Mistakes in a resume: TOP 13 typical mistakes

Did you know that there are mistakes in a CV that will ruin your career? Recruiters often overlook trivial flaws in a text if an applicant's profile is unique and causes a desire to hire such an employee for a promising project. In all other cases, profiles are thoroughly checked and filtered. Many factors influence the rejection of a job interview by HR, but we are going to focus on the TOP 13.

JOBITT experts have officially analyzed thousands of job applicants' resumes and highlighted the main problems inherent in almost all profiles. In this article, we will find out what typical mistakes are made when writing a resume and how to avoid them when applying for a job.

Common Mistakes When Writing a Resume: How to Explain Mistakes to HR

Sometimes candidates make resume mistakes when writing: spelling, punctuation, or semantic, edits. If this happens to you too, do not rush to get upset because minor errors can be smoothed, or you can explain the situation to HR, who will help you get away from a tricky situation.

Try to point out the problem before you discover it. If you have not yet received a response – send HR a letter where you point out the direction of the error and try to level out its significance. During the interview itself, make it clear in advance that you made an error in your writing, as well as point out the place in the text and clarify your position. It will help save face in front of a potential supervisor and emphasize a professional approach to the case.

Let’s Look at Common Mistakes in Resumes

1. Grammatical and spelling mistakes

The most common mistakes in resumes are grammatical ones. They greatly spoil the impression of the candidate and often are a key factor in the rejection of the interview. To avoid them is very easy, just use any online editor with the correction function or install a browser plugin that edits typed text, for example, Grammarly or LanguageTool.

Grammatical mistakes in the resume spoil the look of the application and HR's first impressions of the candidate. Avoid them.

2. Incorrect resume length

There are three unspoken standards for resume length: up to 1 page, 1-2 pages, or longer than 2.

One page is appropriate for job seekers who have just received a college degree or are fundamentally changing their occupation. For example, they worked as a locksmith but are looking for a position as a software tester.

A volume of up to two pages is considered optimal for candidates with a long employment record, several positions, and experience that fits the desired position.

More than two pages are recommended for applicants who have held senior positions in past jobs, led departments, or conducted academic research.

A typical example of resume mistakes when writing a resume includes an irrelevant amount of information in the application form. Optimize the text without overloading it with unnecessary facts or unrelated data for the job. Try to add a reference letter from a previous supervisor if possible.

3. Poorly formatted skills section

What's worse than making mistakes in the skills section of your resume? Unless you include unnecessary or not appropriate for the job.

Write only relevant skills that you possess at a high level and can prove your proficiency in practice.

4. Using inappropriate photos

Everyone likes bright and cheerful photos from a vacation, a feast, or an important event. But they don't really fit into a business-style resume. When posting a photo from the beach on a professional portal in an application for a development manager position, be prepared for a polite rejection.

No matter how expertly you know your job, your appearance should match the seriousness of the position and be a model of business attitude.

5. Lack of evidence to back up your skills and experience

When writing a resume, typical mistakes are made even by experts. For example, for a developer position, they specify incredible knowledge of programming languages, technical stacks, and methodologies. In the first interview, it turns out that half of the declared is at an early stage of mastering or even indicated for the "weight" of the questionnaire.

Write only the truthful information, which you can prove in practice.

6. Too simple wording in the “Objective” and “Career Summary” sections

Why are mistakes made on a resume for a job? Mostly because job seekers don't understand their goals. High salaries, stability, and interesting occupation – trivial wording that does not give any specific information to the employer and does not even focus their attention on the benefits. A simple statement of employment goals is appropriate in an interview, but in a resume, such vagueness is fraught with rejection.

Formulate your view of your career and the goals you want to achieve. Show your ambition to the recruiter, increasing your chances of getting the desired position.

7. One resume for all jobs

Many people make the same mistakes on their resumes without thinking about it. Examples of laziness or unwillingness to make unique questionnaires for each vacancy are everywhere. It would seem that the profile has all the necessary information, so why rewrite it several times if you can duplicate it. No, especially when applying for positions of different profiles. For example, what can an accountant, a mechanic, a journalist, and a developer have in common? Recruiters won't understand why their job seeker needs an economics degree to develop software, but they will appreciate the knowledge of English.

Create a relevant questionnaire for each job you want.

8. Lack of the right keywords

Most resumes reach recruiters after ATS (Applicant Tracking System) screening. According to Resumeble's report, the average questionnaire score is 39% relevant. How does it work? The system effectively analyzes the text, looking for pre-specified key phrases and words. Then it assigns a score that either discards the resume or sends it to the recruiter. Examples of the right words can be found in our other material.

Add components such as keywords and phrases that are relevant to the job you want.

9. Incorrect type of resume formatting

There are many ready-made design templates that will teach you how to write a proper resume. Most often, they can be found on specialized job search resources. Forming such a profile incorrectly is impossible. But what to do if you need a questionnaire for forwarding by e-mail or printing on paper? Make it in a text editor, structuring the content correctly. You can use ready-made templates or constructors.

Standard template consists of blocks:

Personal information.

About me.

Experience.

Education.

Skills and abilities.

Other.

We've released a series of articles on a proper design that describe each section in detail. You can read them on the blog.

10. Lack of a headline on your resume

To understand how to make an IT specialist resume properly, adhere to our tips. For example, filling out a resume with the desired position and job title is a sample of a good tone towards HR and supervisors. The absence of a title makes the questionnaire generalized. Recruiters will consider your candidacy as an option for all vacancies. Want to get a good job? Write about it!

11. The presence of irrelevant information

When reviewing your resume, HR is looking for relevant information about the vacant position that is completely relevant to the company's needs. Mistakes on your resume about yourself, such as a wrong address, false information, or other inconsistencies, automatically reduce your chances of even getting an interview.

Write accurate information on your application form!

12. Resumes are not optimized for ATS filters

In today's high-tech world, typical mistakes for resumes are misspelled keywords. ATS filters don't look at experience or skills in general but highlight only key positions, leveling out the candidate's weaknesses and strengths. They evaluate the questionnaire by optimization and screen out irrelevant profiles. Optimization aims to overcome the candidate's ATS CV systems barrier.

Enter keywords relevant to the job in the CV.

13. Using inaccurate information on your resume

Never lie to an employer. Your skills, experience, and expertise are easy to check during the interview. Practical skills are revealed in the early stages of employment. Lying on the application form will put your reputation at risk, ruin your relationship with the management and put an end to your career in the company.

Write honest information in your resume even when searching for a remote job.

To summarize

Mistakes on your resume reduce your chances of successful employment. Avoid them by optimizing your resume. When writing your resume , use a resume builder that is based on a template from major IT companies. We hope this material has helped you learn how to write a resume without mistakes.

With JOBITT, you get a state-of-the-art experience with recruiters all over the world! Don't miss out on the opportunity to get a cool position!