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This resume tip is written by Igor Khayet, founder of My Resume Shop.
As a professional resume writer, one of the most common questions I get asked is how to shorten a resume to one page without losing critical information. This question does not only come from experienced professionals (who have to fit a lot of work experience in a short space), but also from students and young professionals.
The following is an easy to follow list that will help you save space on your resume and focus on the most important accomplishments. Tip number one is below; stay tuned for the rest of the series.
Tip #1: Decrease the Number of Sections
I have seen resumes with 10 or more sections, which takes away the entire purpose of a section heading.
The idea is to make your resume easy to follow and organized, not overwhelmingly subdivided. Volunteer Work, Computer Skills, Honors/Awards, Interests can be condensed into one section heading: “Additional Information and Skills”.
Don’t get too carried away though: your choice of which sections to use should correspond to the intended goal of the resume. A Graduate School or PhD candidate may have a separate section for “Publications” or "Presentations," while a Computer Programmer may have a special section for “Computer Languages/Programs." Use common sense to make these judgments depending on what is more relevant to the graduate school program you are applying for.
Below, you can see how rearranging the sections on a resume can save valuable space. Secondary information -- like volunteer experience, computer skills, and languages -- can be consolidated into a single line instead of a longer bulleted list.
Igor Khayet is the President and Founder of My Resume Shop. He is a former Admissions Interviewer for the Yale School of Management and a member of the Professional Association of Resume Writers & Career Coaches. Connect with him on Facebook and Twitter.
