Resume
resume
Hopefully, you’ve already checked out our articles on resume blunders to avoid and figuring out the objective of a resume. With that knowledge you are almost 100% ready to create the best resume using the best resume writing techniques! However, there is one more factor to consider… the age in which we live. Resume writing has become more keyword based and computer driven.
In applying for jobs from online databases like Monster, an individual needs to remember that hundreds, sometimes thousands, of other individuals are also applying for the same position – some at the same exact time! There is no way one person could go through all those resumes. A lot of companies, especially larger ones like Aflac and Google, have a computer system filtering resumes by keywords.
Keywords are words that are significant to the employers. For example, if you are applying for a writing position at a sports magazine, the company might make a program that looks for words such as “editing”, “sports”, “writing”, or other terms relevant to the position in your resume writing. Once these resumes are sorted, the ones without keywords are thrown out, and the others get sent on to a human resources employee.
To make sure your resume writing impresses not only your employer, but your employer’s computer, use these resume writing tips on keywords.
Choose the Right Keyword
The use of a computer program, or applicant-tracking system, will search for specific keywords in your resume writing. Look at the application and try to incorporate words from it that describe the job you are applying for. Use those terms – when applicable – to the descriptions of your previous employment in your resume writing.
Use Variations of Keywords
Using different keyword variations will give you a better chance of being picked up by keyword sensitive programs. For example, if you are applying for an engineering position, put “engineer” as well as “engineering” in different positions in your resume writing.
Use Keywords Smartly
Make sure the addition of keywords does not make the reading of your resume seem sloppy or forced. Although adding keywords will get your resume passed the computer, if a human resource employee reads a sentence with keyword dense writing, they’re going to dismiss your resume without a second thought.
Make your Job Title Generic
Some people try to fluff their resume writing by creating titles for jobs that make them seem more unique or more important. This is extremely bad to do in resume writing. Employers know all the variations of the term “waitress” and will not be fooled by calling it anything else. On the other hand, if your specific company gave your position a very specialized title, but most companies would not recognize it, go with the broader title and put your specialized title in parenthesis.
For example, if most companies would consider your previous job a “business analyst” position but your official title was “process improvement specialist”, use the former as the main job title in your resume writing, and put the more specific title in parenthesis.
Use Text Only
Microsoft Word is notorious for copying and pasting incorrectly to website text boxes. This is because the use of certain characters is not recognized on the web from the Word coding in resume writing. When you are copying and pasting a resume into a website text box, make sure you click on the text-only version. Double check when you paste it in that your formatting is still correct.
Follow Directions
This is a no brainer, but one that people sometimes skip when applying for multiple positions on a job database. Make sure you follow the instructions of each job listing in the application process and in your resume writing. Some may ask for just resumes, others might ask for resumes, cover letters, and references.
