Are you applying for your dream job? Do you know how to stand out from your competition? At my job, I look at a resume for 30 seconds and can tell you if I think you should come in for an interview, scary huh?
Resumes: How to Make Your Resume Stand Out
Scary Facts:
A recent survey of 2,500 employers found that 38% of HR managers said they spend less than a minute reviewing a resume, and 18 percent said they spend less than 30 seconds. 48% of HR managers surveyed by CareerBuilder say they typically review up to 25 applications for open positions. These statistics show how important it is to spend a lot of time perfecting your resume.
~Great Ways To Stand Out From Your Competition~
Should I submit the same resume to each job? My advice is to not submit the same resume for each job that you apply to. Look at each job description and think about how your experiences match the qualifications and requirements. Most likely, your resume will go through Human Resources first who may not be familiar with the actual job but they do know all the keywords to look out for.
How many pages should my resume be? I am a big fan of the one-page resume. Think you have too much work experience to fit on one page? You might want to think again. If you are including 3 pages of information that doesn’t apply to the job you are applying to, you may want to leave it out. Just because you did it, doesn’t mean you have to put it on your resume. I don’t care about everything you did in college and high school unless you tell me how it applies to your job. Make your resume short and sweet and remember that quality is better than quantity.
What are some other tips that can help my resume stand out?
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Use a professional email address (not your college nickname).
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Show impact like cost savings or increased productivity. Don’t sell yourself short if you rocked your last job!
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Have someone review your resume and provide you with feedback. I just had my career counselor at school help me with my resume and she offered very valuable feedback. I then passed it over to my mentor and he made great recommendations as well. Don’t be afraid to ask for help! Often, people are very happy to help you out!
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I recently learned that Human Resource departments are carefully checking applicant’s online profiles to find history on applicants. Take a moment to review your online activity and check your privacy settings on your social media accounts. Try googling your name and see what comes up. Better to find out what comes up before your future company does!
