Whenever you send your resume to a company for employment consideration, the recruiter or hiring authority who opens it hopes that you will match their requirements for the position with your skill sets. In theory, if you do match their requirements, you will hopefully receive a phone screen at a minimum.
How do you attract the attention of whoever is going to read your resume? How do you get them to pay maximum attention to your resume? The very best way to attract their attention is to have a resume that is pleasing to the eye. This means to have a resume that is: a) easy to read, b) clearly defined sections and c) a document that covers your high points and that does not read like a novel.
An easy to read resume is a resume with even margins, a font point size that is large enough so that the reader will not have to squint and a font style that is traditional. An easy to read resume also consists of a thematic usage of bolding, italics and underlining, brief paragraphs of text, bullet points for emphasis – meaning not a paragraph of text after EVERY bullet. Finally, an easy to read resume is a resume that is grammatically correct, uses proper spelling and proper verb tense.
Your resume should have clearly defined sections. These sections include your name, contact information, education, professional profile or summary (a profile if less than 8 years of experience and a summary if more than 8 years) an employment narrative, any licenses, registrations or certifications that you possess and any professional affiliations, memberships or associations that you have. Each section should be easy to find. Each section should be to the point of the subject.
Whenever a recruiter or hiring authority opens a resume, they immediately glance at the length. If the resume is longer than 3 pages, they will be challenged to read it all. If the resume is longer than 4 pages, good luck getting them to read it at all. The point is that people want to read a document that is precise, covers the high points of your career and is relatively brief. If you have 25 years or more of experience, the reader is only looking at your relevant experience, meaning that if your relevant experience is old, it will probably not be as relevant as you think. The reader also wants to read about your recent experience (the last 10-15 years of your employment history). Resist the urge to write every detail about every position you have ever held, especially if that position is over 15 years old.
A first impression appearance of your resume will be what determines if your resume will be read. The first impression appearance largely speaks to the way in which your resume is formatted. You only get one chance per company to make a good first impression. Your content is what keeps them reading. Make your first impression count.
Matthew 5:16
