Don’t do this with your resume
In my few years of experience of interviewing candidates, ranging from Software Developers to Software Test Engineers to UI/UX Designers, I must have come across at least a few hundred resumes which completely failed to grab my attention. And more often than not, I got the feeling that the candidate prepared their resume just for the sake of having a resume.
But it’s really important to realise that your resume is your first impression. Are you really going to let a 4 page “resume.docx” file decide your fate? It’s such a dangerous game.
Here, I will discuss some common don’ts. If you follow these, your resume is already better than many resumes out there. As for the design, I feel it is purely subject to your personality and taste, so I will leave that up to you.
This article is written mostly for software developers, but there are enough takeaways for everyone in general.
1. File format
PDF, and PDF only. No doc, no docx.
You may have created your first ever resume using Microsoft Word, and that’s great, but now throw it out and create a new one using a better tool.
One such tool is https://novoresume.com/. Their Basic plan lets you create one resume for free.
Even LinkedIn’s profile export tool is a decent resume, if your profile is complete and up to date.
But, if you’re like me, you will open up your favourite editor and make it using HTML & CSS.
2. File name
NOT resume.docx
NOT resume (1).doc
NOT updated_resume.pdf
NOT cv.pdf
“John Doe.pdf” is fine.
“Resume - John Doe.pdf” is better.
or “Resume - John Doe (Java dev, 3 yrs exp).pdf” if you’re feeling lucky.
3. Number of pages
One. Not two, not three, certainly not four.
Nobody is going to read a 6 line description of each of the 17 projects you did, sire. And you’re not impressing anyone by the long length of your resume.
Assume that the screening individual will only spend 30 seconds reading your resume. Now, what exactly would you want them to read?
Even Elon Musk has a single page resume.
4. Remove unnecessary sections
A. “Personal details” at the end
This section is redundant. All a recruiter needs is your name, email, phone number, and current location (city). If you include these details at the top, this section is automatically eliminated. Rest of the details, including the name of your father, are unnecessary.
B. Co-curricular activities
This section is good for a fresher, but not so much for an experienced individual. Don’t forget to remove it while applying for your second job!
C. Strengths
This section is opinionated by your self-perception. In order to keep your resume strictly objective, you will need to remove this section.
D. Declaration
I find this line at the end of 9 out of 10 resumes I screen:
I hereby declare that all the statements made in this resume are true and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.
Umm, what? Of course they are. Didn’t you make it yourself? What purpose could this section possibly serve?
It used to serve purpose back in the day, when people used to personally visit offices and submit a copy of their resumes at the reception.
5. About that “Career objective”
If I ask you to recollect the “career objective” you have written on your resume, would you recall it correctly?
If your answer is yes, it is most likely a very precise or witty statement covering your area of expertise, overall experience, and the kind of role you are seeking.
If your answer is no, I might know why. It’s because it feels as abstract as this image:
But more importantly, it is meaningless and you mindlessly copied it from somewhere else.
You can either remove this section, or read why some people remembered it correctly.
6. Your resume is your timeline. Keep it straight.
While it’s proper for freshers to display their “Education” section in the prime location of their resume, I see experienced people also do the same.
Frankly, I don’t care about your CGPA if you have 3 years of experience building web apps. I want to see your work experience and your technical expertise first.
As a universal formula, what work best is to put everything in “latest first” fashion.
Fresher? Did an internship in your last semester? Put it at the top. Then put your education.
Experienced? As a recruiter, I want to know where you are currently working. I want to visualise your entire timeline. I want to figure out how long you work at a company on average. I want to read your growth chart.
If these details are scrambled, or even missing, your resume is not going to do well.
7. Consistent font family, size, margins, and colours
This must be a no brainer, but I have seen people screw this up. We must always pay attention to detail. I’m sure you wouldn’t want screening individuals to think you’re sloppy and careless!
8. Tables are deprecated.
Tables occupy a lot of space. Try to avoid them as much as possible, especially for your “Education” section. You can summarise it in easy bullet points to save space and have better consistency.
9. Link your GitHub, LinkedIn profiles.
If there’s enough meat on your GitHub and LinkedIn profiles, include them on your resume. It makes you looks more enterprising and professional.
Feel free to include your Stack Overflow profile as well, if you have the stars to show for it.
That’s all, folks! I wish you all the best.
Feel free to add your suggestions in the comments section.
