From the course: Writing a Resume

Include keywords in professional experience

From the course: Writing a Resume

Include keywords in professional experience

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- There are reports that show that recruiters spend an average of six seconds reviewing your resume. Six seconds! I know that sounds unbelievable. But really whether it's six seconds or 60 seconds, the point is that you need to ensure your information jumps off the page and makes an impact. Therefore, your professional experience should be easy to read, easy to scan, and easy to identify the features the reader cares about. A future employer needs to see that your experience demonstrates an ability to do the job that you're applying to. This means key words and phrases should be liberally sprinkled throughout your experience. Additionally, the first two to three bullet points should contain the most important information, because it's likely that if you've listed more than three, the later bullets may not be read, at least not initially. So how do you find those magic keywords? There are a few places to look. The first is within the job to which you are applying. Take a good look at the job description and ensure you have actually addressed the job. Start with the required functionality, and then move on to the recommended qualities. Have you ever looked at a job and thought you don't need to worry about meeting the duties listed under the recommended or desired section of the job description? Sometimes it might even say nice to have. I mean, it's not required, right? So no big deal. But think about it from this point of view. You're an employer and a nice to have feature is someone who has some event planning experience. You receive 78 resumes, and of those 78, 10 demonstrate they have event planning experience. If you're the employer, which resumes will you start reviewing first? The job to which you are applying may not always have a job description with much information. And if that's the case, don't let that stop you. Simply find another one. Review other similar jobs or conduct an internet search using the company name and the job title. Unless this is a newly created position, you wouldn't be the first person to have this particular job. So it's probable that you might find a prior job posting for the same position listed somewhere else. Nothing ever truly goes away on the internet, and you might find additional information that will give you an edge over other candidates. An additional place to find keywords is in places where jobs or salaries are reviewed such as salary.com, glassdoor.com, or the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook. Is your resume worthy of more than six seconds? If your answer isn't a resounding yes, begin by putting these concepts to work for you.

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