Blog

How to be Job ready? 8 ways to enhance your resume

A resume is a living document they have always be open to improving your resume. After all, an improved resume means higher chances for getting that dream job. Your resume does not have abundant time to make a great impression on the employer. That’s something everyone can get on board with.

Your resume should highlight the most attention-grabbing, impressive or more unique details about you, your work or your skills.  A professional recruiter can tell in seconds the time your resume has to get noticed. So your resume should help the employers to determine whether your skills match of their needs. Your resume is your first opportunity to sell yourself to recruiters and hiring managers. It can also be your last if your resume is outdated or too thin. Here are five tips that will help you immediately update and beef up your resume.

1. Select for the best template your skills, experience, and aims

While you can build up the strong resume on a blank document, consider by using a template from a graphic design tool like Canva to build your resume, giving it a more eye-catching appearance. 

When selecting the design/layout such as:

• The role you are applying for, and the job description. For instance, a graphic designer might choose a bold, colorful template, while someone in accounting and finance might prefer a more traditional and corporate layout.

• The aspects for your professional history that are the most relevant

• Besides your name or contact information, the sections you will need include education, previous employment and professional experience, tools you are trained to use, technical skills, certifications and courses completed, awards received and hobbies and interests. 

• How to position these sections within the template in the most advantageous way

2. Use relevant keywords.

One of the most important things to get your resume seen is to use keywords optimized for the applicant tracking systems (ATS) that recruiters or employers use to find prospective employees. An ATS allows recruiters to process hundreds of resumes for relevant keywords and narrow down the pool of applicants they will invite to an interview.  

Find the best keywords such as:

• Reviewing the job listing for keywords 
• Googling keywords and making a list of the most relevant ones
• By using a free ATS to scan your resume for opportunities to optimize your keywords

Using industry-specific terms and jargon also demonstrates your familiarity with your new field

3. Add skills or areas of expertise near or below your name

Summarize for the professional before providing all of the details. This section can take up two and three lines on your resume and should include your area of expertise, including “design thinking specialist” and “investigative journalist,” and a list of your most relevant skills.  

For each job you apply to, think about which skills the employer would most likely hire you for, and include those. You can often determine what's most important to the potential employer by examining the job listing. Try to keep your skills list for specific or quantifiable, for instance Python programming and Agile project management.

4. Include a robust and compelling objective

The resume objective can expand what you include in your area of expertise section by listing your professional goals and what you’d like to contribute to the company to which you’re applying. In addition to conveying confidence in your abilities, this section can demonstrate to employers that you’re intentional about your career and the application you’re submitting. 

5. Display your online presence

Near your name and contact information, list for online accounts you have that can showcase your interests, passions and last work. The list could include social media, an online portfolio and your website.  Be sure to remove anything from your online accounts that you do not want a potential employer to view. Post content that may be relevant for the job you are applying for and that is your original work. 

6. Use action verbs

In conjunction with your ATS keyword research, use action verbs, like managed, implemented and developed to describe the tasks you performed and projects you completed in previous roles. Action verbs are a great way for the specify your experience and emphasize your technical skills. For instance a cyber-security analyst might use: Implemented a backup system to add a layer of security company data.

7. Quantify your accomplishments in previous roles.

Include a sentence with your job scope and bullet list of accomplishment items under each job. Try to be specific and use concrete metrics that demonstrate the impact of your accomplishments. If you boosted social media engagement in your last marketing job, for instance, include the percentage of that increase.

8. Eliminate clutter 

Typically, your resume should fit for the single page, unless you have more than 10-15 years of related professional experience. Once you have most of the sections filled in, scan the resume for unnecessary details that you can remove such as

• Job experience from long ago, particularly if it isn’t relevant to the position you are applying for
• Graduation dates
• Details from your hobbies or interests section that are the least relevant
• Buzzwords such as hard worker and self-starter

As you continue along your career path, treat your resume as an evolving document that you regularly update as you gain experience, skills, and other qualifications. Consider a Professional Certificate in data analysis, cyber-security, project management and IT support, designed to get you job-ready in as little as three months.