Stand-Out Resumes: Making Yours Memorable
With thousands of individuals, potentially hundreds of thousands depending on where you live, applying for positions in your area, you need to make sure you have stand-out resumes. You need to be memorable enough that the recruiter picks up your information and sends it to the hiring department for consideration.
How do you make that happen? The fastest way to an interview is to make sure your resume reflects your skills and experience and that it matches the qualifications for the job for which you are applying. You have to make it very clear that you are the person they are looking for.
Here are a few tips to make your resume as memorable as you are:
1. Be clear on your qualifications.
You know you have great experience, but make sure the resume speaks to it. Sometimes, we are just too close to it and do not see, for as many skills and qualifications as we have, they are not apparent on the resume. Make sure everything that makes you as qualified as you are stands out on your resume so the recruiter and department managers see it, too.
2. The one-page resume does not always cut it.
Leave the one-page resume for individuals who do not have a lot of experience. If you have been working in your field for more than three years, you have great information to share. Make sure your resume reflects your recent work, any special certifications or training courses you have taken, and the achievements or accomplishments on the job that make you different from everyone else.
3. Take time to highlight what is important.
Do not be too short in describing your work and accomplishments on the job. For each job, you should be summarizing your day-to-day work as a whole and then listing any special achievements/accomplishments you have for that position. Achievements/accomplishments are so important because they tell an employer how you went above and beyond for your previous employers. Your achievements give them an idea of the quality of work they can expect from you in your new position with their company.
5. Leave off the old-style objective.
You know the one I am talking about—the one that says, “to obtain a position where I can best utilize my skills and abilities” or something like that. Let it go! That statement does you no favors in this day and age. Your resume should start with a clear summary of your skills and qualifications, which you should match to the skills and qualifications that the company is looking for in the position they are seeking to fill. Use the job description as a guide, but make sure you also include key characteristics about yourself that will be beneficial to them. Mention degrees, certifications, additional languages you may speak, security clearances you have, and anything that may be relevant to the position and industry.
5. Do not start with the education section.
You can list any degrees or certifications you may have in your summary, but move the education section to the bottom.
Consider the top of the resume prime marketing real estate.
This is the place where you put the most important facts about yourself for the recruiter/hiring manager to see. If the best thing you have going for yourself is education and you do not have any work experience whatsoever, then by all means put the education section first, but if you have qualifications and experience to share about yourself, then this experience needs to come first.
If you aren’t getting the response you want to your current resume, consider these tips to improve your resume, land the interview, and show how you are the best candidate for the job.
