employers spend just 6 seconds skimming a resume before making a decision about your application. Use your resume strategically to give yourself the best possible advantage! Tailoring Your Resume and Telling a Convincing Story
Use Accomplishment Statements and Action Verbs: Your resume should show, not tell, your skills to prospective employers. It should demonstrate the unique value you would bring to the employer. To write effective accomplishment statements, think of the acronym P.A.R. (Problem, Action, Result). 1. Identify a responsibility or issue. 2. Describe the action you took, using action verbs. 3. List the successful outcome or result from your action, quantifying whenever possible with verifiable numbers or percentages. Example: Instead of saying “My job required me to recruit student volunteers” say “Recruited, supervised, and trained more than 50 student workers per year, resulting in a 20% increase in student participation in our programs.”
Focus on Keywords: Your resume will be more effective if you use keywords – the skills that are most prized in your industry. Before you start writing, do you research by reading a variety of different job postings in your field, networking with people who work in similar jobs, and looking at the employer’s web site. You should also pay close attention to the specific job posting for which you are applying. Then, use as many of the keywords as possible when describing your skills. Leave out Over-Used Buzzwords and Jargon: Research has shown that recruiters and employers have a negative response to over-used or vague buzzwords, such as “self-motivated,” “team player,” and “hard-worker.” Check out a list of buzzwords on our Career Development website. You should also try to vary your word choice as much as possible; don’t use the same action verb repeatedly in your resume. Be sure to spell out all abbreviations and to eliminate overlytechnical jargon that gatekeepers might not understand. Highlight Transferable Skills: Transferable Skills are skills that are developed in one situation, but that are transferable to another. You can develop them on the job, but also through your other life experiences – class projects, volunteer activities, and hobbies, for example. They are especially important to include on your resume if you are looking to transition to a different field. Some common transferable skills include: problem solving, ability to work in a team, and time management skills.
Be Clear, Consistent, and Strategic: Be strategic about the jobs and skills you put on your resume – it’s not necessary to include every job you’ve ever had; just those that are most relevant to the job for which you are applying. (It’s a good idea to keep a master list of all your employment, skills, and volunteer activity that you can draw from and customize your resume for each different job).Think about what makes you stand out from other strong candidates and emphasize those points. Ask yourself if anything can be said more clearly, more powerfully, or with fewer words. Keep Your Design Simple: Don’t get too creative with your design because some resume application systems will have a hard time reading it. You should also avoid the temptation to cram too much information onto a page. White space is important for skimmability! Length
A 1-page resume is generally standard unless you have been working for more than 8-10 years. For those with a great deal of professional experience, 2-3 pages should be your maximum. Some specific industries require longer resumes (e.g. resumes for federal government jobs are generally 2-5 pages; resumes for teachers are generally 2 pages; academic resumes – called curriculum vitae – are generally more than 2 pages). When in doubt, ask for advice. Format
Use a font style that is easy to read, such as Arial or Helvetica, 10-12 point size font, with slightly larger size for names and headers. Use bold for headings and names. Be careful not to overuse caps, bold, underlining, and italics. Margins should be 1-inch. Eliminate ‘orphan words’ (single words on lines all by themselves); personal pronouns (I, you, he, she); and the words “a,” “an,” and “the” whenever possible. Use the past tense for things you did in the past; present tense for activities/jobs that are still ongoing. Avoid large blocks of text and limit the number of bullet points under each section (generally no more than 5-7 per job). Use consistent formatting (e.g. make sure every sentence ends with a period OR no sentence ends with a period. Both are fine, but do the same thing throughout). Save your resume as a PDF if you are emailing it to the potential employer. Save your resume as a Word Doc if you are sending it through an ATS (Applicant Tracking System). Use a .doc file instead of .docx.
DON’T include the following on your resume:
“References Available on Request” Photos: studies have shown that there is an 88% job rejection rate when photos are used Unprofessional email addresses or nicknames Marital status Physical characteristics (height, weight, etc) “Career Objectives” Statement; your objectives should be clearly stated in your cover letter instead of on your resume. High school information, unless you have just graduated or that is the highest degree you’ve attained GPA Hobbies Clip Art or distracting colors Obvious skills that everyone has, e.g. internet search engines, Microsoft word, etc. Information about parenting or your children Weigh the risks and benefits of putting employment or volunteer activities on your resume that might suggest your religion, political affiliation, etc. Only you can decide what you feel comfortable including. Final tips:
Proofread, proofread, proofread! Don’t rely on spellcheck, as it can miss incorrect usages. Ask people you trust to read through your resume and give you feedback. Double check your facts. Are all of your dates and job titles accurate? Don’t exaggerate or lie. According to research, 50% of resumes include some form of falsehood. These are generally caught during the interview process or via a background check. Re-read the application instructions. Did you include everything that was required? Keep your resume polished and up-to-date. You never know when an opportunity will come along!
Use Accomplishment Statements and Action Verbs: Your resume should show, not tell, your skills to prospective employers. It should demonstrate the unique value you would bring to the employer. To write effective accomplishment statements, think of the acronym P.A.R. (Problem, Action, Result). 1. Identify a responsibility or issue. 2. Describe the action you took, using action verbs. 3. List the successful outcome or result from your action, quantifying whenever possible with verifiable numbers or percentages. Example: Instead of saying “My job required me to recruit student volunteers” say “Recruited, supervised, and trained more than 50 student workers per year, resulting in a 20% increase in student participation in our programs.”
Focus on Keywords: Your resume will be more effective if you use keywords – the skills that are most prized in your industry. Before you start writing, do you research by reading a variety of different job postings in your field, networking with people who work in similar jobs, and looking at the employer’s web site. You should also pay close attention to the specific job posting for which you are applying. Then, use as many of the keywords as possible when describing your skills. Leave out Over-Used Buzzwords and Jargon: Research has shown that recruiters and employers have a negative response to over-used or vague buzzwords, such as “self-motivated,” “team player,” and “hard-worker.” Check out a list of buzzwords on our Career Development website. You should also try to vary your word choice as much as possible; don’t use the same action verb repeatedly in your resume. Be sure to spell out all abbreviations and to eliminate overlytechnical jargon that gatekeepers might not understand. Highlight Transferable Skills: Transferable Skills are skills that are developed in one situation, but that are transferable to another. You can develop them on the job, but also through your other life experiences – class projects, volunteer activities, and hobbies, for example. They are especially important to include on your resume if you are looking to transition to a different field. Some common transferable skills include: problem solving, ability to work in a team, and time management skills.
Be Clear, Consistent, and Strategic: Be strategic about the jobs and skills you put on your resume – it’s not necessary to include every job you’ve ever had; just those that are most relevant to the job for which you are applying. (It’s a good idea to keep a master list of all your employment, skills, and volunteer activity that you can draw from and customize your resume for each different job).Think about what makes you stand out from other strong candidates and emphasize those points. Ask yourself if anything can be said more clearly, more powerfully, or with fewer words. Keep Your Design Simple: Don’t get too creative with your design because some resume application systems will have a hard time reading it. You should also avoid the temptation to cram too much information onto a page. White space is important for skimmability! Length
A 1-page resume is generally standard unless you have been working for more than 8-10 years. For those with a great deal of professional experience, 2-3 pages should be your maximum. Some specific industries require longer resumes (e.g. resumes for federal government jobs are generally 2-5 pages; resumes for teachers are generally 2 pages; academic resumes – called curriculum vitae – are generally more than 2 pages). When in doubt, ask for advice. Format
Use a font style that is easy to read, such as Arial or Helvetica, 10-12 point size font, with slightly larger size for names and headers. Use bold for headings and names. Be careful not to overuse caps, bold, underlining, and italics. Margins should be 1-inch. Eliminate ‘orphan words’ (single words on lines all by themselves); personal pronouns (I, you, he, she); and the words “a,” “an,” and “the” whenever possible. Use the past tense for things you did in the past; present tense for activities/jobs that are still ongoing. Avoid large blocks of text and limit the number of bullet points under each section (generally no more than 5-7 per job). Use consistent formatting (e.g. make sure every sentence ends with a period OR no sentence ends with a period. Both are fine, but do the same thing throughout). Save your resume as a PDF if you are emailing it to the potential employer. Save your resume as a Word Doc if you are sending it through an ATS (Applicant Tracking System). Use a .doc file instead of .docx.
DON’T include the following on your resume:
“References Available on Request” Photos: studies have shown that there is an 88% job rejection rate when photos are used Unprofessional email addresses or nicknames Marital status Physical characteristics (height, weight, etc) “Career Objectives” Statement; your objectives should be clearly stated in your cover letter instead of on your resume. High school information, unless you have just graduated or that is the highest degree you’ve attained GPA Hobbies Clip Art or distracting colors Obvious skills that everyone has, e.g. internet search engines, Microsoft word, etc. Information about parenting or your children Weigh the risks and benefits of putting employment or volunteer activities on your resume that might suggest your religion, political affiliation, etc. Only you can decide what you feel comfortable including. Final tips:
Proofread, proofread, proofread! Don’t rely on spellcheck, as it can miss incorrect usages. Ask people you trust to read through your resume and give you feedback. Double check your facts. Are all of your dates and job titles accurate? Don’t exaggerate or lie. According to research, 50% of resumes include some form of falsehood. These are generally caught during the interview process or via a background check. Re-read the application instructions. Did you include everything that was required? Keep your resume polished and up-to-date. You never know when an opportunity will come along!
