Building an Effective Resume: Insights from an Early Talent Recruiter

Building an effective resume can be a painful process in today’s competitive job market, but it’s crucial to have a document that works for you, not against you.?

Recently, I had the opportunity to present a workshop on building one’s resume as a part of my role as University Recruiter at Western Digital. If you weren’t able to attend the workshop, I’m sharing some highlights below on some common issues I see with early talent resumes.

#1. Use a standard format – A resume can look kind of boring, but it is a professional document at the end of the day. The format should be clean and easy to read, and luckily if you are still a university student, you likely have a Career Services office that can help you find a useful starting template that will be attractive to recruiters and managers.

I always like to mention – black and white is best, no pictures, please, and try to stick to a one-page document unless you are a graduate student.?

#2. Create a relevant coursework section – Within the Education section of your resume, consider creating a “Relevant Coursework” list that goes over some of the high-value courses you’ve taken in college. I sometimes recommend even listing current coursework as “In Progress,” especially if you will have completed it before beginning a summer internship, for example.

If you don’t have a lot of relevant work experience, listing your coursework out in this way can help a recruiter or manager get a sense of your skillset gained in the classroom.

#3. Soft skills belong in your experiences – A common missed opportunity that I see on resumes is the placement of “soft skills” in a Skills section. Oftentimes the Skills section is best used as a place to list technical skills, language proficiencies, and certifications or other microcredentials.

If you want to highlight soft skills like time management, leadership, or teamwork, I highly recommend making sure those are clear within your individual experiences listed within your resume. I don’t want you to tell me that you’re good at working cross-functionally with others, I want you to show me how you did it!

#4. Tailor your resume efficiently – Generally it is a good idea to tailor your resume for each role that you’re applying for. However, I talk to candidates sometimes who are applying for hundreds of roles, which speaks to the difficulty of the job market right.

Rather than tailor your resume every time, make sure you’re being smart with your personal bandwidth. Keep two or three versions of your resume handy, especially if you are applying for different types of roles, and save the extra effort for a job you’re really interested in or a company you really want to join. ?

Added tip – if an application doesn’t ask for a cover letter, don’t waste your time by submitting it with your application.

#5 Be cautious with AI – Generative AI can be a very helpful tool for putting together your resume, but be careful to make sure you are making content your own before submitting it. It’s relatively easy for a recruiter to spot an AI-generated cover letter, or a resume that does too good of a job of matching keywords with the job description.

Most knowledge workers are likely using AI on a daily basis, and you should too – just make sure that you’re still representing yourself accurately as a candidate.

Finally, make sure that you are applying early for roles as you see them posted, and utilize your network (Career Services advisors, professors, classmates, university alumni, etc.) to get feedback on your resume on a regular basis.

Every recruiter or manager is going to have a different take on some of what I presented above, so make sure to get multiple opinions on your own document until you get a resume that you’re proud of – and then keep updating it as you gain skills and knowledge!

A resume is a working document, so committing to continuous improvement of it will help your career now and in the future. Good luck with your job search!