Resume Writing Masterclass

A resume isn't a biography — it's a marketing document. Every section exists to answer one question for the recruiter: can this person do the job? The goal is to make that answer obvious in under 10 seconds.

A clear structure matters more than creativity. Stick to this order: contact info, a two-to-three sentence summary, work experience (reverse chronological), skills, and education. For most roles, education goes last. For recent graduates, it moves to the top.

Keep it to one page unless you have 10+ years of directly relevant experience. White space isn't wasted space — it makes the document easier to scan. Use consistent font sizes (11–12pt for body, 14–16pt for your name), and avoid tables, text boxes, or columns that confuse ATS parsers.

Weak bullet points describe responsibilities. Strong bullet points describe results. There's a meaningful difference between 'Responsible for managing social media accounts' and 'Grew Instagram following from 4k to 22k in 6 months by launching a weekly product story series.'

Use the formula: Action verb + what you did + the measurable outcome. Not every bullet will have a hard number — that's fine. But you should always answer 'so what?' Even qualitative outcomes work: 'reduced onboarding confusion by rewriting the internal wiki' tells a story.

Start every bullet with a strong past-tense verb: led, built, launched, reduced, negotiated, redesigned, streamlined. Avoid weak openers like 'helped', 'assisted', or 'worked on'. Three to five bullets per role is the sweet spot — more than that dilutes impact.

Most companies use Applicant Tracking Systems to filter resumes before a human ever sees them. An ATS scans for keywords, parses formatting, and ranks candidates. If your resume can't be parsed cleanly, it gets deprioritized — no matter how good you are.

Mirror the language of the job description. If the posting says 'cross-functional collaboration', use that phrase rather than 'worked with multiple teams'. Don't force every keyword — focus on the ones that appear multiple times or seem central to the role.

Avoid fancy formatting. No headers in text boxes, no two-column layouts, no icons in the skills section. Use standard section headings like 'Work Experience' rather than 'Where I've Been'. Fonts like Arial, Calibri, or Georgia are safe choices.

A generic resume gets generic results. The single highest-leverage thing you can do is tailor your summary and top bullets for each role. This doesn't mean rewriting from scratch — it means adjusting emphasis. If the role is 80% strategy and 20% execution, lead with your strategic wins.

Update your summary for each application to mention the specific role title and one or two things that make you a natural fit. Recruiters read hundreds of resumes — a summary that sounds like it was written for them specifically will stand out immediately.

Keep a 'master resume' with every bullet point you've ever written. For each application, copy from it and trim to the most relevant. This is faster than writing from scratch every time and ensures you never lose a strong bullet you worked hard to craft.