On average, recruiters or HR personnel spend only 7.4 seconds looking at your resume.
With only 7.4 seconds to make a good impression, and with 61% of women planning to make major career changes post-pandemic, according to a Forbes article, suddenly your application feels lost in the mix. So what do you add to your resume to stand out to potential employers?
Guest Speaker Natalie Dalton, Architecture Consultant with Bespoke Careers, outlines a few DO’s and DON’Ts when it comes to making distinctive resumes, portfolios, and cover emails.
Resumes
DO establish a hierarchy. Put your most important skills and experience at the top of the page.
DO use numbers to quantify what you’ve been able to achieve in your past or present job.
DO keep it simple. Use a clear layout and make it easy to read. Always check your spelling!
DON’T list irrelevant information or experience at the top of your page. List your professional experience from most to least recent.
DON’T list responsibilities: instead, sell your achievements to recruiters. What are your “wins”?
DON’T cram too much information into one page. If you have more things you’d like to share, consider a portfolio or hyperlinking projects directly onto your resume.
Portfolios
DO show a variety of projects across different typologies, and include different types of media as well.
DO show your personal style through the editing and design of your portfolio.
DO keep your file size small. A good portfolio is 10 megabytes or less.
DON’T show every single project you’ve ever done—demonstrate your editing capabilities by selecting your best or most important works. 15 pages is an ideal length for a portfolio.
DON’T assume that readers will zoom in on your portfolio to read small text. Make sure all captions and descriptions are legible!
Cover Emails
DO make it count! Use this opportunity to divulge in any information that your portfolio or resume doesn’t include.
DO highlight the assets you have that might set you apart from other applicants, whether it’s relevant software expertise, remote work ability, or someone you know at the firm.
DON’T address the email to “To Whom it May Concern.” Instead, address it to the HR contact or founders of the firm. Do your research!
DON’T send the exact same cover email to different companies. Tailor your cover email to every unique firm you apply to.
Check out the recording of the event above.
Or, contact Natalie Dalton:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/nataliebdalton/
natalie.d@bespokecareers.com
Be sure to check out more similar events coming up in the next few months:
Networking for Success - “How the Power of Effective Networking Can Up-Level Your Career.”
Wednesday, April 14, 2021
Zoom event 7:00pm – 8:00pm
Portfolio Best Practices
Wednesday, April 28, 2021
Zoom event 7:00pm – 8:00pm
Interview Skills
Wednesday, May 5, 2021
Zoom event 6:30pm - 8:00pm
Portfolio Review
Saturday, May 8, 2021
Two Zoom Sessions: 10:00am - 11:00am and 11:00am - 12:00pm