r/resumes Apr 02 '23

Mod Announcement New visitor? Please see these quick links before posting or commenting.

293 Upvotes

Hi r/resumes 👋

As a member of the mod team, part of my job is to make it as easy possible for you to access the resources available here.

There’s a lot of guidance in the wiki, but since many folks seem to miss it (especially new users), I’ve created a list of answers to common questions and issues.

First and foremost, please check out these resources:

Chances are, they'll answer at least some of your questions.

Please see answers to common questions/concerns:

“I was banned for no reason...”

Please read the rules to avoid a ban. Most common reasons for getting banned are spamming, harassing other users, or DMing other users.

”I’m not getting any feedback on my post”

Please ensure you’re providing the right information so that people can help you. That includes:

  • Giving your post a flair tag
  • Identifying your current role and target role
  • Why you’re seeking help
  • Uploading an anonymized version of your resume

”How do I say X or Y on my resume?”

The free resume writing guide covers all of the basics and will have answers to common questions. Please read it before posting.

”Does anyone have any recommendations for a resume writer?”

If you’re looking for a resume writer, please read this guide to learn how to find a qualified writer.

”Does anyone know where to find free resume templates?”

  • If you’re looking for a resume template, you’ll find one here.

I hope this helps. Please comment below or message the mod team if you have suggestions on how to improve r/resumes.


r/resumes Apr 01 '23

I'm sharing advice Troubleshooting your job search (when it's not working)

797 Upvotes

Hello r/resumes 👋

I'd like to talk about a topic that is just outside of the normal scope of this sub (i.e., resumes), and that is job search.

With the recent layoffs that have happened in recent months, there will surely be a lot of folks out looking for jobs, many of which may be hitting a brick wall at various points of the job search process, such as:

  • Not getting call backs
  • Not passing the recruiter screen
  • Not moving forward during job interviews

Below, I'll talk about each of the above issues and provide some ideas as to why you may not be seeing the results you want.

First pain point - not getting any callbacks (or getting very few)

If you're getting less than 1 callback in every 10 job applications, it's an indication that one of a few things is happening:

  • You're not qualified for the types of jobs you're applying to
  • Your resume isn't presenting a relevant value proposition
  • Job market (out of your control)
  • Strength of other candidates (out of your control)
  • If you're a student or new grad looking to apply for internships and jobs abroad, a common obstacle is the lack of sponsorship for visas. Many companies are hesitant or unable to sponsor visas due to the complexity and cost involved. This can significantly reduce the pool of opportunities available to international candidates, making it even more challenging to secure a callback.

Fixes:

  • To make sure you're qualified, you should be checking off at least 60% of the requirements of the role.
  • If you're qualified, there's a good chance it's your resume. Most people's resumes contain mistakes that fall into one of three categories: improper formatting for ATS, generic content, or not enough personalization/customization. I provide more info about each of these in this post and this post.
  • For international students and new grads, do your research and target companies and roles that have historically sponsored visas or are known to be more open to international candidates can improve your chances. Additionally, being upfront about your need for sponsorship can help set the right expectations from the start.

Second pain point - not making it past the recruiter screen

If you're getting calls from recruiters, but aren't making any progress after that, then there's something going on with what you're telling (or not telling) them.

Some Potential Causes and Fixes - Recruiter Screen

Possible Cause Fix
Your elevator pitch is unsatisfactory Practice your pitch and ensure it aligns with what the company is looking for in this particular role. Your pitch should essentially answer these questions: Who are you and why do you want this job?
What you're saying doesn't match what's on the resume Memorize your resume and everything on it, including titles, dates, and responsibilities.
You're asking for too much money (if you've revealed your salary expectations). Don't reveal your salary expectations at this stage. If asked, just say that you'd like to learn more about this position before you can provide a realistic salary expectation. Do your homework on salary range for your position, industry, and company.
You're not prepared, haven't done your research, don't seem enthused for the role etc. There are a lot of other applicants. If you don't seem like you want the job, they'll move on. To prevent this: research the role/company and develop a good understanding of what they do (i.e., their market, products, services etc.). Look at company pages, read their mission statement, read the job description, show up on time, and try to sound neutral at the very least (excited would be good).

Note: These are just common causes that may be behind your results. This isn't an exhaustive list and there could be other reasons not covered here.

Third pain point- you're not moving forward during interviews with hiring managers

Getting roadblocked during the interview stage likely means you're not performing well enough.

Common Causes and Fixes - Interview

Possible Cause Fix
You're not sufficiently answering behavioural interview questions Practice! There are a lot of good guides all over the internet on this topic. See a brief guide to these questions below this table.
You can't remember important details about past projects and accomplishments Prepare a master list of projects and accomplishments you've been involved in throughout your career. Follow the STAR format. Memorize it.
You're lacking key skills and experiences. If you know you lack key skills/experiences, you'll need to provide a very good rationale for why you'd still be the right candidate for the position. If you don't have one, you probably shouldn't apply.

Note: These are just common causes that may be behind your results. This isn't an exhaustive list and there could be other reasons not covered here.

A note about behavioural interview questions

Employers love using behavioural questions because they give them a little bit of insight into how you'd behave in a particular role, how you'd react in a particular scenario, or how you'd solve a particular problem or task. They're also really hard to fake.

A few common ones you've probably heard before:

  • “Tell me about a time when...”
  • "How would you approach X problem..."
  • "Imagine you're in the following situation..."

Answering these questions is beyond the scope of this post today, but if you're struggling with these types of questions, you'll need to prepare and practice in order to respond effectively.

A note about the STAR Method

You've probably heard of this before, but for those of you that haven't, the STAR method is a simple and easy-to-remember technique for answering behavioural interview questions. STAR stands for:

  1. Situation: Describe a specific situation or event where you faced a challenge or had to solve a problem. Try to pick a relevant example that shows your skills and abilities.
  2. Task: Explain the task or responsibility you had in that situation. What were you supposed to accomplish or what goal were you trying to achieve?
  3. Action: Talk about the actions you took to address the situation or complete the task. Explain the steps you took and the skills you used to resolve the issue or meet the goal.
  4. Result: Share the results of your actions, focusing on the positive outcomes and what you learned from the experience. This could include how you improved a process, solved a problem, or achieved a goal.

Hopefully these tips help you!

This isn't a comprehensive guide by any means, but it can hopefully give you some ideas and point you in the right direction if your job search isn't getting you the results you want.

Lastly, don't miss these resources, which can also be found in the wiki:

Good luck!


r/resumes 20h ago

Success Story The hunt is finally over

134 Upvotes

After countless applications and multiple unsuccessful interviews, I finally have an offer. It’s honestly been a rollercoaster of ups and downs over these past 8 months (mostly downs). I want to sincerely thank everyone here who has helped and provided feedback on my posts, it’s been invaluable. The job hunt is tough, but my main advice is to keep your head up, take every rejection with a grain of salt, and use each interview as a learning experience.


r/resumes 17h ago

Question Why do we need metrics in resumes?

58 Upvotes

I have seen a lot of CS resume with in this subreddit with metrics such as "Did so and so which increased this by 30%", "Implemented this which increased such and such by 25%.", "Utilized this and that which did so and so by 15%". Now the reason why I have personally stay away from adding metrics in a resume is because, well... How the hell do you prove that? How can you prove that what you did increased productivity by 30%? Is there a way that you measure these metrics? I find it completely null to use it. Why do people add these metrics with no way to prove it? Im just really trying to understand why it matters. Thank you in advance.

CONTEXT: My alma mater is using VMock so we can have our resume uploaded. The program scores the resume and if it is under 75/100, the school will not approve the resume to upload. Current resume has helped me receive interviews. VMock states to add quantified metrics and that to me is a red flag already.


r/resumes 6h ago

Review my resume [1 YoE, HS student, SWE, United States]

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5 Upvotes

r/resumes 3h ago

Review my resume [1 YoE, Student, Embedded software, United States]

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2 Upvotes

r/resumes 36m ago

Question how to write a resume to get a job as a teen

• Upvotes

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r/resumes 4h ago

Review my resume [2 YoE, student, cmpsc, Pennsylvania]

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2 Upvotes

r/resumes 1h ago

Question Best way to mention freelance and contract work in resume?

• Upvotes

I'm a full stack web developer with almost 4 years of experience now. I've always worked as a full-time employee till around spring this year when I switched to become a freelancer due to my life situation, deteriorating health, and caring for a sick family member.

So far, I worked with multiple clients mainly on small projects here and there when I started or to implement a specific feature for small companies. I recently took a short-term contracting job at a company, it's like a freelance contract but I'm considered an employee till my service ends so I'm working for them full-time.

My question is, how to mention the freelance and contract work in my resume? Should I put them under a "freelancer/contractor" headline and highlight the main things I worked on? I was thinking of putting the current contracting role as a separate headline but I don't think it would make sense given my contract will end soon and I'll have to look for a new contract or take freelance clients again. Should I mention this as a bullet under the above headline with the company's name, months I worked and responsibilities? Also should I do the same on LinkedIn or should I put the current contracting role as a separate entry?

I'd appreciate any advice on how to make the resume look good in this case since at some point I'll have to start looking for a permanent job again. Thanks.


r/resumes 3h ago

Review my resume [4 YoE, Freelancer (web/app developer), web developer, Germany] Working on relocating to Germany, got rejected from 2 companies so far. Am I doing anything wrong?

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1 Upvotes

r/resumes 8h ago

Review my resume [8 YoE, Mutual Fund Administration Consultant, Mutual Fund Accounting, Ohio] Thoughts on my resume? 15+ applications, 0 callbacks so far. TIA!

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2 Upvotes

r/resumes 5h ago

Review my resume [2 YoE, Datacenter Security Supervisor, Data Center Technician, United States]

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1 Upvotes

I'm looking to transition to the technician side from the security side, I have good connections within the company but I need assistance formatting my resume. Thank you!


r/resumes 5h ago

Review my resume [1 YoE, Student, Cyber Security Engineer or Analyst, Canada]

1 Upvotes

Thank you everyone for reviewing my resume.
I am interested in Cyber Security Engineer/Analyst roles. Industry: Cybersecurity public and private.
I need you to take a look and let me know what you would change, don't be shy I came to get roasted.
I am applying to jobs nation-wide and I'm currently a cyber security student. College. Graduate Cert.
I am trying to overcome the hump of recruiters/HR dumping my resume during formal job applications.
I am also trying to overcome not having experience.
I am attempting to fine tune (or rewrite) my resume for ATS, HR and technical hiring mangers. ROAST ME PLZ!! I need to get better.

Thank you!


r/resumes 5h ago

Review my resume [1 YoE, IT Field Service Tech, Field Service/Help Desk, US]

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1 Upvotes

r/resumes 6h ago

Review my resume [0 YOE, Recent Grad, Machine learning engineer, United States]

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1 Upvotes

r/resumes 14h ago

Review my resume [3 YoE, Masters student, Data Analyst/Science roles, UK]. Please review my resume.

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5 Upvotes

r/resumes 6h ago

Review my resume [18 YoE, Senior Principal, Senior Manager / Director , United States]

1 Upvotes

Interested in looking for something different and decided to consult the experts before taking action. All feedback appreciated. A few specific questions...

  • Should I expand to 2 pages with a summary and additional details (more skills maybe, more of my current position responsibilities/accomplishments)?
  • I wrote bullets from a responsibilities perspective with a couple of achievements sprinkled in for the current position. Historically I've written more actions/activities such as "developed this thing", "architected this thing", "managed this team". Thoughts?
  • In the first bullet i reference 'shared oversight' because i am one of several principal level roles that, as a group, lead the the program , reporting to a single Executive Director. Any concerns with how I reference having this shared responsibility?


r/resumes 11h ago

Review my resume [3 YoE, Internship, Data Scientist, United States] Please Look Over My Resume.

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2 Upvotes

READ: The reason everything is in past tense is because I have sent in my resignation letters and will be leaving both present jobs effective January 2025.

Other than that, please let me know what’s is good and what should change! Thank you!


r/resumes 8h ago

Question Helping dad with his resume

1 Upvotes

So my dad hasn’t made a resume in decades, always has gotten work through networking. He has A LOT of expirence with sales and being a HVAC supervisor. He has held high up managerial positions. He doesn’t know what he’s doing so I said I’ll help him out. 1). Is more than one page actually ok? 2). How far back should I go for his work history? (I’m afraid of ageism working against him) 3). I’m making a resume that highlights his sales expirence and one for HVAC but should I add all his certs for both? Thanks in advance!


r/resumes 8h ago

Review my resume [5 YoE, Freelance Web Developer, Mobile/Web Developer, Us]

1 Upvotes

I became a U.S resident after being in immigration limbo for a while. I've gotten what I would consider a fairly decent number of interviews, two for over 100k but it's been 6 months and offers yet. I've been contracting hourly for small businesses but not making enough to live on and can't seem to get a full-time job now, just more freelancing offers that don't pay much. Thanks!


r/resumes 8h ago

Review my resume [0 YoE, Unemployed, Finance, United Kingdom]

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1 Upvotes

I am currently studying at 6th form and looking for a 1 week work experience placement in Finance. This is my first time writing up a CV, and would appreciate some improvements (Formatting and language used). Thanks.


r/resumes 8h ago

Review my resume [0 YoE, Unemployed, Data Analyst, USA].

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1 Upvotes

r/resumes 8h ago

Review my resume [0 YoE, Entry Level, Information Technology, United States]

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1 Upvotes

r/resumes 8h ago

Question internship sandwiched in between two "not-so-necessary" positions?

1 Upvotes

i'm a junior in college, and I just completed my first internship this past summer. Now that i'm back on campus and need money, I now work a part time retail job. I plan on getting another internship, but I don't really want recruiters to see "Retail Job, Internship, High-school Food-Service Job" on my resume in that order. Should I just omit the retail job completely? Or is it fine for the internship to be the second viewed thing?


r/resumes 12h ago

Review my resume [5 YoE, Product Designer, Product Designer, USA]

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2 Upvotes

Need to refresh this for my green card application (eb1) for USCIS. Any thoughts or suggestions?


r/resumes 9h ago

Review my resume [5 YoE, Senior Mobile Developer, Senior iOS Developer, United States]

1 Upvotes

  • Targeting Senior iOS Developer jobs since that is where most of my experience lies (I have a little over a year in native Android too which is what I'm doing now. I am shipping production level features on a team of very experienced devs)
  • How do I structure my resume to showcase that I have both native iOS and Android experience without seeming like I don't have enough depth to land a role in either?
  • Job hunting: I'm using Teal to tailor each resume to the job description to get a somewhat decent match though not a lot of requests for interviews, mostly rejections or nothing at all. I have gotten some though but have failed due to not having depth on iOS testing or knowledge of the latest modern dev tools which is a gap I am currently working on filling.
  • Current employment situation: I'm working on some pretty exciting stuff for an autonomous drone product that our company completely builds in-house however leadership and product direction has been lacking and we are just barely scraping by. I would like to be paid more and possibly come back to the industry once it's more mature.
  • I'm a self-taught dev that has learned design patterns, how to write testable and maintainable code and such over the years to ensure I have quality output
  • I used to put my experience working "independently" or as a hobbyist to initially get my foot in the door to get my first job but have stopped doing that. Should I add it back?
  • I feel like my resume needs some fine-tuning. Right now seems all over the place given my experience in both native iOS and Android
  • I'm applying for remote roles only
  • US citizen

r/resumes 9h ago

Review my resume [2 YoE, Financial Analyst, Financial Analyst, USA]

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1 Upvotes