Posts published on March 1, 2016

9 Helpful Tools You Can Use To Make Your First Resume Perfect

March 1, 2016 6:29 am

By Michael Yarbrough

First impressions are vitally important in business. One of the best ways to make a good impression on your prospective employer is to send an outstanding resume. Unfortunately, students don’t normally have enough experience in writing resumes, and the first time doing so can be rather challenging for them. Since a professionally written resume is the first step in landing a good position, you must learn how to do it well. That’s why I’d like to recommend a list of helpful tools that will help polish your first resume.

  1. Unplag

Students tend to use as templates those resumes that are available on the Internet. However, there is the danger of inadvertently plagiarizing content. There’s no doubt that employers are interested in those candidates that put solid efforts into writing a nice resume. For this reason, it is recommended to use plagiarism detection software, and Unplag serves that purpose well. Students upload resumes to the library and scan them against each other or against the Internet.

  1. Super Resume
    This site’s collection of free resume templates can be a valuable aid to beginners. Of course, students are to remember about the risk mentioned above (using resumes without changes), but a good example is always a plus. If students use templates reasonably and with good common sense, Super Resume is one of the most useful resources for those students who make the first steps in a successful job search.
  2. CV Maker

This is an alternative tool to the one mentioned above. CV Maker also has a number of templates for a resume. The interface is simple, so it won’t take much time and efforts to figure out how to use it. You’ll just need to fill out the various fields: Basic Information, Objective, Work Experience, Qualifications, Education, Computer Skills, Interests, and References.

  1. Vizualize
    This is another resource that provides you with a number of resume templates to choose from. However, besides appealing themes and styles, you can also present your data in some new formats. For example, demonstrate your language skills via language maps or skill bubble charts, create pictograms, tree-maps and statistics, display your work experience in timelines and use other features. If you log in to Vizualize via your LinkedIn profile, your job experience information will be automatically transferred to the Vizualize profile.
  2. Branded Me
    This is a resource for designing professional web pages. It’s possible to sign up with your LinkedIn or Facebook accounts and get your profile data transferred to the Branded Me page. One more attractive option available here is Connect. Branded Me users can stay in touch with their friends, colleagues, and employers by adding them as connections on the website.
  3. Hemingway Editor
    Hemingway Editor works in the following way: You paste your text into the field on the website and immediately get results. Hemingway Editor highlights errors, adverbs, passive voice, and long or overly complicated sentences. What’s more, the editor has a readability scale of one to ten, and your text gets a ranking when you check it. Thanks to these marks you’re able to see any serious drawbacks in your resume and correct them right away.
  4. Re.vu
    This online resume builder has a detailed questionnaire that provides your future employer with detailed information about your achievements, goals, skills, and personal traits. A convenient interface allows you to fill it out with your credentials step by step – personal data, timeline, infographics, portfolio, education, and work examples.
  5. Visual CV
    A good resource to create resumes, portfolios, and personal landing pages is found on this site. The variety of templates offered through this website is very rich. Moreover, these templates look more original than those offered on the majority of web resources, even while maintaining a professional look. It’s a chance to make your resume design unique and memorable.
  6. RezScore

RezScore is a resource that scores resumes online. You upload one and immediately get an A, B or C score for it along with a report. Both Summary and Tips for Improvement sections inform you what exactly you should do to make your resume better. Users can also see in what industries their resume will be strongest, what skills you have, and what personality traits you have. The latter is a helpful section because it lets you know how your potential employers will probably see you.

Now you know how to make a good first impression. The next step is a job interview, and you need to get ready for it as thoroughly as possible to present yourself in the most favorable light.

Byline:

Michael is a former school teacher, currently working as an ESL tutor. Teaching is his favorite way of finding inspiration. In spare time he enjoys volunteering and provides a lot help to wild and homeless animals. Connect with Michael via Twitter and Linkedin.

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