If you're drafting your CV for the first time, chances are you'll put in more unnecessary information than required, which will naturally lead your CV to the trash can.
How does one know what is essential and what is not? Read on and find out how to create a foolproof CV!
For any given job vacancy, hiring professionals receive a flood of resumes.
Considering how impossible it is to interview all the candidates who've applied for the job, the hiring manager is always looking for ways to weed out candidates and only call the most worthy.
A fresh graduate has more to worry about since there is no experience and little professional achievements, if any at all, to add weight to their resumes.
If you are in the same boat, here are some tips that will help you out.
What can you do to make sure that the employer takes notice of your resume, and it doesn’t end up in a pile like others?
Keep it short and succinct
If you are drafting your first resume, you might be naive enough to include all kinds of unnecessary information like how you hosted the college annual function, or achieved first position in inter-college cricket competition.
After all this is what made you popular in college, right? However, seeking a job is a different ballgame altogether.
In order to convince the company to let you have the opportunity of working with them, you should be able to present them with considerable data why you are the best fit for the best job.
What is it that qualifies you for the job?
Moreover, most recruiters never make it past the first page, unless they are hiring for a senior level position.
Organise the information for better impact
The resume serves pure informational purpose. However, the way you present that information also makes a lot of difference.
In an eye-tracking study it was found that in the short time they spend on the resume, recruiters focus on name, current and past position titles and dates, and education.
As a fresher, you can discount sections like current and past position title and dates, and directly focus on education.
Keep these sections on the top most quarter of the first page and present them in a professional manner with proper headings and bullets so as to make the necessary impact.
Keep it accurate
While preparing the resumes make sure it is error free.
This refers to both factual as well as grammatical error.
You have only one chance to make a positive impression, and any of such errors can make sure that your chance goes to waste.
Recruiters these days take help of background checks to find the veracity of facts told in the resume.
Including any type of falsity can lead to a lifetime of disgrace as it happened with fired CEO of Yahoo Scott Thompson.
Plus, if you are not sure about the correctness of the language you always have the option to seek the help of a proofreader or language expert.
Highlight your relevant personality traits
Since you do not have the comfort of a proven experience, it's essential to include a section that highlights your important personality traits which are helpful for the job to which you are applying.
From being a people's person to a good organiser or a born leader, include all the traits that best match with those required for the job.
If you can prove these skills with circumstantial evidence such as any event of past that you might have participated in, nothing better than that.
Include relevant project work experience
A successfully completed project can make all the difference between you and the similarly qualified competition.
The inclusion of a relevant project will prove that you have real world experience working with technologies and people which is an integral part of the job.
It will also highlight that you are more qualified than others to handle that particular work.
However, make sure that you have all the facts right as the interviewer will certainly cross-question you on the details of the project.
Image courtesy: Flazingo Photos/Creative Commons
