On average, recruiters spend about 30 seconds on a resume that would end up in the consideration pile, but prior to that 30-second review of the resume, it has to make it past the recruiter’s six-second resume scan where most resumes fail to hit the mark. You must know what recruiters are looking for in order to pass the six-second scan.

Name and Contact Information
While this may seem like an obvious statement, your name and contact information is vitally important for recruiters to be able to find your contact information immediately. Your contact should include your name, phone number, email address, and a link to your LinkedIn profile. Your name and contact information should also never be smaller than 11-point font on your resume, but it should not be obnoxiously large either.

Current Company and Title Previous Company and Title
According to HR experts at SolidEssay.com, recruiters want to know right away what your job title is and whom you are working for. This information should be quickly identifiable for the recruiter. Failing to make this information easy to find could leave the recruiter making assumptions about your current position. Recruiters want to see that you have steadily progressed up the career ladder having taken on bigger roles and more responsibility.

Start and End Dates of Your Employment
Start and end dates of your employment are important because they show job stability, longevity, and any gaps in employment. To recruiters this is an indication of your work reliability and stability.

Education
Your education should be prominently displayed on your resume. This will help the recruiter determine immediately if you are qualified for the position that you are applying for. Some positions require a certain level of education, such as a bachelor’s or master’s degree for consideration.

Highlight Qualifications and Relevant Skills
Ensure that the relevant qualifications and skills for the position that you are applying for are easily identifiable on your resume. Tailor your resume to show that your qualifications and skills are in sync with what the position requires. Use keywords from the job description and include those keywords on your resume.

Perfect Your Resume
Make a final pass at your resume to ensure that you have not misspelled words, made typographical errors, or used words in an improper context. These errors could get your resume thrown in the trash heap just as fast as not being qualified for the position.

The job market is competitive and standing out enough to get an interview is a difficult task. You have less than ten-seconds to make an impression, and approximately 30-seconds for a recruiter to determine if you are a viable candidate for the companies that they are working for. Making sure that your resume stands out above the rest is a difficult task. Take time to research the position and ensure your resume is in line with the job you are applying for, error free, and includes all relevant information.