Over the past ten years I have reviewed hundreds of resumes as a professional career coach in higher education and as a consultant to private clients. During my many resume reviews I often come across common mistakes that job seekers make on this key document. Below I have compiled a list of the top 5 common resume mistakes.
Resume Length
According to Glassdoor.com “the average recruiter or hiring manager spends 6 seconds reading a resume.” In the United States the recommended length for a resume is one page. Many resume writers think that the longer the resume the more impressive it is but that is not necessarily the case. Resumes are summaries of your work and education experience that offer a snapshot of who you are professionally and being that it will be reviewed within a few seconds it’s important to keep it concise and at one page in length.
Vague job descriptions
The job description portion of your resume is arguably the most important section because it is where you describe your past work experiences. When writing job descriptions it is important to be clear and descriptive, making sure to include your technical job responsibilities as well as measurable ways that you made an impact on the role. Start each description with with action words and quantify numerical stats as much as possible to illustrate the positive results of the impact you had on the role.
Example of a Well Written Resume Job Description:
Office Manager, Dedicated Law Firm | June 2019 - May 2020
Managed office services including mail operations, customer engagement, and electronic legal document processing in a fast-paced corporate law firm with 60+ employees
Established a historical reference for the office by outlining procedures for protection, retention, record disposal, retrieval and staff transfers
Increased the efficiency of contract development procedures by 22% by transitioning physical documents into digital format
Image: TheBalanceCareers,com | I do not own the rights to this image
Summary vs Objective
n my opinion objectives are outdated and should not be included on your resume.If you choose to add a summary or objective to your resume be sure to know the difference between the two. Summaries can be useful especially for mid-level career changers and those with a substantial amount of work experience in a particular field. On the other hand, resume summary statements are not always ideal for job seekers with little experience or notable gaps in their resume. Often times job seekers use the terms summary and objective interchangeably which is a huge mistake as the two are similar but not the same.
Objectives are 2-3 sentence heading statements that describes your career goals for the specific job you are applying for
Summary is a brief paragraph summarizing the job seeker work history and serves as a preview for the hiring manager before reviewing the rest of the resume
Spelling, grammar and inconsistent formatting
Hiring managers and recruiters tend to be highly critical of resume spelling, grammar and formatting. When designing your resume, be sure to keep the format the same within each section. This includes things like style choices such as bolding certain words, the format of the date and your use of bullet points and indentations. Keep the formatting consistent throughout the resume and always triple check spelling yourself and have it proofread by someone else before sending. Book document review services.
Using the same resumé to apply for multiple jobs
Each job that you apply for is different therefore your resumé should not be treated as a one sized fits all document. Each time that you apply for a different job you should tailor your resume to show how you are the best fit for that specific opportunity. This may include, taking certain experiences off, rewording or reordering job descriptions and changing the order of resume sections. Always keep a main copy of your resumé ready so that you can alter it when needed.
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