Written by Max Loong, Senior Career Advisor 

Thanks again to all the attendees for our webinar held last Thursday, 23 July 2020 on the topic on Let your Resume shine!: How to write an outstanding resume that will give you interview appointments

We hope that you have enjoyed the webinar as much as we enjoyed preparing it!

For those who have missed out on the webinar, view the replay here.

Click here to download the slides.

As we didnt have enough tme to answer all your questions, here are our input to give you a little more insight to making a better resume!

Answering your questions

Eddie Gan asked:

"Can i check if a picture in the resume would be good?"

Strictly speaking, it is not necessary to include your photo in your resume unless you're applying for a modelling or an acting job. As visual beings, we humans might also tend to make judgements subconsciously too. A person's look is not, and should not be relevant to the job position. A person's profile should stand out based on their accomplishments and abilities alone. 

Having said that, hiring managers will find out or eventually know how you look either way. So if you want to include it, feel free to do so.

 

Anonymous Attendee asked:

"For admin position how to write executive summary?"

In our guidelines on writing an executive summary, we mentioned that you should be highlighting your achievements in the span of your career. This can be applied throughout all positions; however, we know that it might be challenging for process-based roles where it is hard to quantify your results and KPIs. So, in this case, think about the following:

What are the top three functions that you are best in, on what scale have you applied your experience? (e.g. Executed day-to-day transactions throughout the APAC region with minimum delay while collaborating with Account Managers.)

Have you been involved in any major projects/events that requires your input? (e.g. system implementation, audit, cost-cutting measures, etc)

Every person regardless of position have their place to shine, don't be afraid to brag your achievements!

 

Dave Goh/Gladys Toh/Eko Setiawan asked:

"Should all working experience be included in resume?"

"Is there a need to include all job responsibilities or only mentioned those that have achievements to speak of? Considering this may lead to a long resume."

"For the achievements should we mention on every experience in every single company?"

In my view, it is advantageous to design your resume based on the position. The general idea is to let your resume points speak to the hiring manager - let him/her know that you have the experience and achievements that matches what he/she is looking for. 

If you feel that the whole list of working experience will make the resume seem long, consider indicating 3 most recent experiences, or highlight the ones that are relevant to the role.

Job responsibilities wise, just indicating the main functions of your work rather than an exhaustive list will give hiring managers a better time to read through your profile. Remember, recruiters will only scan through the first bullet point most of the time!

It will be beneficial to indicate your achievements at all of the companies you worked for, as long as it is related to the role that you are applying for. If it is not relevant, leave them out.

 

Phin Fah CHYE asked:

"Please suggest how many bullet points/lines in the responsiblities column"

Following up to my previous response, keep your responsibilities specific while concise. Try to keep your bullet points to a maximum of 8-10 points, and your keep your resume to 3-5 pages.

 

Angella Tan asked:

"Should we put expected salary in resume?"

In my personal opinion, you should NOT include your salary information and expectation on your resume - unless it is a requirement from the employer. Including salary expectations will give hiring managers a false impression or restrictions that will cause them to filter out your resume, or create misunderstanding in the negotiation stage. 

If your prospective employer has specifically requested you to provide your salary expectations, take note of the following:

- Indicate a range rather than a specific amount, while letting them know that you are open to negotiate

- Find out the average compensation given in the market for your role 

- Consider the company benefits and future career prospects

 

Juliette Chia & Dave Goh asked:

"Should my resume be in PDF or Word format?"

Different companies have different file requirements in their job ads so do keep an eye of that. From a recruiter's perspective, retain both Word and PDF format of your resume. If it is not stated, send a PDF file - to reduce the possibility of human error when recruiters open an editable Word document.

Also, to avoid getting filtered out by any ATS systems, ensure that the fonts in your resume can be easily copy and pasted 

 

Chandra Sekar asked:

"In LinkedIn - we are updating our profile with education say Masters...….but we are sourcing for lower role or responsibilities and stating as BSc ...is that ok?"

If you might be seemed as overqualified for a certain role, I would suggest to put in an extra step to explain your reasons why you should still be considered for this position in your cover letter. I feel that employers would appreciate honesty and authenticity more than hiding information from them. Being able to effectively communicate your position is the key to mutual understanding.