Writing a resume can be tricky when you don’t know where to start. For the next three weeks, we will be breaking down the different sections of a resume. This week, we start with the Contact Info and Overview sections. Next we’ll cover the Skills and Experience sections, followed by Education/Other Areas to Include.
First and foremost, start your resume with the easiest section: your name and contact information. If you’re unsure on those two areas, you might need to evaluate some things. (I hope you realize I’m kidding.)
You should include three things at the very least: your name, location (city/state), and some contact information (email/phone number generally).
This should be stuck somewhere visible, usually at the top of the page. Some opt to stick contact information in a section to the side but if you don’t feel like fighting with text boxes, tables, and other formatting issues, stay at the top.
If you’re located in one area and are looking to relocate somewhere else, it’s a good idea to include that in the resumes sent to jobs in other cities and states. You could even personalize it with the city if you’re wide open on location, for example: Located in Madison, WI but interested in relocation to Houston, TX.
While it’s not always right, many recruiters will throw out your resume if you’re not located in the area. Generally speaking, they will assume you didn’t read the local candidate requirement or realize where the position is located. To give the perspective from a recruiter, you’d be incredibly surprised at how many people apply for jobs with no intention to relocate or apply with the impression that it’s 100% remote when it’s not.
As a side note, feel free to delete the photo of yourself off your resume. Maybe it’s just my personal preference, but I prefer professional photos to stay on LinkedIn. In addition to that, a photo can honestly create candidate bias (whether conscious or unconscious). It is completely wrong to judge a candidate by their photo, but I’m telling you that it has contributed to candidate bias somewhere at some point in time.
Next you’ll need to decide if an “About Me” section is right for you and your resume. This area can be called many different things including a professional summary, a professional overview, a qualification summary, a personal statement, an objective statement, etc.
In certain cases, this is a great way to summarize everything to start. For someone with years and years of experience, it can shrink it all up in an easy to read overview.
For someone looking for an industry or career switch, it can draw the focus on this person’s new objective while highlighting applicable skills they’ve gained in past roles rather than staying industry or role specific.
For someone just starting their career, it can showcase their enthusiasm and willingness to learn while tying in internship experience or important areas learned in college. As long as you’re showing value you can add, I’m fine with a summary for someone with less years of experience. I have seen a rule of thumb, though, that people with less than three years of experience shouldn’t include one.
A summary should not, however, be used to state something already implied. If you say you’re a recent Education graduate looking for a teaching role, this can pretty much already be assumed. Save yourself the space at the top in this case.
Keep your summary to nothing more than a few sentences. A few paragraphs at the top of the page can be daunting to get through by itself, never mind the fact that it hides the key part of the resume (the experience section).
At the end of the day, ensure your summary section is serving as a quick highlight to your qualifications and experiences, while enticing the reader to continue down to learn more.
For examples of good resume summaries, I’ve included a link at the bottom of the page to reference.
Next week, check back for how to write a great skills and experience section and why it should align.
This article is my own and does not necessarily represent the views or opinions of TEKsystems.
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