Written by Gina Curry, Vice President
Creating the perfect resume in the New Digital Age can be challenging if you do not know how to format your resume correctly. A lot of individuals will create resumes with little detail and no format. This is a huge problem in the New Digital Age since most of the time it is not a human that sees your resume first. Adding keywords and skills that are common to your industry can help your resume receive more attention. Your resume is your first impression to employers. First impressions are everything. You need to set yourself apart from other candidates by marketing your experience and accomplishments. It is critical to keep these following tips in mind when creating your resume:
Choose a resume template
There are many templates and free services out there to choose from. It’s important for your resume to be in a clear and consistent format. Using one of the templates will ensure you are accurate throughout your resume to avoid simple formatting mistakes. Refrain from using unnecessary icons or pictures on your resume.
Optimize for ATS
Most large companies use an ATS (Applicant Tracking System) to scan and upload resumes. A computer reads the resumes and does not recognize uncommon fonts, info in the header/footer or an abundant number of columns. The best font is 10 to 12-point Times New Roman. ATS will scan for keywords and will store those keywords with your resume. This makes it easier for companies to pull up resumes with the desired experience. It is important to add keywords that are common within your industry to stand out to employers.
Include your contact information
The HR department and/or recruiters will often search on zip codes to find candidates. It’s important to include your full name, email address, phone number and mailing address. If you don’t want to include your full mailing address, be sure to have your city, state and zip code. You can also include your personal website or LinkedIn profile.
Ensure you back up your skills with examples
Objectives are overrated and unnecessary in the New Digital Age. Trade out an objective for skills with examples. Adding skills is often overlooked by job seekers. Loading up a resume with soft skills (personal habits or traits) isn’t good enough anymore. Job seekers need to show specific examples of hard skills (technical experience) on their resumes. Again, most ATS and employers will search for keywords when looking through a resume. Use hard skills that are common to your industry.
Tailor your resume for reach job you apply to
Taking the time to tailor your experience with the keywords in the job description will help your resume come up in more searches.
Follow the employer’s instructions when applying for a job
Many websites will specify how they want you to attach your resume or other information. Ensure you follow what they say. For example, if they specify to upload a PDF, make sure you convert your Word Document to a PDF. They might also direct you to apply to an email address. If you send an email, make sure you write a professional email to express your interest in the company and roles.
Update your LinkedIn profile to match your resume
Most employers look at LinkedIn as soon as they glance at your resume. They want to see connections, endorsements, references and most importantly, that your profile matches your resume. If there are any discrepancies, they might view that as a red flag.
Are you currently seeking new job opportunities?
Follow the above steps and send your resume to apply@nextpathcp.com
