How Often Should You Update Your Resume?

Resumes are essential to qualify for jobs no matter which industry you are in. A well-written resume dictates whether the hiring manager will call you for an interview.

Unfortunately, many individuals use the same resume they created for their first job for all the jobs they apply for afterward. They do not bother updating it or making any valuable additions.

In a way, that’s the reason they do not get called up for interviews and the latter stages of the employment process.

Submitting an old resume is a surefire way to get eliminated from the selection process. So, updating your resume regularly is a must to increase your chances of getting hired.

Are you looking to land your dream job and do not know how often you should update your resume?

If your answer is yes, there is no need to worry as we will discuss when and how to update your resume, making it stand out from other applicants.

Related: Resume Objective Examples For A Compelling Resume

Make a Difference with an Updated Resume

As mentioned previously, your resume dictates whether you will get called up for the interview stage. Let us discuss how to know when your resume requires attention.

Whether you have been working for decades or a couple of years, you will know that a well-crafted resume can be a massive difference-maker. It could land you your preferred job and propel your career to new heights.

Most individuals in the workforce are also aware that revising their resume is vital to ensure it remains up to date as their responsibilities and skills change.

So, how often does one need to revise their CVs? Unfortunately, most workers do not remember when they updated their resumes.

On the other hand, some employees update their CVs every day, which is not good either.

Therefore, it would be best to obtain an ideal balance, ensuring you update your resume every six to twelve months.

However, you should also consider upgrading your resume in the following events:

• When you become an expert at a new skill
• When you get a degree or certification
• After completing a major project
• After getting promoted

Remember, merely throwing in unnecessary bullet points will not do you any favors.

Focus on quality rather than quantity by taking time to think of the skills and achievements that would make your resume shine.

Creating the Perfect Resume

Consider reading your resume thoroughly, preferably, twice or thrice, before and after updating it. Pay special attention to your accomplishments, tasks, and essential skills.

As a fundamental rule, putting your responsibilities and impressive qualities towards every section’s top is a smart choice. It catches the attention of hiring managers and recruiters as they can spot them easily.

Most recruiters get hundreds and thousands of resumes every day and reading them thoroughly is impossible for those who don’t know.

It is a significant reason why hiring managers skim through most of these CVs and filter out those that don’t impress them. Consider writing your resume in a way that highlights your strong suits and makes them stand out.

However, it would be best if you steered clear from listing every skill or task you possess. It will take excessive space and make your CV too long, something that many recruiters avoid.

Once again, including unnecessary tidbits will not do you any favors and may even lead to a rejection. Everyone knows how to operate Microsoft Word, so mentioning your proficiency in this software will not impress anyone.

If anything, recruiters may think you are merely making your CV look good because of your lack of qualifications and skills.

Related: Easy Way to add Fraternity or Sorority to Resume

1. Check Your Grammar

You’d be surprised to learn the number of resumes that get rejected because of poor grammar. Hiring managers hold their organizations to high standards and want to ensure the people they are recruiting have proper English.

Therefore, it would be best to comb through your document, checking it for grammatical and spelling errors.

No, relying on a software is not a good idea as their algorithms are not efficient. On the other hand, checking the document by yourself would be a better choice and help you find more errors than the application or software.

However, if grammar is not your thing, consider acquiring a friend or professional’s help, making sure your CV is spotless.

2. Stylistic Consistency

Stylistic consistency can make or break your resume. The last thing you want to do is using different fonts and styles in your resume.

For instance, using italics in your first section and regular fonts in another section doesn’t look good. Moreover, it would also help if you maintained a consistent font style.

Sure, these tips may seem insignificant, but they are essential and could impress your potential employer. You will significantly increase your chances of getting called up by creating a visually pleasing CV.

Once again, clean-looking CVs are a one-way ticket to prove that you are a detail-oriented person who cares about the presentation as much as the content.

Essential Considerations When Crafting a CV

Ask yourself the following questions when preparing or updating your resume:

• Did I develop any technical or digital skills over the past months or years?
• Did I work on a project that improved my overall skillset?
• Have I completed any courses pertinent to the job I am applying for?
• Can I quantify my accomplishments? Recruiters and hiring managers want hard evidence, and presenting them with facts and stats is a surefire way to impress them.
• Did my responsibilities and duties increase? If the answer is yes, consider summarizing these responsibilities

Final Thoughts

Of course, there is no need to update your CV every day, or even month.

However, it pays to update and tweak your resume twice or thrice a year, as long as you gain skills and accomplishments that you can quantify.

Job opportunities open up when you least expect them, so keeping your resume up to date will ensure you can jump on the chance and set yourself up for success.