Recruiters and hiring managers have a wide variety of personal preferences in a resume. However, there are three universal signs that might get your resume skipped over or trashed.

Sign #1 – Canva (or Other Resume Templates) Will Get Your Resume Trashed

If you used templates from Canva, Google Docs, or Microsoft Word, there’s is high likelihood that your resume was trashed before it made it to the hiring manager’s desk. These templates often use columns, tables, and graphics that make your resume difficult to read. If it’s difficult to read, it’ll be trashed.

So, what can you do? Design your resume for the reader, whether it be a person or a computer. Always keep the reader in mind.

Templates like these often use non-traditional formatting options to make your resume look pretty. A resume is not a graphic design project. It’s not meant to be Instagram-worthy. It’s meant to convince the reader to give you an interview.

Being traditional is okay. Being traditional helps the recruiter.

Consider that each job posting gets 100’s (in some cases 1000’s) of applications. A recruiter would need to read the equivalent of The Lord of the Rings trilogy every few weeks. Would you blame them for being forced to skim resumes to make their first decisions?

By organizing your contact information, education, experience and skills in traditional ways, you make it easy for the recruiter to find what they need to learn about you.

Additionally, technology is being used more and more as an initial screening to review resumes for hiring managers. Employer application systems (ATS) pull out information from your resume adding it to their applicant database. That means this AI technology is being used in some cases to make initial decisions on resumes based on the job requirements. So you if you can’t make it past the AI, your resume will be tossed before you are even considered by a real person.

By using graphics, columns, tables, and pictures, you make it harder for technology to read your resume correctly. Whether the reader is a person or a computer, if you make it hard on them, they’ll move on.

Here’s my favorite “traditional” approach to writing a resume. You can find more advice at Learn How To Write A Resume Or Cover Letter.

Sign #2 – Too Vague or Unclear What Job You Are Applying for? In the Trash it Goes.

If your resume does not have a clear career focus, there is a high likelihood that it isn’t cutting it. Resumes without a clear career focus don’t effectively relate your experience and education to the job.

College students do not typically have a lot of relevant experience. You must find relevance through part-time jobs, volunteer work, leadership roles, and class projects. These experiences help you develop the core durable skills, business skills, and, sometimes, technical skills that can show an employer that you have the capability and potential to do the job well.

Start with an understanding of the knowledge and skills needed for your career interests. Our Labor Market Insights and O*NET are two great tools to learn more about the skills desired for different roles you are pursuing.

Don’t underestimate your durable skills and business skills. Your durable skills (also known as soft or human skills) are critical thinking, communication, teamwork, leadership and professionalism. Your business skills are general workplace skills, like Microsoft Office Suite, analytical data skills, and now include using AI tools.

Each career makes varying use of technical or knowledge skills. These are largely knowledge-based skills around a particular content area, like STEM, journalism, healthcare, business administration, etc.

If you don’t have a clear career interest yet, our career advisors can help you. In my opinion, talking with someone about your career interests is incredibly helpful.

Sign #3 – Typos and Tired Language. Resume Meet Trash. Trash Meet Resume.

The last sign that your resume doesn’t cut it is that the writing is just plain poor.

Your resume should be error-free. There should be no errors in grammar, spelling, punctuation, typos or consistency. The specific error doesn’t matter. Errors show a lack of attention to detail, which employers care about.

Additionally, your resume writing should combine the use of action verbs showcasing relevant skills with nouns that show-off the content knowledge you have.

NO: Wrote a project proposal.

• Skill = writing (a core communication skill)
• Knowledge = unknown

YES: Wrote a project proposal analyzing local regulations related to home-based childcare centers.

• Skill = writing (a durable skill – communication) and analyzing (a durable skill – critical thinking)
• Knowledge = understanding government regulations
• Knowledge = understanding of home-based childcare

Don’t rely on spellcheck or Grammarly or your own eye to determine if your resume writing works. Have others read your resume. You can start with the resume experts in the Career & Co-op Center. Also include people you may know in your career interest area as well as your trusted mentors, like faculty.

When your resume is in a good place, use it to complete your Handshake profile and LinkedIn account. Both sites are designed to help you launch your career.