One Page Resume

If you’ve recently graduated from school, you might not have a lot you can put on your resume. Time in the job market helps naturally fill out your experience. That’s not a bad thing, but it does mean that trying to fill out your resume with relevant information can seem challenging. 

By using a one-page resume template, you help limit yourself to a few key elements to focus on. Highlighting areas that you are strong in, even if it’s one or two things, can go a long way in helping your resume stand out from the crowd.

Like a recent graduate, if your work experience is limited or small, it can feel like you won’t stand out. Using a one-page template will help you focus on the other areas you have achieved more without excluding your work experience. 

There’s a difference between leaving something out and not making it the focus. You don’t want to omit anything the employer needs to know your value, including everything they ask for. Be sure to highlight your strengths despite your limited experience.

If you send over a long resume, then it will take more time to read it. That might seem obvious, but there’s a deeper meaning to that idea. If you send a long resume, and the other end doesn’t want to read something that long, your resume will get discarded without consideration. 

If the position you’re applying for has a large number of candidates, it also means your resume isn’t time-efficient to review. This also makes it effortlessly discarded. By sticking with a one-page resume template, you make sure that you get your point across fast and don’t waste any time.

If you achieve something stellar in your field, that’s a great way to put your best foot forward. Whether this was a breakthrough in design or procedure, or you’ve invented something new, this kind of accomplishment is an excellent foundation for a review. 

If you take that accomplishment to a one-page resume, you can highlight it there. This gives you a starting point to build out the rest of the resume and show how you got to that success. It’s like giving a synopsis of your success before you walk into the interview. 

You should always tailor your resume to the company that you’re applying to. That way, the hiring staff knows you’re done your research about the company and that you’re passionate about the job. 

If you’re following a one-page resume template, that means you have less to change or tailor for the company you’re applying to. This makes your time more efficient. You can now alter the details you need to for each company you apply for much faster than one page instead of two, three, or more.

If you’re passionate about getting a particular job, it’s easy to try and fluff yourself up. You want to impress so that you’re more likely to get the job. 

The problem with fluff is that it’s just that: fluff. It doesn’t add anything substantial to your resume and pulls down the quality of it. By sticking with a one-page resume, you limit the amount of complete you can have in the resume. That helps keep you grounded and focused on the things that matter in your resume. 

While it might seem like longer is better for a resume, not all employers feel the same. A Saddlebrook College survey in 2011 found that 48% of employers prefer a one-page resume. In other words, almost half of every employer you send a resume out to wants it to be short. 

If you’re sending out a long resume and find that you aren’t getting calls for an interview, it could be that your resume is too long. Using a one-page resume template would help you cut back to something many employers view as preferable.

When you submit a resume, it’s not usually one person that reads it over. The hiring manager, the department head, and other relevant positions are given these resumes to review. If each of these people has to read a long resume, one of them might get bored or overwhelmed. That’s not the feeling you want to create when applying for a job. 

Sticking with a one-page resume is an excellent way to get your point across quickly to each person that reads it. 

Entry-level positions are a great place to start your career. When you’re beginning, these jobs help you build experience and industry knowledge you can use to improve yourself over time. 

Because of this, companies that hire for entry-level spots aren’t looking for a giant list of accomplishments or previous experience. They want someone who can do the job. By submitting a one-page resume, you quickly get your highlights across to others, and you aren’t trying to oversell yourself.

The simple reason is this: if an employer asks for a one-page resume, that’s what they want. This employer might be receiving many applicants and doesn’t have time to review longer resumes. Some companies will also include these little details in their application requirements to ensure applicants are reading in detail. That way, they filter out people who are blasting out resumes mindlessly. 

If you follow a one-page resume template, you’d automatically meet this need from these employers. That will save you time tailoring your resume for that employer, all while showing your ability to read the details.