How to Make Your Resume Easily Readable
We know from research that hiring managers and recruiters skim resumes in about 6-10 seconds. To ensure that your resume is highly readable, consider the following suggestions:
Fonts & Organization:
- Use a common sans serif font like Arial or Calibri.
- Do not use more than 2 fonts. Prefer one color (black), using dark grey or another color for testimonials or company descriptions.
- Use boldfacing or underlining sparingly.
- Add white space throughout the document (line and paragraph spacing).
- Avoid half-pages. Your resume should have 1-3 full pages, depending on your career length.
- Use consistent formatting for headers and intervals between sections.
- Align the resume style with the style of your cover letter.
Bullet Points:
- Do not use more than 2 types of bullet points.
- Avoid bullet points that are longer than 2 lines.
- If describing a longer project in one bullet, break it up into sub-points and use a different visual market for the bullet point.
- If you have more than 4-5 bullets per role, break them down into sub-sections like “Team Leadership”, “Process Improvement”, or “Budgeting.”
Content:
- Trim general role descriptions and focus on measurable results, highlighting improvements in quality or quantity.
- Condense outdated roles (older than 10 years) and remove certifications and memberships that are not current or relevant.
- Draft the top part of the resume (career summary and areas of expertise) with the target role in mind.
About the author:
Tanya Mykhaylychenko is a professional resume writer with a background in content writing, university teaching, and IT staffing. She is a member of Editors Canada and Career Professionals of Canada. For more information, please visit https://tm-editorial.com/about/ and contact her to schedule a free introductory consultation.
Recent Posts