It is said that the first impression is always the last impression.

Your resume provides the first opportunity for you to sell yourself to the recruiters. And specifically in this case, your first impression matters a lot!

A résumé, sometimes spelled “resume”, is a document created and used by a person to present their background, skills, and accomplishments. Resumes can be used for a variety of reasons, but most often they are used to secure new employment.

In an independent survey conducted by Mustain, the majority of candidates said they spend between 20 and 40 hours writing their resume.

With an average of 200-250 applicants per job opening, the typical recruiter spends just six seconds on each resume in the early stages of a hiring process, she said. It’s therefore critical that candidates optimise their resume to make it clear and compelling for any recruiter.

Here are three tips for doing so:

1. Format- Format is the first and the most important part of a resume. It is the first thing that a recruiter sees before going through the content.

Keeping the layout minimalist is the key. Include different subheads that talk about your objective, work experiences and achievements, education and study accomplishments, interest, and references. Make sure to keep your resume simple and clutter free. Avoid jargons, photographs and gimmicks, so that the recruiter can scan it easily and pick the information they need.

2. Content– After format, comes the contents of your resume. The contents should highlight two key things: scope and impact.

Scope refers to the duties with which you have gained experience in, and impact outlines why they were important. If you want to be the candidate of choice, you have to demonstrate the scope and impact that will be solution to the company’s vacancy or work requirements.

Typically, that scope and impact should be summarised in a short value proposition or executive summary at the top of the resume. It can later be elaborated on in the experience section.

3. Keywords– Thirdly, your resume should be keyword optimised for the kind of language used by the company you’re applying to.

Try to use the right vernacular so that you talk to your audience that makes sense to them.

There are websites that allow you to compare the language used in your resume with that of a job description. But, equally, you can use a company’s website and social media to see how they refer to clients, customers and users etc., and use it as a guide, Mustain noted.

As a general rule, try to create a master resume based on the job descriptions for what you consider to your dream jobs. Then tweak it according to the specific requirements of each job you apply to.

Last but not the least, always proof read and edit your resume before sending to the recruiter. Attention to detail is very crucial. So, check for spelling and grammatical mistakes in advance. Always seek a second opinion over your resume for a different pair of eyes might pick up something that you might have missed.

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