Tips to build an impressive resume

One’s resume is the first gateway to the prospective recruiters and is often a deciding factor on securing an interview call. While a resume is a brief summary of work experience and skills, a CV is a detailed academic diary consisting of every accomplishment, certificate and publishing. A resume must capture all the important information about the professional life, educational background and qualifications, and the relevant skill sets for a specific job. The strongest element of a great resume lies in the brevity in which the growth trajectory is narrated along with tailor making it to suit the opening,to engage the recruiters, hiring managers, and even CEOS.

If one’s resume is able to generate some sort of curiosity to know more about the candidate they are likely to get an interview call which is 50% of the battle won.

Though there are several resume building tools that help build an impressive resume, it is important to understand the content elements that need to be added. Here are a few key points that can be factored in while drafting a resume to ensure that it stands out:

Make it crisp and ‘to the point’

Recruiters go through hundreds of resumes in a day. Professionals often make the mistake of creating lengthy resumes by including all the possible information of their career journey.

As per the Eye Tracking Study by Ladders Inc on an average a recruiter spends only 7.4 seconds on a resume, hence it is imperative to ensure that the resumes are sharp, concise and focused. An ideal resume should be one / two pages. An infographic representation of the resume with tools like Canva creates a lasting impression in the minds of recruiters. It should be considered as a marketing document that can help aspirants sell themselves to organizations rather than a mere list compiling their career history. As the experience level increases one should pick and choose what they want to highlight based on the job role.

Make it tailor made to fit the job description

When it comes to a good resume, one shoe does not fit all. The chances of landing a job increases if the resume is tailor made to fit the job description. The work experience described in the resume should be supplemented by accomplishments and impact created Including numbers and data to showcase impact always provides an edge. It is important to be cohesive and concise about the skills/ qualities possessed, functionality of work done to avoid overlapping.

Usage of the right keywords

Right keywords add to making a resume strong. The ideal way would be to custom the keywords based on the skill sets mentioned as a part of the job description.one with no errors, a correct file name and tailor made to suit the job the candidate is applying for help in making it more eye-catching. To make the resume attractive one should ensure that all relevant information is more diagonally left centered in a resume format. A neat and clean resume with proper formatting helps the reader to focus better on the content.

Highlight soft skills

Freshers seldom know what is to be filled in to make the resume look sharp. It is advisable to give an idea to potential employers about your skill sets by highlighting your soft skills. Talk about strengths like presentation skills, reporting, communication and so on. Including a few valid certifications like those of internships and live projects. These provide an added advantage giving a perception to recruiters on the willingness of the candidate to learn and grow in their role. Also, include the URL to your Linkedin profile in the resume for easy reference of the recruiters. It is expected to keep yourlinkedin profile updated at all times, just like the resume.

Coloring and bulleting

Colour combinations used also play an important role. It is advisable to always use formal colours to leave a starling impression. Solid colours like shades of blue in combination with black always do the trick. Also, usage of bullet points to capture one’s experiences and qualifications always make it easier on the eye making the information look more presentable.

All these help in creating a good impression and take you one step closer toward the desired job profile!

HE IDEAL WAY WOULD BE TO CUSTOMISE THE KEYWORDS BASED ON THE SKILL SETS MENTIONED IN THE JOB DESCRIPTION DOCUMENT