A few weeks ago, I volunteered at the 2024 Melbourne Career Expo and together with my awesome Career Development Association of Australia (CDAA) colleagues, we provided free resume checks 📃and career counselling sessions for the general public 👩🧑🏾‍🦱👩🏼‍🦰👩🏽‍🦱

A consistent issue I saw over the weekend was people presenting with generic, two-column / one-page and / or ineffective Resumes ❌ that were not targeted to the roles they were applying for.

When speaking to these people, they told me they had applied for sometimes hundreds! of roles 🤯with little to no feedback. I hear this everyday in my own business too.

Here were some of my key recommendations which I hope may help you too:

💡𝙆𝙚𝙚𝙥 𝙔𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙇𝙖𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙁𝙤𝙧𝙢𝙖𝙩 𝙎𝙞𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙚
– Avoid fancy graphics, logos, images, personal pictures and intricate fonts. These can get blocked by Applicant Tracking Systems.
– Use conservative fonts like Arial, Tahoma, Verdana, or Calibri.
– Ensure plenty of white space and avoid using a two-column Resume. Stick to a single-column layout; it’s the best practice in Australia.

💡𝗧𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗼𝗿 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗲 & 𝗜𝗻𝗰𝗹𝘂𝗱𝗲 𝗞𝗲𝘆𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗱𝘀
– Customise your Resume for each job application.
– Read the job ad thoroughly and understand the key skills / job requirements.
– Address how you meet the key requirements of the role by incorporating relevant keywords from the job ad in context throughout your Resume.
– 𝗧𝗶𝗽: add a ‘Key Skills’ section on the first page of your Resume and include relevant keywords and phrases here.

💡𝗜𝗻𝗰𝗹𝘂𝗱𝗲 𝗮 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗶𝗹𝗲
– Add a 4-5 line Career Profile at the top of the first page.
– Summarise and highlight your professional identity, experience, skills, strengths, and expertise.
– Use this section to capture attention and include relevant keywords.

💡𝗔𝗱𝗱 𝗔𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 / 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗛𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀
– List achievements and highlights, not just responsibilities for each role.
– Quantify your achievements to demonstrate your value and stand out from the competition.

💡𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗼𝗳𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱
– Ensure your resume is free of spelling and grammatical errors.
– Have a friend or family member review it before submitting.

If you need help with your Resume, please don’t hesitate to contact us 😊