The 8 Second Resume

By, Janis Whitaker, VetCTAP Executive Director

Job seekers spend multiple hours creating the “perfect resume”. Ever wonder how important that resume is in catching the eye of a company or hiring manager?

In our workshop series, our facilitators and coaches emphasize the following tips.

Will your resume make it to the “yes pile”

or the “no pile”?

Recruiters spend an average of 8 - 10 seconds looking at each resume initially!

And, most of that time may be on the top portion of your first page. They will skim the pages looking for key information (particular skills, degrees, certifications, and experience) and if these key words or important information doesn’t catch their attention, they will move to the next resume without a second thought.

Oops, your resume goes into the “no pile”. Imagine, eight seconds! If you do capture their interest, they will then spend an additional 1-2 minutes looking for other important aspects about your job history such as significant accomplishments and career progression. If you make it that far, you have passed the 8 second resume test! Hurray, the “yes pile”.

Most Human Resources professionals, hiring managers, and recruiters will not read a resume over two pages long, no matter how good it looks at first glance. They just don’t have time to read all that information. Instantly, it goes into the “no pile”. These experts have hundreds of resumes to review and limited time to do so.

Resume screeners love bullet points and short phrases describing what you have achieved in your

professional positions.

Spend a lot of time developing this area and highlight significant accomplishments in your positions, not just the tasks you performed.

Did you know there are “pet peeves” in the hiring industry?

Here are a few that are on the top of the list. One or more of these could land your resume in the “no pile”.

• A resume that is generic (customize each resume precisely for the job you are seeking), • Spelling or grammar errors (double check and/or have someone else review it),

• Military jargon that is not explained (best to leave military jargon out and use equivalent corporate language), • Inconsistent formatting (keep headers, indenting, bullets, and sub-headings consistent), • Font size too small (12 pt. type minimum) • Work dates that don’t make sense (chronological resumes should show dates in order with no gaps- most recent first), • Not enough ‘white space’ on the page (margins and spacing make a resume easier to read).

Recruiters spend much of their day looking at resumes whether it is on the computer or on paper. Make your 8-second resume stand out by developing a document that is easy to scan, simple to read, and includes bullets to highlight your significant accomplishments. Good luck and we hope to see you in the “yes pile”.

Find out more about our Veteran Career Transition Workshop Series at www.vetctap.org