Dos and Don’ts When Writing a Résumé

A résumé is a necessity for both budding and experienced professionals. Résumés are designed to highlight your skills, experience, and history in the workforce. Now that digital submissions are the norm, résumé etiquette is more important than ever, and tailoring your résumé for each job is standard practice. If you want to catch the eye of a prospective employer, here are some of the most common dos and don’ts when writing a résumé.

Do

Select the appropriate format

There are three main résumé formats.

• A chronological format is the most traditional, detailing your job history with spans of employment. In this format, you list your employment history starting with your most recent jobs on top and your oldest on the bottom.
• A functional format emphasizes skills and experiences relevant to the type of job you are seeking, placing these sections above your job history. A functional format is useful in situations where you have never held the type of job for which you are applying.
• A hybrid format is a combination of the chronological and functional formats, highlighting a work history that details applicable experience and skills gained from each job. Use the format that best highlights your workforce experiences and skills. For an example of each format, check out the SWC’s other Résumé Writing handouts.

Use keywords from the job description

Businesses use applicant-tracking systems to filter out unqualified individuals, and these tools are designed to detect keywords specific to the job. When tailoring your résumé, look at the words used in the job description and use the keywords that reflect your skills, experience, and objective. Tip: Applicant-tracking systems do not recognize acronyms, so you will want to spell them out on your résumé.

Differentiate your skills

In some cases, your skills may help you stand out more than your job history. If your skills are your strongest asset, not only should you list them first, but you could even categorize them. Many applicants choose to set apart their hard skills (formal training) from their soft skills (interpersonal). The great thing about interpersonal skills, skills that relate to building relationships with other people, is that they often carry over into other career fields (e.g., leadership, supervisory experience, and conflict management).

Modify your work experience

Hybrid formats are beneficial because you can tailor your current and past job duties to highlight experience specific to your next potential job. For example, if you are looking to continue working in retail, you should emphasize your job history in customer service. However, if you want to move from retail into public relations, you can modify your customer service experience to highlight your communication and verbal skills, which are necessary for working in public relations.

Keep it short

If you pass the initial application process, your résumé will eventually be read by your prospective boss. Keep in mind your potential employer will likely read many other résumés, so he or she will only have a few minutes to spend on each one. Therefore, the general rule is to have a one-page résumé, although this may not always be possible. A two-page résumé is acceptable, but you should include the most relevant information for your prospective employer on the first page.

Proofread

Your résumé reflects not only your experiences and qualifications, but also your attention to detail. Mechanical errors are often immediate disqualifiers, and prospective employers will usually not consider résumés with misspellings, missing words, and grammatical errors.

Use DMC Tools and Resources

As a student at Del Mar College, you have access to a number of tools and resources that can help you with your résumé, including the Stone Writing Center. Additionally, the Career Coach online tool (https://delmar.emsicc.com/?radius=&region=Corpus%20Christi%2C%20TX) has a résumé builder that generates a résumé for you based on the information you put into it. The Career Development Center (www.delmar.edu/offices/engage/career-development.html) is also available to students and alumni who would like assistance with job searches, résumés, cover letters, and interviews.

Don’t

Use jargon

Words that are commonly used in one job field may not be used in another. Avoid using jargon, especially if you are trying to change careers. For example, someone in the medical field would understand that being "responsible for taking blood pressure readings and monitoring for hypertension" requires quickly taking in information and recording complex numbers, but including this on a résumé when switching to a business-related field would not make as much sense. You should instead say, "responsible for recording and interpreting complex data." You've described the same skill but have written it in a way that is less specific to only one field. While using jargon that suits the job you are applying for is acceptable within reason, general and basic language is often preferred.

Pad your résumé

Don’t include anything that is not relevant to the job for which you are applying. Remember, a prospective employer must read through many résumés, so they will likely stop reading a résumé if the content doesn’t suit their business.

Include references

When putting together your job application, a list of references is just as necessary as a cover letter or résumé; however, it is typically considered a separate document. Online applications often require you to submit a list of references on its own, so you shouldn’t include a list of references anywhere on your résumé.

Overdo it

Keep in mind that résumés should be easy to read, so using multiple fonts is considered excessive and distracting. A little creativity is acceptable, but there is a difference between being creative and overdoing it.

A résumé is often your first opportunity to tell your prospective employer about yourself. You will want to explain how you are a qualified candidate, but it does not stop there. You also must show that you are serious about the position and what you can bring to the table. Write your résumé with the assumption that your potential boss will not read everything. What do you think they should know first? What do you think will catch their eye? Represent yourself professionally and concisely.