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A growing number
of employers are using résumé scanning systems to read,
access, and store résumé information. Résumés are optically scanned
into the computer as images. The computer reads the résumé and
creates a database of the relevant education, experience, skills,
and achievements by using key words.
Employers are
then able to search by keywords for the résumés they want.
When done right, your well-written, well-prepared résumé will
contain all of the necessary keywords to attract attention. You are
most likely to encounter this trend when applying to large
organizations. You may want to ask whether they scan résumés. It is
easy to prepare an effective scannable résumé, and in fact, many of
these considerations should already be incorporated into your
résumé.
Follow these
guidelines for format and content to make the perfect scannable
résumé:
- Use
standard serif and sans serif fonts (Helvetica or Arial).
- Avoid
ornate fonts and fonts where the characters touch. Font size is
also important.
- Use sizes
between 10 points and 14 points.
- Italics and
underlining cause problems for the scanner, especially if
combined.
- Use ALL
CAPITAL LETTERS for emphasis.
- Vertical or
horizontal lines should be used sparingly. When used, leave at
least a quarter of an inch of space around the line.
- Avoid
graphics and signs, shading or shadowing.
- Do not
compress or expand the space between letters or lines.
- Do not
double space within sections.
- The résumé
you submit should be an original.
- It should
be printed on one side only, with a laser printer on white or
light-colored 8 1/2 x 11 inch paper.
- Résumés
which have been folded, stapled, or otherwise mutilated will not
scan well.
- Scanners do
not read faxed résumés. If you have to fax your résumé, send a
second hard copy in the mail.
- Always
place your name as the first item at the top of the page since
the scanner assumes that whatever is at the top is the
applicant's name.
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