What to Leave Off Your Resume

When applying to a new position, you may question about what to include on your resume.

Employers typically receive hundreds of resumes for their job openings. Since many don’t have time to read each one carefully, they often look for reasons to reject an applicant.

In this blog, we will help guide you of what to leave off your resume to ensure your resume makes it into the “interview” pile for the hiring manager.

 

Long Paragraphs Without Bullet Points:

You want your resume to be easy to read and decipher. Bullet points help to break up a long paragraph of your duties and responsibilities at your various positions. Employers might miss a key points of your qualifications if your resume is too text dense.

Instead of writing a laundry list of your duties, focus on what makes you stand out against the other applicants. Explain how you added value to your company and any accomplishments you made during your time there.

 

Email Address from Your Current Employer:

By using your email address from your current employer, it shows the interviewer that you probably job search on company time or that you just don’t care if your current employer finds out you are interviewing elsewhere. They might assume that you will treat them the same way if hired at their company.

Using an email that is simple and professional personal email address is typically the best way to go.

 

Spelling and Grammatical Errors:

If you are applying for several jobs and tailoring your resume to each of them, changing the structure and adding new text can lead to typos and other errors. Your resume also serves as a sample of your writing skills, and serves as evidence of whether or not you are detail-oriented.

Ask a friend, family member or colleague to read through your resume to catch any mistakes you might have overlooked or that your computer did not notice.

 

Short-Term Jobs or Irrelevant Jobs from Long Ago: 

A good rule of thumb is to keep your job history to within the last ten years, this way you’re leaving out your more irrelevant experience from when you were much younger and possibly not even in your current industry. Jobs from 10-15 years ago probably won’t do much in terms of getting you a job today.

Leave off old jobs from the past and stick to showcasing more recent positions you’ve had in your industry.

 

References:

Your references typically won’t matter until later in the application process. Including them on your resume or even adding an “upon request” line is merely using up page space.

 

Starting Phrases With ‘I’:

Your name and contact information will be listed so the employer will clearly know you are talking about yourself throughout the whole resume. Refrain from referring to yourself as “me” or “we” or “I.” Write your resume in first person but make sure to leave out the pronouns.

Recruiters and hiring managers know this is your resume, so be sure to use action words to describe your achievements so that you can avoid overusing references to yourself.

Example: “Utilized specific treatment parameters to deliver therapies within controlled environmental conditions.”

 

Strange Formatting:

Majority of companies use an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) to keep track of their candidates. By having a resume heavy in graphics, it makes it harder for the computer to read your resume and can actually hurt your chances of your resume being seen rather than helping them.

Unless you are applying for a creative job, it is best to keep your resume plain and simple.

 

Abbreviations and Company-Specific Jargon:

Be sure to write out the full word and use terminology everyone can understand when they are reading your resume. There is also no need to use “big words” nobody will understand without a dictionary just to make yourself sound smarter. Run the “would I ever say this in real life?” test on every phrase and sentence in your resume to try and combat this issue.

 

 

When you are writing your resume, consider what will stand out to a recruiter who is reading hundreds of them daily. A well-written resume makes it easier for them to see what you could bring to the role. Focus on the areas you excel in and use them to your advantage.

Try not to embellish your resume with lies and irrelevant information.

 

If you need help writing your resume or finding a new healthcare position, reach out to us today – Jobs@AllMedSearch.com