A resume is a document that makes the first contact with your potential employer. Almost all candidates make mistakes in their resumes. Mistakes in the resume can lead to rejection of the application in the first glance.
The hiring managers see a resume only for 15 to 20 seconds, and if they find any errors, they simply trash the resume. Spelling and grammatical mistakes make your resume look unprofessional and reduces your chances of getting the job.
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Let us see the top 7 mistakes that people make in their resumes that you should avoid while applying for a job.
Including too much information
Candidates make the mistake of including too much information in their resume. You don’t need to tell everything about you or your previous jobs in your resume. Instead focus on the highlights of your education, work experience, and accomplishments.
You should try to keep your resume to one page if you are a fresher or have one to two years of experience. If you have a work experience more than two years, you can make a two-page resume, but try to keep the information as short as possible. Also, you should strictly avoid large clusters of text that make your resume hard to read.
Trying “one size fits all” approach
Some candidates make a single resume and use it to apply for different categories of jobs. This is known as “Attempting one size fits all” approach. The resumes of such candidates do not match the job requirements even if they have the necessary skills and work experience. The software simply rejects such resumes and hiring managers are likely to reject them.
So it is better to make a specific resume for every job for which you want to apply. The objective or career summary, the work experience and the accomplishments you include in your resume should be relevant to the applied job.
Making spelling and grammatical errors
Candidates often create their resume in a hurry and make the spelling and grammatical mistakes which make their resume look unprofessional. Such mistakes create a bad impression on the hiring managers. They think that you don’t pay attention to detail and simply rejects your resume. So, you should strictly avoid such mistakes and proofread your resume twice before submitting it for a job, so that the spelling and grammar mistakes can be corrected.
Submitting an outdated resume
Some applicants submit an outdated resume while applying for a new job. This is common among the candidates who frequently change jobs. So they don’t include the work experience in their resumes that is less than six months duration or a year. Sometimes applicants don’t bother to create a new resume and apply for the job with an outdated resume.
You should always apply for a job with a fresh and updated resume. Your resume should be job specific, include the relevant keywords, your latest work experience, and skills. Applying for a job with an updated resume increases your chances of selection.
Including Duties instead of accomplishments
It is a common trend among the job applicants to write about their duties in the previous jobs instead of accomplishments. Usually, the freshers and candidates with less experience make this mistake in their resume. For example, candidates write how they managed a sports event in their school or college. Some candidates write that they have managed a team of 8 people in their previous job.
Such descriptions do not show what they accomplished in their job. It is better to write precisely what you have achieved in your previous job profile. For example; you can write that you achieved a given sales target within a month. You completed a given project before the deadline. Such accomplishments make your resume stand out among others.
Not including the keywords related to job
Some companies use recruitment management software to scan the resumes. The software looks for the keywords related to the job description while scanning the resumes. If you do not include the job-related keywords in your resume, it is likely to be rejected by the software. So it is important to know the necessary keywords and write them on your resume.
If you don’t know what keywords to include in your resume, look in the job description, or you can also look for similar job advertisements. Find the relevant keywords and include them in your resume, so that the software can easily find them while scanning.
Vague Summary
The hiring managers read the career summary on your resume as it gives them a brief idea about you. Candidates often write a vague career summary which looks unprofessional. For example, some job applicants write “An IT professional looking for career growth.” Such summaries are not specific and do not show what you want from a job or career.
You should write a career summary that is specific and focus on your needs as well as match the job requirements. For example, you should write like, An IT Professional that developed outstanding software for fortune 500 companies.
Final words
A resume is the most important document that helps you in getting a job. Candidates should include the correct and relevant information in the resume. Moreover, a resume should be written in a clear format which highlights your education, experience, and accomplishments. Easily readable resumes are most likely to be shortlisted and increase your chances of getting an interview call. Resumes to You Offer Professional CV writer service online.