Tips For How To Write A Better Resume (From A Recruiter's Perspective), by A Life After Layoff on YouTube. 8 min 35 s.
- Video length
- 8 min 35 s
- Time to do it
- 1 hour
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Steps
- 10
What you need
Steps
Open the job advert and copy out the main skills and duties it asks for. These become the words your resume should use.
Choose a simple one-page layout with a clear heading, a short summary, a skills section, work history and education. Skip photos, graphics and columns.
Write your name, phone number, email and city at the top. Use a professional email address and check every digit.
Add a two or three line summary that names the role you want and your strongest relevant skills. Change it for every application.
List your experience newest first. For each job give the title, company and dates, then two to four bullet points.
Start each bullet with an action verb and add a number where you can, such as how many customers you served or how much time you saved.
Fill gaps with education, courses, volunteering or personal projects. With no paid experience, these show you can do the work.
Add a skills section with the tools, software and languages you actually know. Match the wording to the job advert.
Read the resume once for spelling and grammar, then save it as a PDF so the layout stays fixed.
Name the file with your name and the role, such as firstname-lastname-cv.pdf, before you upload it.
Tips and common mistakes
Recruiters skim for a few seconds, so keep the most important points in the top third of the page.
Do not list every task from an old job. Pick the duties that match the role you want now.
Keep one resume file per application so you can track which version you sent.
Avoid tables and text boxes, because some applicant tracking systems cannot read them.
Questions
How long should a resume be with no experience?
One page is enough. Use the space for education, projects, volunteering and skills rather than padding it out.
Should I use a template or start from scratch?
A simple template is fine if it has one column and standard headings. Check that it exports cleanly to PDF before you send it.
Do I need to change my resume for every job?
Yes, at least the summary and skills section. Mirroring the advert's wording helps both recruiters and screening software.
This guide was drafted from the video's details and general task knowledge. It has not been checked against the full video. Check the video and relevant product instructions before following a procedure. Report a correction.
