Geometry, calculus, trigonometry- we’re taught all these (kinda useless) skills in high school, but not how to write a resume. This causes a ton of confusion for job seekers- especially college students and recent grads! Luckily, these 8 resume writing tips are professional, modern, and here to help fix your resume!
These tips for writing a resume are based on the most common mistakes I saw my clients make. I made these corrections on almost every person’s resume, so there’s a good chance you’re making at least one of them!
I also included my most important resume writing tip at the end, so make sure you get to the bottom!
Fix your name
Your resume is YOURS and you want to make sure YOU stand out above all. You never know how many other applicants you’ll be against, so your name has to be noticeable.
First, make sure your name is the biggest thing on your resume. This guarantees your name doesn’t get lost in all your information- they have to know your name to call you back!
After you make your name the biggest thing on the page, you also have to check that it’s easy to read and noticeable.
One way to help your name stand out is to use a special font just for your name. Just keep whatever title font you use readable, or else it’s useless anyway! If you’re looking for a unique font for your name, try dafont.com!
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Remove the hyperlink
This is the smallest part of your resume, but it’s one of the resume writing tips I gave to almost every client: your email and LinkedIn links.
You need to remove the hyperlink from these. In resume writing, format is important. Your contact info should be below your name and in plain text.
So, when you paste a link like your email address or LinkedIn, google docs or word will auto-correct it to a blue, underlined hyperlink.
These are distracting- they immediately pull someone’s eyes toward them. That means they don’t see your name or awesome experiences first- they see your email (booooring).
Yes, this resume writing tip is small, but first impressions are important.
You don’t want the first thing an employer sees to be your LinkedIn address- that doesn’t tell them anything about YOU as an employee!
Delete the word “major”
This is another small, but super important fix. Your resume is a formal document, so you have to consistently use professional language.
A big resume writing mistake college students and recent grads usually make is not using the formal title of their degree.
What do I mean?
Your area of study should not be listed as “Major: ___” or “Major in ___” or anything with the word “major”!
You want to list your major by its formal title, aka “Bachelor of Arts in ____”, “Bachelor of Science in ___”, etc.
If you’re not sure what the formal title of your degree is, you can easily find it on your school’s website or on your transcript.
Need more tips for writing about your education on your resume? Check out How to Format your Resume Education Section!
Frame your resume
I want to start this one by saying it’s not a you-absolutely-need-to-follow rule, it’s more of a I’ve-seen-hundreds-of-resumes-and-know-this-looks-best rule.
When everything on your resume is aligned to the same side- the left- it makes it less appealing for the eye to read. So, a good trick to give your resume a nice frame and improve its readability is to align the dates on the right side.
This can get a little tricky, because it’s important every date is in a consistent line. That way, the edges create a seamless, straight edge for the right side of your resume’s frame.
Lining up your dates on the right side is a great way to make your resume more appealing for the person reading it! This increases the chance of them spending a lot more time reading it!
You can check out more tips to format your resume at The Absolute Best Resume Format
Clarify your experiences
The meat (or meat substitute!) of your resume is your experiences. This is how you Bob Ross them a picture of you as an employee!
This starts with them having a clear idea of what exactly your role was and who you worked for.
When you’re listing your experiences, you want to use this format: position, company, place. That way, they have a solid foundation before reading your bullet points.
What does that look like?
For example, if I were listing a teaching position, it would be, “Teacher, Philadelphia School District, Philadelphia, PA”
This has the official job title, the company’s name, and the city/state and gives them a clear picture of what they’re about to read.
As another resume writing example, if it’s a position for your college, combine the school’s name with the department you worked for. My position in career services is listed on my resume like this:
Peer Career Advisor, Ithaca College Office of Career Services, Ithaca, NY
Consistently starting your experiences with position, company, and place is one of the key resume writing tips that makes YOU the star!
80% OF JOBS ARE ON THE HIDDEN MARKET—
LEARN HOW TO FIND THEM IN THIS FREE WORKSHOP
Are online job apps making your career sour? The key to candy coating your career is networking!
In this FREE workshop, I’ll teach you how to ditch your resume & grow the best resource you have as a job seeker: your network!
Vary the text
I used to always demonstrate this tip for my clients by holding up a typed essay next to a resume with well-formatted, varied text. Then, I asked them which one was easier to read, and they never point to the essay.
That’s because the basic writing format is boring and hard to read. If I didn’t vary the text in this blog post, you would’ve been way more likely to click out of this without reading any of the tips!
The same goes for resumes: when they have a mix of bold, underlined, and italicized text, employers are more likely to read them. That’s because it’s easier to read varied text than blocks of plain text- your eyes prefer it!
So, you want to use a mix of bold, underlined, and italicized text in a consistent manner to make your resume more readable.
An important part of that resume writing tip is the word consistent. You don’t want to bold one date, italicize the next, and only underline 1 position title. Instead, it shows your detail-orientedness if you use varied text consistently.
For example, I like to bold my positions, italicize the companies, and leave the place in plain text. I also have my major italicized in my education section and have each of my headers bold.
You can choose whatever mix fits your personality and taste, just make sure it’s clean and consistent!
Move your soft skills
Does your skills section include items like customer service, leadership, and communication? If so, you need to move them ASAP.
Your skills section is primarily for language and technical skills. So, if you’re a photographer, list the cameras and editing software you use. Or, if they ask for specific technical skills in the job description, list those and your skill level (beginner, intermediate, advanced).
Most people put soft skills in their skills section, but they don’t belong there.
Soft skills are things that can’t be measured- like teamwork, friendliness, and independence. It’s more impressive to employers if you show them you have these skills in your bullet points, cover letters, and interviews.
Just listing them in your skills section doesn’t prove you have them, you need to use examples!
Also, if you have any hobbies on there or a “fun one,” delete it too. I once had a client argue with me that he should be able to keep “air guitar” in his skills section, because employers like to know you can “have fun.”
They. Don’t. Care. Please, don’t throw a “fun skill” or a hobby on your resume! And yes, even though I told him to delete it, he kept it.
Use action verbs- the most important resume writing tip!
Your bullet points are the best place to show yourself as an employee and really stand out from the crowd.
Each of your bullet points have to start with an action verb. These are a powerful way to begin your descriptions and can really grab someone’s attention!
Examples of resume action verbs are:
- Collaborated
- Communicated
- Produced
- Created
- Operated
- Utilized
- Led
- Implemented.
Pay attention to your verb tense with these, too. If it’s a position you’re currently working, you need to use the present tense of the verbs. If it’s a past position, use the past tense.
This, again, helps clarify your experiences and makes sure YOU stand out.
Since there could be so many more resume writing tips just about bullet points, here’s my full guide on How to Write Powerful, Professional Resume Bullet Points
The best resume writing tips make sure YOU and all your amazingness stand out to the people reading your resume! To avoid any major resume mistakes, make your name the biggest text, delete any hyperlinks, use the formal title of your degree, use your dates as a frame, vary the text, don’t put soft skills in your skills section, and use action verbs!
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