Secrets of Writing a Short Successful Resume

A good resume is one that includes all relevant information about you and your experiences without being overly long. The following tips can help you to write a short resume that captures the attention of recruiters and improves your chance of getting an interview.

According to research by TheLadders, a professional jobs website, recruiters spend an average of just six seconds scanning a resume before they move on to the next one. With so little time to make an impression, you need to make sure that your resume presents the key information quickly and concisely.

Eye tracking software revealed that recruiters focus mainly on your current and previous positions and your education. They are more likely to scan the whole of a short resume than a long one, and generally pay more attention to sections that are laid out clearly, using bold fonts and bullet points to highlight the most important pieces of information.

Many experts advise using a short resume that is no longer than a single page. In order to fit your entire career into a short resume, you need to be ruthless about cutting out irrelevant information that is unlikely to help you in your job search. For example, don't bother including an objective statement, as this only takes up space without adding much value to your short resume. In addition, you do not need to go into detail about every job you have ever held. Highlight projects you have worked on if and only if they demonstrate skills that are relevant to the job for which you are applying.

If you write your resume and find that it ends up much longer than one page, don't panic. The next step is to go through your resume and cut out as much fluff as you can. It is very rare for anyone to write a resume that is completely free from fluff on the first attempt, so go through and see whether you can rewrite any sections to make them shorter or less verbose. It is highly likely that you can cut your resume down to size and make it a lot more succinct.

While you are going through your resume to edit out unnecessary words and overly verbose phrasing, also check for spelling and grammatical errors. Nothing turns a recruiter off faster than a resume that is full of errors, as it suggests that the applicant is careless and does not pay enough attention to detail.

Using short-form presentation methods, such as bullet points, can help to cut down the length of your resume. When writing a short resume, you should include only the information that it essential, such as your relevant experience and skills, to improve your chance of success in your job search.

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