Building Your Resume

Building your resume to attract employers

Here are some resume tips for nailing that one job you’re in search for and will hopefully make the process more enjoyable and a whole lot easier.

1) Resume design

A good resume is something that can catch your eye, but not something that is going to be stressful on the eyes. Simplicity is key, but uniqueness sets it apart from every other resume an employer comes across.

Don’t use a lot of italics, bold, and caps. Only use them for emphasis and make your font something that is modern and easy to read.

If you want to be competitive in the job market today, you have to advertise yourself. Make your resume catch the eye of your future employer.

2) Format your resume so that the most important parts are at the top of the page

Important information that you should be sure to include is your full name, contact number, and email. The social media world is expanding so even leaving your LinkedIn instead of your email or as an additional way of contact may be beneficial to you.

3) Find a balance

To give the eye some variety, use a mix of paragraphs and bullets throughout the resume body. Hiring managers/recruiters look at your resume on average for about 7 seconds before they move on to the next one. So your resume needs to grab their attention immediately, with relevant information. Choose skills to add to your resume that correlate with the specific job you are seeking.

4) Promote Yourself

Avoid the temptation to stuff your resume with a large amount of “responsibilities” and/or “skills” you have acquired. Employers are more impressed by your successes and how you would mirror them at their company. If you’re having a difficult time with that, look to your skills and think about how to validate them. Your successes may be clear to you once you see the skills you obtained over the course of your previous jobs or careers.