The most important approach to getting hired in 2020 is impressing the employer with your Professional Resume. A Resume is your first-appearance to an employer. In this advanced world, Resumes are also getting advanced and many professionals have started using a well-designed Resume to compete with other job-seekers. Employers also changed their strategy and started welcoming Visual Resume & Infographic Resumes. Formatting content and functionality of your resume is a good idea to make an appealing Resume. A properly built Resume may become a winning resume and it will help you stand out to prospective employers.
In 2020, a large number of companies are using Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) to filter resumes. Now, professionals need a Resume designed to be read by Human recruiters and bots because the process of scanning a Resume is changed.
So, How to write a Resume in 2020? The answer is here:
There are 3 most common styles used for writing a Resume:
Reverse-chronological, Functional and Combination of these two styles. That depends on your professional experience and the type of job you are applying for.
Reverse-chronological format:
This format is most popular and widely used across the world. People who have years of professional experience can consider this format.
Functional format:
Freshers and students can go with this format. This format highlights your skills and educational qualifications. People who are trying to make their career in different fields may also consider this format.
Combination format:
Combination format is a great choice for job-seekers who have so many different skills with years of experience.
If you are confused, it is better to stick with a Reverse-chronological format because most recruiters favor this format.
Use proper layout:
Try to make it one-pager or 2-pager.
Everyone should make their Resume short but effective. These days, no employer has time to read a long Resume. A single-page Resume or maximum of two-page Resume is recommended.
Use a proper template that looks professional.
You have to consider a Professional Resume template while writing your Resume. Properly designed template looks professional and draws the recruiter’s attention.
Use an easy-to-read font.
Resume scan is done by both human recruiters and bots. So, you have to choose a font that is easy to read. The font size also matters. You can go with ‘Calibri’ size 10 or ‘Arial’ size 9 for example.
Keep ample white space.
Leaving plenty of white spaces between contents will give you a neat & clean Resume. Leave some margin space on all sides as well.
Save as PDF.
Most people save their Resume as DOC, DOCX or TXT format. This is not the right thing. It is strongly recommended to save your Resume as a PDF format.
Use proper content:
Name with designation (Designation only for experienced person)
On top of your Resume, you have to write your full name with your current designation if you have some professional experience. If you are a fresher, you can mention a certification that is suitable for the job position. Example: ‘Samuel Johnson, Certified Ethical Hacker’.
Contact Information
You have to be very careful in this section. Even if you get everything else right, you may miss a call due to an incorrect cell phone number or a misspelled email. Make sure to double-check your contact information.
Profile / Snapshot
A Profile / Snapshot section is a 4-5 sentence summary of your career. If you have years of experience you should mention your last job briefing and some of your top skills and achievements here.
If you are a fresher or trying to change jobs to a different field, then only you can mention your top skills and any job related certifications as a Resume Objective.Core Competencies
You must include your competencies to make your Resume rich. It represents your ability to do any work successfully or efficiently. Competencies are particular qualities that act as benchmarks for a candidate. If you mention those in your Resume, you will be one step ahead.
Professional Experience
The most important section of your Resume is the professional experience section. In this section, you must display your achievements and responsibilities along with the organization details you have worked with. A properly described professional experience section makes your Resume writing 70% complete.
Professional Experience section must contain:
- Job Title / Designation
- Company Name
- Company / Office Location
- Job Timeframe
- Achievements & Responsibilities
Quantify your achievements
If you quantify your achievements, it will be easily visible. Use numbers and percentages to represent your achievements. It makes a good impression and recruiters find you as a professional.
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Skills
It is a very important section and you should highlight it. Enlisting your professional skills to your resume makes your Resume special. Both Hard skills & Soft skills you have to include to your Resume.
Example of Hard Skills: It can be anything from coding to cooking.
Examples of Soft Skills: It can be your social skills, personal skills or communication skills.
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Education
If you are a professional, having many years of experience, you may consider your education section less valuable. But if you are a fresher, then it is an important section to mention. You have to include:
- The degree
- Institution Name
- Location of the Institution
- Year of passing
- Percentile or Score
Training, Awards & Certification
If you have gone through a training session or certification course or won any award that is relevant to the job post you are applying for, you must mention that. They make you stand out in your field.
Personal Dossier
Languages, hobbies & interests, your date of birth takes place in this section. If you end up with some extra space in your resume, don’t hesitate to show your personality with a hobbies & interests section.
Use success verbs rather than action verbs:
Follow the above-mentioned points to build a proper Resume for the new decade. Have you already made your Resume? Make a screening of your Resume for free to know if any alteration is required. You can get a masterpiece Resume if you hire a Professional Resume writer.
