Resume Formatting Tips

There are few things more boring than a resume that frequently uses the same verbs in sentence after sentence. Total snore fest! You must make your resume a little spicy by formatting it well and bringing the background to life for engaging your readers.Other than the key words, what really stands out in your resume is its format. It is effectively the first thing that captures the attention of an employer during the first 10 second “toss or keep” scan.

Try nailing the most basic style choices that will appeal to the widest possible range of hiring managers and follow a few guidelines for creating a resume that’s readable and inviting:

1) Do Away with the outdated Templates

A few guidelines should be kept in mind while formatting your resume. Firstly, start with a blank page. You should avoid using templates that are available in Microsoft Word. Almost all of these templates are obsolete and make your resume look common and unappealing. You can browse online for various samples of resumes; search by your industry to check out the templates that make sense for the role you are looking for.

2) Keep your Contact Information at the Top

It might sound like a no-brainer to most, but placing your contact information as the header of your resume is an important thing to do. Just not on the first page –but on every page. There is a huge possibility of your resume getting lost in a pile of other resumes, so by keeping your contact information on the top; you can be rest assured that the recruiter is looking at yours.

3) Use short and crisp Paragraphs

One major put off for most recruiters can be an extremely cluttered resume! In case you have too much written on it then there’s a huge possibility that you won’t be hearing anytime back from them. Shifting through various resumes is a monotonous task for most hiring managers and it certainly doesn’t get any better with lengthy explanations!

4) Avoid using many Bullets

Highlighting the high points of your career with the help of bullets might be the smartest thing to do but there is such thing as using too many. The usage of bullets should be minimal in order to stay effective, with about 5-6 points per section.

5) Keep a check on the Font Size

It’s quite exciting to try different font styles and sizes to make your resume look prominent, but there is a very thin line between trying to make it look unique and cartoonish. The best thing is to use a 10 point size for most major fonts and an 11 point size for Times New Roman.

6) Make good use of Bold, Underlining and Italics Always

Word-formatting options like underling, bold, and italics are perfect ways to make certain sections of your resume “pop” or stand out. However, you should refrain from using them too much or too often. A good rule of thumb to follow is to use them only under certain conditions

As a last formatting check point, you should ask your friends or family members to review your resume. Mail it to a handful of your friends – urge them to review it and make sure nothing is out of place. Print a hard copy for yourself and revise it to make sure everything looks just perfect!