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Ideas for Impact

Resumé Tips #2: The One-page Résumé Rule

July 15, 2007 By Nagesh Belludi

One-page résumé sufficient to present essential information concisely and captivatingly Your résumé is your personal advertisement. The purpose of a résumé, therefore, is to sell you, not to describe you. In order to grab a recruiter’s interest and create a positive impression within a few seconds, your résumé should be comprehensive and tidy.

One-page résumés are appropriate for college candidates (entry-level candidates, to be more specific,) and candidates with less than ten years of work experience. Such candidates rarely have substantial accomplishments to justify a résumé of more than a page in length.

More-experienced candidates may use two pages to describe their accomplishments. Even here, one-page résumés are recommended. Recruiters will survey the second page only if the contents of the first page are appealing.

A one-page résumé acknowledges the importance of a recruiter’s time. A two-page résumé is a sign of disregard.

Compact your Résumé

Follow these guidelines to consolidate your résumé content into one page.

  • Compact your Résumé - Avoid a tell-it-all résumé Comprehension is crucial. Recruiters hate wordy résumés. They first glance through the organization of a résumé and quickly skim over particulars in key sections. A strong, comprehensive presentation is consequently appealing.
  • Avoid a tell-it-all résumé. Avoid the common mistake of providing too many details. Leave some details for discussion in a potential interview.
  • Restrict accomplishments under each position held to two or three bullet points only. Weed out unimportant details. Use phrases if necessary.
  • Do not cram. Do not reduce page margins and font-sizes or eliminate white space. Résumés crowded with information are hard to read.

Conclusion

A one-page résumé is usually long enough to present all the essential information concisely and captivatingly. It can easily engage a recruiter and convince him/her that your background merits further consideration.

Wondering what to read next?

  1. Resumé Tips #1: Best Fonts and Text Size for Your Resumé
  2. Resumé Tips #3: References Not Necessary
  3. Resumé Tips #4: The Hurry-Burry Résumé
  4. Resumé Tips #5: Résumé or Curriculum Vitae?
  5. Resumé Tips #6: Avoid Clichéd Superlatives and Proclamations

Filed Under: Career Development Tagged With: Resumé

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About: Nagesh Belludi [hire] is a St. Petersburg, Florida-based freethinker, investor, and leadership coach. He specializes in helping executives and companies ensure that the overall quality of their decision-making benefits isn’t compromised by a lack of a big-picture understanding.

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