5 steps to writing a winning resume
With border’s reopening and life finally returning to normal, the competition for roles will start to increase with a flood of fresh blood entering the Queensland workforce.
Your chancing of standing out and landing that interview is much more likely if you have an outstanding resume that showcases your education, skills, and experience.
At Accurate Recruitment, we read through hundreds of resumes each day and know what can set your resume apart from the rest, if you don’t follow any other tips for writing a resume, follow these…
#1 Contact Details
Always start with the basics!
Name – Make your potential employer’s job easy by having your real name at the top of your resume
Phone number and Email Address – Use the phone number and email address that you use most often. You would be surprised by how many people forget to update their contact details and miss out on roles as we are unable to in touch with them.
Pro Tip: make sure your email address is professional, an email address such as dungeonsanddragonsmaster@hotmail.com does not leave the best first impression with a potential employer.
Address or Location – With lockdowns and restrictions on movements/travel in the last 18 months, employers have been looking for applicants that are within proximity of their site/office location. Having your current location on your resume can increase the likelihood of you landing a role.
#2 Certifications and Licences
Most employers will scan a resume quickly to see if a candidate has the appropriate qualifications for the role, make their job easy and ensure yours are listed towards the top of your resume.
Keep your list of certifications/licences obtained concise by listing the year obtained and the expiry date of each.
It is prudent to list your licences/tickets in order of highest qualification.
#3 Don't forget to sell yourself!
Summarise your applicable experience and skills to the role at hand. This should prove your value and help to differentiate you. Avoid describing what you’d like from your next job and instead focus on what you can offer. This is the place to sell your-self!
Pro Tip: This is a summary and should be between 50 – 150 words
An example of a professional summary is as follows:
“Qualified and experienced Boilermaker, with strong fabrication and maintenance skills. Skilled at MIG and TIG welding mild steel and aluminium. Highly motivated, flexible and reliable with the ability to manage workloads effectively and in a timely manner.”
#4 Work Experience
Your work history should be the most detailed section of your resume, with positions listed in reverse order, beginning with the most recent. For each role you have performed, you should include the following:
Job title and company name – Be specific with your job title, if your job title is unconventional, replace it with a recognisable equivalent. Example if your role was “Sandwich Artist” just replace it with “Kitchen Hand”
Dates worked – State the month and year you started and finished your employment just “2019 – 2021” could be interpreted as employment from December 2019 to January 2021 unless you say otherwise. Being vague sets off alarm bells to most employers. Longevity in roles is always positively received so ensure you are specific.
Summary of your roles/responsibilities – keep it to 3-5 pullet points of your main roles and duties
Summary of your Achievements in the role – focus on the value added and what you achieved in your time
You could also include your reasons for leaving the role, but this is also not necessary.
Pro Tip: Do not to leave gaps in your work history, if you took time off for personal reasons just say so, otherwise employers may assume you have left a role off your resume for a reason, or that you have been unemployed for a length of time for no reason.
#5 References
You do not need to include the details of your references on your resumes. It is very common for candidates to simply write, “References are available upon request”
At Accurate Recruitment, we always contact applicants for the details of your referees at the appropriate point in the recruitment process (you are always notified before a reference check is conducted)
Remember to only provide refences of people you reported to / worked for, and who can confirm your character, work ethic and skills.
Pro Tip: Don’t use your personal friends and family as character references
Last but not least, don’t forget to spell check your Resume
If you need any more tips or help in writing a resume, get in touch. We would love to hear from you!