Resume Writing Advice

When it comes to applying for jobs the importance of a well written resume must never be underestimated. In this competitive job market many recruiters are now swamped with applications for their job vacancies, often with very little to chose between several candidates, you may well be the perfect candidate but your resume will have to sell you. So how do you make sure it will be noticed?. The following points include important advice for when you are preparing and writing your resume
1. Presentation; you obviously want your resume to stand out, just not for the wrong reasons! Using clear formatting, smart font which is clear and easy to read, bold or italics where appropriate for headers and important information like qualifications, previous employers, job titles, achievements etc
2. Introduction / Summary; written at the top of the front page of your resume, this is where you can sell yourself and attract the recruiters' attention, a paragraph, sometimes including bullet points featuring your abilities and experience. Make sure any claims you make here are backed up e.g. 'I am a very successful sales executive', don't just write it, explain how exactly you are very successful? Include key points from your employment and education and relevant personal achievements.
3. Length; 2-3 pages is normally standard, one page even for a new graduate will look very lazy, even if you do not have much experience you should include some information such personal achievements and transferable key skills from sports, voluntary work, education etc. More experienced job seekers will need to keep their experience brief and relevant with the focus on more recent employment, training and education and what is relevant to this particular vacancy, other details should be kept to a minimum but not left out. Too many pages or too much detail and they may lose interest and remember this should be a brief introduction, not your entire life story.
4. Chronological Order; always start the employment and education sections with the most recent first, if the recruiter reads your high school qualifications first they may not carry on to see you have a higher degree. Include the dates for employment and education and if there are any gaps make sure these are explained whether it was health problems, unemployed, travelling, studying, caring for family etc
5. Content; keep the sentences to a minimum, use bullet points where possible such as your duties in previous employment, qualifications etc. Recruiters will usually skim through c.v's first of all so the main points must stand out.
6. Repetition; try not to repeat yourself, even if you have been working in similar jobs do not write out the same duties and achievements for each one, avoid using the same phrases too often.
7. Personal information; sadly some people will discriminate so only include vital contact information: such as name, phone number and email address. Your home address may even deter some recruiters if, for example, you live in a poor area. Never include date of birth / age, marital status, sexuality or ethnic origin, even though it is illegal to discriminate some people sadly still do.
8. Other information; do not include work or personal references, instead put 'references available upon request at interview' at the end of the c.v. Include brief information about your personal interests, hobbies, team or individual sports and any outside achievements. This should tell the recruiter a bit about you as a person.
9. Spelling; always spell check before you send!
10. Re-write; make sure your resume is relevant to the vacancy and employer you are applying to , highlight the experience and skills which are relevant for that role.