5 Resume Mistakes You May Be Making Right Now

What first impressions do recruiting managers have from reading your résumé?

Ma Seng Nu Pan, Proximity Designs’ People Operations Manager, reads 60 to 70 résumés in any given week, on top of browsing résumés of qualified candidates on LinkedIn. She said it usually takes her two to three minutes to decide on whether or not to call in an applicant for an interview. When such decisions are made quickly, it is important to have a clear and concise résumé in order to avoid having your application buried under a pile of others.

“You could be the one, the hidden gem,” said Ma Seng. “But it’s important to figure out how you could write your résumé to make yourself less hidden.”

To do so, avoid these five common résumé mistakes that could put a perfectly good candidate at a disadvantage.

i. Rambling on

Your professional résumé should be one full page. No less, and definitely no more. You might particularly value a club activity or a training from your university, but not all experiences and skills are considered equal in the eyes of a recruiter. When including information on your résumé, ask yourself: what are the requirements for this position? And does the information on my résumé showcase my qualifications accordingly?

One section on the résumé that often runs longer than necessary, according to Ma Seng, is work experience. It’s common for job seekers to copy and paste job descriptions from previous work, even if these job descriptions do not reflect the candidates’ performances on the job. “What I care about is your contribution, your key achievements,” said Ma Seng.

ii. Listing too much personal information

Do you have height and blood type listed on your résumé? What about marital status and religious belief? Unless you are applying to be a model, how you look and if you are married are often not the most relevant information in a professional environment. “I don’t think a lot of recruiters want to know about that. They are just clutter,” said Ma Seng. Social enterprises like Proximity and most other private organizations value your performance and abilities far more than your blood type, so make your résumé reflect that.

iii. Neglecting the format

Good formatting alone may not get you that interview, but a clear layout is crucial in delivering your message to the hiring managers. Because they generally spend so little time on reading one résumé, inconsistent font sizes or disorganized information makes it even harder for them to learn about you and your qualifications. In addition, good formatting can portray important professional qualifications, such as being detail-oriented and able to produce high quality work. In short, make their lives easier and show off your professionalism by presenting a résumé that is “open, decluttered and neat.”

iv. Including every training, big or small

There are various training opportunities out there, and your recruiters know that. They also know the takeaways from a daylong session are limited compared to a longer program. The rule of thumb is — do not include all your trainings. Instead, only include those that are significant and more relevant to your position. For instance, if you are working as a bookkeeper, a week-long Excel training is considered more important than a month-long English course. As Ma Seng points out: “Anything you put on a résumé should reflect why you are the best fit.”

v. Overselling, or underselling

Last but not least, be honest in your résumé. Recruiters have gone through thousands of résumés and interviews and know how to spot lies. If you claim to have intermediate fluency in English, make sure you can communicate fairly comfortably both verbally and on paper. If you write that you are an expert in Excel, you should be able to analyze data when asked to do so. Overselling almost never ends well as hiring managers sooner or later put your statements to test.

But also don’t let the “anadeh” culture propel you to undersell yourself. Résumé is a sales pitch, where you are the product. Don’t say you have beginner English ability if you led meetings or made presentations regularly in your previous work. Make sure to mention something about your Excel proficiency level if you’ve used it at work for years. Identifying your strengths and qualifications and conveying them confidently to your future employers are the first steps to getting your dream jobs.

If you want to learn more about how to write a successful résumé, Proximity Designs is holding a public workshop on this topic Sat. June 10, 2–4 p.m. Admission is free and open to all. For more information, check out the Facebook event page or contact us at 09964558077.