How to Write a Resume That Gets Noticed

Posted on July 27, 2024 by The Kegth Team

Your resume is the most important document in your job search. It's your first—and sometimes only—chance to make a strong impression on a recruiter. In a sea of applications, how do you make sure yours stands out? This guide will walk you through creating a resume that not only gets noticed but also gets you interviews.

1. Start with a Powerful Summary or Objective

Forget the old, passive objective statement. Instead, start with a dynamic Professional Summary if you have some experience, or a clear Career Objective if you are just starting out. This should be a 2-3 sentence pitch that highlights your key skills and career goals.

Example Summary: Highly motivated and detail-oriented computer science student with a passion for artificial intelligence and machine learning. Proven ability to develop and implement innovative solutions through academic projects and a personal portfolio. Seeking to leverage strong programming skills in a challenging AI internship.

2. Tailor Your Resume for Each Application

A one-size-fits-all resume doesn't work. For each internship you apply for, carefully read the job description and identify the key skills and qualifications the employer is looking for. Then, update your resume to highlight your experience that matches those requirements. Use the same keywords you see in the job description.

3. Showcase Your Accomplishments, Not Just Your Responsibilities

Instead of simply listing what you did in a role, focus on what you achieved. Use action verbs and quantify your results whenever possible. This shows the impact you made.

  • Instead of: "Responsible for managing social media accounts."
  • Try: "Grew social media engagement by 25% over three months by creating and curating compelling content across three platforms."
  • Instead of: "Wrote code for a university project."
  • Try: "Developed a Python-based web scraper that automated data collection, reducing manual data entry time by 90% for a key academic research project."

4. Keep It Clean, Professional, and Easy to Read

Recruiters spend only a few seconds scanning each resume. Make sure yours is easy on the eyes.

  • Layout: Use a clean, modern layout with plenty of white space.
  • Font: Choose a professional font like Calibri, Arial, or Georgia, in a readable size (10-12 points).
  • Length: Keep it to one page. As a student or recent graduate, you should be able to fit everything on a single page.
  • Proofread: Typos and grammatical errors are a red flag. Proofread your resume multiple times and have someone else look at it too.

5. Highlight Your Skills and Projects

For technical roles, a dedicated "Skills" section is essential. List your programming languages, software, and tools. Additionally, a "Projects" section can be incredibly powerful. Describe 1-3 of your most significant projects, detailing the technology used and the outcome.

Example Project:

Personal Portfolio Website | React, Next.js, Vercel

Designed and deployed a fully responsive personal portfolio to showcase my projects and skills. Implemented a clean, modern UI with a focus on user experience. Optimized for performance, achieving a 95+ Lighthouse score.

By following these steps, you can create a compelling resume that effectively markets your skills and experiences. This will significantly increase your chances of getting noticed by recruiters and securing the internship you want. Good luck!