A well-crafted resume is one of the most important things you can do in preparation for a new job. It can be the difference between getting the job and not getting an interview.

Why you should focus on the resume?

• A good resume will give you the edge in the in the interview process and help you stand out.
• It can help you get more interviews.
• In many cases, the resume is your chance to create a first impression, even before you meet the interviewer.
• You control what goes I your resume and in what order. This can be used to influence what an interviewer will ask you during an interview.

Work experience

Structure your work experience section to highlight your main achievements. Instead of listing things you have worked on, lists things you have executed. Your employer does not want to know what projects you have been on but they want to know what you have done in those projects.

Education

Education section is the most crucial for candidate with no work experience. You should list relevant course work and projects here. This will show to the employer that while you may not have any experience, you still have knowledge from your projects and coursework.

Include a separate section for skills

Just adding your education background and work experience is not sufficient. There will be skill s you have picked outside of work and school. This may be additional courses and certifications or some soft skills. See what is relevant to the job and include them if they are true.

Proofread your resume

It is important to proofread your resume as any mistakes or ambiguity in the resume will make you look bad and may reflect poorly on your work. Make someone who know s you read the resume.

Customize your resume for the job

While it is important to prepare a resume that you can use for many jobs it is more important to customize the resume for specific jobs by adding relevant experience and skills. Not many candidates do this so this is a good opportunity to stand out from the crowd.

Select a format for your resume

You have three main choices – Chronological, Functional and Combination. See what works best in the industry you are applying in.

Be prepared to backup your claims

Don’t write anything in the resume that you cannot backup with documentation or with knowledge. Falsifying experience or skills will not help you, go over your resume and remove anything that cannot be substantiated or is untrue.

Don’t reinvent the wheel

If you have a resume you have created in the past, use that as the starting point for your exercise of making a new resume.