Does Your Resume Have Any Red Flags?

When a hiring manager wants to decide whether to bring you in for an interview, your resume is the first thing they’ll check. That’s why it’s so important to keep your resume updated, use strong action words, and list any relevant certifications,

However, even if you’ve done all that, a great resume can still be rejected due to mistakes hiring managers see as red flags. Let’s take a look.

Resume Formatting for Job Boards

Websites like Indeed and Jobs on Facebook are a great way to find local opportunities in your area. However, these websites sometimes change how your resume information is displayed to employers. On Indeed, you can choose to “Easily Apply,” for certain jobs, where Indeed pulls information from your profile, as well as an uploaded resume and sends it to the hiring manager. However, when employers get this information, the formatting can be less than ideal. That’s why we usually recommend finding the original job posting, even if Indeed provides the “Easily Apply” option.

Jobs on Facebook can be a wonderful method to find open positions local to your area. But when you apply through Jobs on Facebook, the website grabs information from your personal profile. Saying things like “went to the university of life,” or “works for myself and nobody else” is fun for your public profile but doesn’t look great on a job application.

Unprofessional Email Addresses

Job applicants sometimes spend so much time working on their resume they forget which email address they’re sending it from. If you end up using an unprofessional email address that contains something like FuzzyFriend354 or KingofTheHillFan632, potential employers might think you’re not taking the application seriously. It’s also worth noting that some job board websites will pull the email you signed up with for the platform when sending applications, so you might not even know you’re submitting resumes using an unprofessional email address.

Listing Old Experience

If you’re a recent high school graduate, it’s fine to include clubs or athletics you participated in. However, if it’s been six years or so since you graduated, it’s best to leave off those types of experiences.

This also applies to early jobs you held during high school. Once you get more experience, you should gradually eliminate older jobs from your resume, unless they’re relevant to the job you’re applying for.

Bad Formatting and Grammar

If your resume is hard to read, a hiring manager is less likely to bring you in for an interview. Common mistakes include:

  • Using ALL CAPS or all lower case
  • Capitalizing every other word
  • Spelling words incorrectly, especially the job title
  • Not using bullet points
  • Going over one page

Resume pitfalls happen to all of us. If you find any of these red flags in your resume, try not to worry about how they might have lost you an interview in the past. Instead, make any needed adjustments and get excited about future interviews!

Have you ever had a red flag on your resume? How did you find out and fix it? Let us know in the comment section below!

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