5 Recent Grads Explain the Biggest Resume Mistakes They’ve Made

Putting together your resume is always a struggle, no matter how much or how little work experience you have or where you are in your career. The good news is, other people totally feel your pain and are here to share their struggles.

Below are five recent grads who are sharing the biggest resume mistakes they made, so hopefully you can all avoid them in the future.

1. They Didn’t Use Action Verbs

“I had my resume reviewed by one of my past internship supervisors and he told me that I was lacking action words. When you’re writing your resume, make sure to give yourself credit to all the hard work you’ve done. You didn’t just write for a publication, you ‘pitched,’ ‘managed,’ ‘produced,’ ‘assessed,’ ‘built,’ ‘covered,’ ‘curated,’ and ‘communicated.’ Try to think of different verbs for each point. Get creative with your word choices. Use strong words that help you stand out. Be specific.” – Cassidy, Emerson College ‘16

We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again: Use those action verbs, especially if you’re trying to show employers that you’re a strong and effective communicator.

2. They Sent in a Typo-Ridden Resume

“I think the biggest mistake I made was a spelling error for the company I was applying for. Fortunately the woman handling them sent it back and asked me to update before it went to a higher level, but it was so embarrassing especially when you’re in editorial. I learned that even when the job search is tough, you must take time for every single resume/cover letter. No one is going to land an awesome job based on simple mistakes!” – Kaitlin, University of North Carolina-Wilmington ‘15

In addition to quadruple checking the spelling of the hiring manager’s name and the company’s name, be sure to have at least one other person look over your resume, and read your resume out loud (and from the bottom to the top) before you submit.

3. They Left in the Fluff

“My resume once said that I ‘Uploaded content to the site,’ but that’s not impressive in the age of digital media. In fact, it’s sometimes a given. You can put ‘CMS’ in your skills section, sneak it into another bullet, or talk about it in your cover letter if appropriate.” – Emily, University of Florida ‘16

When putting together your resume, think: Is there a more concise way to say what you did? Is there a piece of industry lingo that’ll make you sound more knowledgeable? You could save space and impress a potential employer in the process.

4. They Didn’t Make It Look Interesting

“The biggest resume mistake I made was making mine look just like everyone else’s– the same white background, black text, boring font. Then, I finally used Canva and gave my resume a yellow background and some interesting fonts. I also added links that people can click on– since I’m typically sending it as a PDF. I’ve gotten multiple compliments on it– people are happy to see something that doesn’t look exactly the same!” – Jillian, Boston University ‘15

While you don’t want to go full-on Elle Woods with a pink scented resume, adding a little pizzazz never hurts, and it’ll help your job application stand out from the crowd.

5. They Didn’t Make Their Previous Experiences Sound Different

“I [made] all of my jobs sound too similar. Even though they were all editorial positions, I didn’t do anything to distinguish what I did differently in each role. Later on I edited it to include specific milestones that I made and particular tasks that I performed at each publication or website.” – Barbara, University of Wisconsin-Madison ‘15

When hiring managers looks at your resume, are they able to distinguish your different skills and experiences, or do they see your resume as one big blob? While you don’t want to list every little thing you did, being able to list important takeaways from each role can separate you from the rest of the pack.

Once you’ve gotten your resume up to snuff, it’s time to put it to good use: Apply for thousands of jobs on WayUp right now!