NEW DELHI: Job hunting is an art. If you wish to land the job you have been eyeing for quite some time or if you are new to the race, you need to have some tricks up your sleeve or you will be left far behind. The first and the most important step is a strong resume. Your resume is your introduction and as we all know first impressions always make the difference. It is important to make a good first impression on the recruiter. But how will you do it? Here we have curated a list of five things recruiters look for in the first glance in a prospective employee’s resume.
Your Last Job: Recruiters look for this information to figure out your current status and why you might be looking for a new job. It also helps them filter out candidates suitable from a pool of applicants. In case of freshers, this can be replaced with the last place you interned with or any project you undertook as part of your academic curriculum.
Career Progression: Recruiters see the experience you have had in a particular industry or job role and in your tenure how much you progressed. Did your responsibilities increase with time or did your job role expand over time to cover multiple areas of function? This helps a recruiter to understand if you would be able to take up the role they are hiring for.
Keyword: Every recruiter looks for keywords related to the job they are hiring for in a resume. Many recruiters have accepted that they often use ctrl+F to scan resumes and shortlist candidates for interview. So make sure that you include relevant keywords related to your industry and position in your resume. But do not go overboard and stuff your resume with keywords. That’s a strict no-no.
Personal Projects: Recruiters often want to know more about the personal projects you are working on in your free time. This helps them understand your passion for your industry. If you wish you can also provide links to your personal accounts or websites. But make sure that a recruiter does not want to see your holiday pictures but are interested in seeing if you have contributed in any way to the industry you are working in or are looking to work in. Share links to anything you have published online or your profile on professional platforms such as LinkedIn etc.
If you feel there is nothing significant on the digital media, then do not mention. Do not provide links to your Facebook profile. You don’t want to flaunt something embarrassing from three years ago or when you were in college.
Overall Organization of the Resume: A very easy thing to do. Free your resume of typos. Do not use slangs. Check spellings and grammar. Your resume should show how clearly you can present your ideas.
