Job Online Blog

Research shows that recruiters scan around 1000 resumes a day and only 100 of them get more or less proper attention. Moreover, only four applicants out of the same amount get a job interview invitation. Are you getting the point? You have only 10 to 15 seconds to attract the recruiter’s attention and make them read your resume till the very end. Hard job, I should say. However, nothing is impossible.

Thus, taking into consideration that the potential interviewer is not really disposed to wasting much time on your CV, adopt one rule: never go into much detail unless it is absolutely necessary.

The necessity can only be triggered by the vacancy requirements, stated in the advertisement. That is why you should make sure you have read it attentively and fully understand the selection criteria – the list of requirements needed to qualify for the position. Those are usually given in the order of importance, thus if you do not really meet the first few, you would better not waste your time as well the recruiter’s.

Your resume should be well-structured; clear neat layout will also make easy to the eye and comprehension. A nice professional picture of yours is a good attention grabber as well. Use the bold type for emphasizing crucial points.

Roughly speaking, your resume should contain four sections:

• personal details,
• qualifications,
• work experience,
• referees.

In the first one you state your name, address, contact details, driving license availability and citizenship. Hobbies and personal interests could also be noted here, if they are somehow relevant to the job advertised. Date of birth is not needed unless the position has age restrictions.

Writing about your qualifications, be brief and precise: state the degree achieved, the year of graduation and the units completed. Arrange the items in an orderly manner, starting with the most recent one.

In the work experience section you should provide information about your previous jobs. In date order, just like in the qualifications section. Name the company you worked for, the period of your employment, the position you occupied and the duties you were in charge of. Do not mention the reasons for leaving the company, but be prepared that it can be asked at the personal interview.

In conclusion, list your referees, their position and contact phone numbers. Certainly you are not going to mention people, who you did not really get along with and who could give you unfavorable characteristics.

Done with that, search the whole resume for the subject of misprints. It is also a good idea to have your CV be read by someone else before you send it – sometimes we involuntary skip things that strike the eye of others.

Good luck!