Is Your Resume Keeping You From Your Dream Job?

That simple employer request may have you wondering, “What is a resume?”. If you’ve never held a job, or it has been a long time since you last searched for new employment, it can seem confusing why an employer would ask for this after receiving so much of your information on their applications. Many of you may be reading this and saying, “yeah, I already know what a resume is, but how is it different from a CV?”.

Let us start with the resume. A resume is most commonly a one-page document listing all the jobs you have held.

However, if you travel abroad and are seeking employment, you may instead be asked for a CV. The term ‘CV’ is short for the Latin Curriculum Vitae, translated it means ‘course of life’.

Why are these documents important to your job search?

Both documents are a story of your professional life. Your resume can be the best tool in your self-marketing toolbox. The document is easy to share, there is an abundance of professionally styled templates available, and it allows the employer to see your performance without digging through your whole application when considering the final applicants. For these reasons, it is important to ensure your information is read and the message heard clearly.

What are some of the biggest issues we see?

Often, resumes are formatted to look trendy because candidates think the employer expects this format or terminology. College students for instance tend to put their education at the top. Recent graduates think this is what a hiring manager wants to see, in part, because graduation is important to the student. Generally speaking, this is incorrect. Companies and organizations want to see the skills and experience you bring to the table. These should come first.

Design-oriented candidates will often include complicated eye-catching formatting into their resume, even including headshots. This too is incorrect. –From our experience, design roles almost always ask for a portfolio, a resume does not need to demonstrate these skills.

Lastly, many large companies are turning to the use of ATS (Applicant Tracking System) systems. These are technologies and platforms that help to organize incoming resumes to better manage large or daily submissions. Resumes that are not ‘ATS ready’ means that your information could be sorted into a different part of the system, not properly show on the viewing system, or even be sorted as spam.

So, what can you do to increase your visibility and make it past the ATS systems?

1. Be honest and authentic. – This is your professional story. Use words you would normally use when speaking to a manager. Talk about items you are proud of accomplishing first, then include the more generic responsibilities when describing your past work experience.
2. Include links to your portfolio or projects. – Rather than using your expertise to format graphics and logos into the resume, links to your work can be more powerful and allow the potential employer to see the usefulness of the finished products.
3. Use Keywords. – If the job description uses technical phrasing, address your experience with the same technical phrasing. This also includes ensuring items such as your name and contact information are part of an editable field. This will ensure an easily searchable and sortable document that will make it to the HR professionals.