Question Originally Appeared on Quora What Are the Most Common Mistakes Made on Resumes?
Your resume is the first impression you’ll make on a hiring manager. After reading it, they’ll decide whether they want to invite you for an interview or not, so it needs to be outstanding. Unfortunately, many candidates submit resumes that are far from perfect. Some contain glaring errors, while others a bit more inconspicuous.
At HTSS, Inc. — one of the top temp agencies in Reading, PA — our recruiters read lots of resumes, so they know a good one — and a bad one — when they see it. Increase your chances of scoring an interview by not making these five common resume mistakes.
Typos and Grammatical Errors
Always run spellcheck on your resume, but don’t stop there. This is a great first-round review, but it doesn’t catch everything. In addition to proofreading it yourself several times, ask at least one trusted person to look it over. The more people that review it, the greater the chance of an error being spotted before submission.
Failure to Personalize
The one-size-fits-all resume is a thing of the past. Modern hiring managers expect you to tailor your resume for every job you apply to. This will take a lot longer, but if you don’t do it, you probably won’t land an interview.
Lack of Keywords
Many companies receive a high volume of applications for every job posting, so they use software to scan resumes for certain keywords to find the top matches. If yours doesn’t have enough of these words, you’ll get passed up. Avoid this by carefully reviewing the job posting, taking note of words and phrases used multiple times. These are likely the keywords, so find a way to weave them into your content in a manner that sounds natural.
Vague Accomplishments
Modesty won’t get you a job interview. It’s okay to brag a little on your resume, because you’re supposed to be selling yourself to the hiring manager. Show just how great you are by quantifying your achievements. For example, if you’re a sales professional, instead of saying you exceeded your quota last year, drive the point home by saying you exceeded your 2016 quota by $80,000.
False Information
Never lie on your resume, for any reason. However, this actually isn’t the issue at-hand. Instead, many candidates accidentally submit resumes with an old email address or phone number, making it hard for the employer to get in touch. People also inadvertently provide the wrong job titles or dates of employment, which doesn’t look good, even when it’s an honest mistake.
HTSS, Inc. is here to help you get the job you really want! It doesn’t matter if you’re looking for a short-term gig to earn some extra cash or a career-building direct hire opportunity, you can count on our team to find the right fit. We’re ready to get started, so contact us today!