5 Resumes Mistakes You’re Probably Making

As an instructor, I see a lot of student resumes. These are the 5 most common resume mistakes made by college students.

1. Making a resume with two columns

When you apply to jobs online your resume gets scanned by something called an Applicant Tracking System (ATS). Applicant Tracking Systems allow recruiters to filter and search resumes to find the ideal candidate to fill the opening. Applicant Tracking Systems read resumes from left to right and sort candidates by qualifications and job requirements. These systems are unable to read resumes with more than one column since they read from left to right.

Keep your resume one column when applying to jobs online so it does not get thrown out by an Applicant Tracking System before a recruiter even has the chance to see it.

2. Using a decorative font

Don’t use a script font for your resume. Not only is it inappropriate but script fonts are also unreadable by Applicant Tracking Systems.

The most readable fonts for Applicant Tracking Systems are clean sans serif fonts. These fonts are modern and clean looking. If you’re a graphic designer, make sure you’re choosing your resume font wisely!

3. Adding a headshot

Companies are incredibly worried about allegations of discrimination and you cannot evaluate a resume with a headshot without some potential unconscious bias. Due to this, companies generally don’t evaluate candidates who have a headshot on their resume.

Unless you’re an actor, your headshot should be reserved for your LinkedIn profile.

4. Using Weak Action Verbs

There are a lot of strong, accomplishment driven verbs out there but I still see students using verbs like “worked on,” “utilized,” or “responsible for” on their resumes. Using strong action verbs can show potential employers how much you’ve accomplished in your previous roles.

Here’s a list of 1,000+ strong action verbs

5. Not quantifying your experiences

One thing I always tell my students is to be results-oriented instead of responsibilities-oriented when writing their resume. One of the things that helps show the impact you made in previous roles is quantifying your experiences.

Did you increase sales by 20%? Manage a team of 5? Organize a 200 person event? Putting numbers to your experiences will help a hiring manager understand what impact you can help make at their organization.

For more professional development tips and advice check out radifylabs.com. Radify Labs offers monthly fellowship and summer programs for college students and recent grads looking to develop their technical and professional skills!