# Resume Essentials: Purpose, Key Elements, and What to Exclude

![Resume: A document a job applicant creates to summarize their work experience, educational background, and special skills.](https://www.investopedia.com/thmb/wtzEam1DrS2U3VgqoweCRaXzJ8Q=/1500x0/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/resume.asp-FINAL-7d61bbc8181747698b3cbb0b2ed6833e.png)

*— Investopedia / Jiaqi Zhou*

## What Is a Resume?

A resume is an essential document summarizing your qualifications, including work experience, education, and skills, that is used to help secure a job interview. It often accompanies a [cover letter](https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/cover-letter.asp) tailored to the job, highlighting relevant accomplishments and expertise. Understanding how to design it effectively can significantly impact your job search success.

American job coaches insist that a resume should be only one or two pages in length. British job applicants traditionally are expected to produce a somewhat more detailed document called a CV (curriculum vitae).

### Key Takeaways

*   A resume is a concise document that showcases a job applicant's work experience, educational background, and skills and should be customized for each job application.
*   It is essential to keep resumes brief, ideally one to two pages, while focusing on highlighting achievements and relevant skills.
*   Avoid including personal information such as age, marital status, or current salary on your resume, as these are not relevant for most job applications.
*   Adapt your resume to highlight relevant experience and skills for different job types if you are applying to varied positions.
*   Resumes should be error-free, focused, and professional, serving as a crucial step in securing a job interview.

## Key Elements You Must Include in a Resume

A [resume](https://www.investopedia.com/financial-edge/0911/top-12-things-not-to-put-on-your-resume.aspx) is almost always required for applicants to office jobs. They are the first step taken by corporate recruiters and hiring managers to identify candidates who might be invited to [interview](https://www.investopedia.com/financial-edge/0410/7-things-you-should-say-in-an-interview.aspx) for a position.

Successful resumes highlight specific accomplishments applicants have achieved in former positions, such as cutting costs, transcending sales goals, increasing profits, and building out teams. 

There are many formats for resumes, with many variations for particular professions such as [investment banking](https://www.investopedia.com/articles/financialcareers/10/investment-banking-resume.asp) and the fashion trade.

Whatever the format, most resumes include a brief [summary of skills](https://www.investopedia.com/financial-edge/0212/top-skills-you-need-on-your-resume.aspx) and experience, followed by a bullet list of previous jobs in reverse chronological order and a list of degrees earned.

A final section might be added to highlight specific skills, such as fluency in a foreign language, knowledge of computer languages, professionally useful hobbies, professional affiliations, and any honors achieved.

Brevity, a clean layout, and succinct language all are prized. People who have to sort through hundreds of resumes have short attention spans.

## Crafting an Effective Resume Header

The resume header should include your name, email, phone number, LinkedIn profile, and any personal website links.

Be aware that any hiring manager will, as a matter of course, enter your name in the Google search field. Do a search on your own and see if you can optimize your own results or at least decently bury any youthful faux pas.

## How to Address Resume Red Flags

Recruiters look for [gaps in employment](https://www.investopedia.com/62-percent-of-workers-have-resume-gaps-heres-how-to-re-enter-the-workforce-with-confidence-11763375) or frequent job changes. Be ready to explain these in a cover letter or interview. If you have a history of short jobs, consider leaving out older roles that aren't relevant to the job you’re applying for.

For instance, if you moved from food service to earn credentials in physical therapy, don't list all your early food service jobs. Flesh out the sections that report your [skills](https://www.investopedia.com/personal-finance/most-valuable-career-skills/), training, and experience in the field that's now your specialty. You can mention those other jobs in the interview while explaining what a reliable professional you are.

For those applying to tech companies, outdated skills can imply obsolescence. Strong resumes show you're suited for the current opening.  

## Adapting Resumes for the Digital Age

Resumes are now emailed as attachments or uploaded online, rather than printed and mailed.

While resumes should still be under two pages, online attachments like videos or charts can help you stand out, if relevant and well-made.

## Critical Mistakes to Avoid on Your Resume

There is so much talk about what should be in your resume, but there are also some things that ought to be kept off the page. First, and most importantly, are your age, marital status, and the number of children you may have. While a potential employer might be able to deduce this information via a web search, it isn't relevant for a job application.

In addition, do not list your current salary, religion, political beliefs, or any personal details (like your hobbies), unless that information is required for the job in question.

## What Are Common Resume Mistakes?

Common resume mistakes include typos, vague details without a lack of specifics, either being too long in detail or too short, grammatical errors, poor verb usage, impertinent information, and not including enough information on skills.  

## Should I Create More Than One Resume?

This depends on whether you are applying for different types of jobs. For example, if you are applying for an office manager job, you should tailor your resume to outline your leadership and organizational skills. But you might also be interested in applying for a retail position, so creating a second resume that instead highlights any retail experience that you have will put you in a better position to get that job.  

## What If I Do Not Have Any Work Experience?

You can still create a strong resume even if you do not have any professional work experience. Your resume can include any volunteer work you have done and the responsibilities you had during this time. If you are still in school, you can also list any academic organizations you are a part of and any offices and responsibilities you're holding.

## The Bottom Line

A strong resume is crucial for securing a job interview and advancing in the hiring process. Ensure your resume is professional, tailored to the specific job, free of errors, and succinctly highlights your most relevant skills and achievements. Avoid including superfluous or outdated information, such as high school GPA or irrelevant early career jobs. Aim for a concise and engaging layout, supplemented with relevant digital enhancements, to capture the attention of employers.