The Dos and Don'ts of Resume Design

With plenty of job seekers flooding recruiters' inboxes with seemingly identical resumes, knowing how to make yours stand out becomes something you shouldn't write off. Your resume is usually the first glimpse of you that a potential employer sees, so you want to avoid common resume design mistakes. Here are some things you should and should not do when presenting your qualifications.

Do: Prioritize uniform presentation. 

Maintaining a seamless visual presentation makes it easy for the recruiter to navigate your resume without straining to find information or getting confused. Keeping a consistent font style, size, and formatting throughout your resume is not only ideal but also presents you as someone who is well organised. 

Do: Use white space.

With resumes, you can almost never go wrong with simplicity. Adequate White space creates an open and uncluttered canvas and allows you to deliver your message clearly and neatly.

Do: Make it easy to read.

There are probably countless other candidates vying for the same position as you. If you emphasise your key achievements prominently with bullet points and use bold or italic formatting to draw immediate attention to your significant milestones, then your qualifications can shine through quickly and effectively.

Do: Enhance your resume with subtle colour accents.

While professionalism is important, forgoing colours entirely might lead to a lacklustre and easily forgettable resume. A carefully curated colour palette will give your resume the visual impact it needs to stand out. However, proceed with caution. Keep your colours simple and visually appealing.

Don't: Go overboard with Fonts.

When it comes to font selection, stick to standard, professional choices like Arial or Calibri. Using decorative or fancy fonts can come across as unprofessional and may hinder readability. You also don't want to have more than two fonts on your resume. Too many fonts can create a chaotic appearance and undermine the overall presentation.

Don’t: Overcrowd Your Resume

Resist the temptation to squeeze in too much or bring irrelevant information into your resume, or you might end up overwhelming readers and detracting from its impact. A barrage of irrelevant information would most likely be tossed aside, so only include your most relevant and impactful experiences. 

Don't: Underestimate the Power of First Impressions

Remember that your resume's appearance is the first impression you make on potential employers. A haphazard resume may indirectly convey a lack of attention to detail. Craft a visually attractive and seamless resume to demonstrate your commitment to excellence at first glance.