How to Make Your Resume Fit on One Page
If you’ve decided that a one-page resume is right for you, there are a few things you can do to make sure everything fits. These tips work for a two-page resume length too!
1. Shrinking your margins allows you to expand on your skills and employment history. The typical margin for a resume is 1 inch, but you may reduce it to 0.5 or 0.65 inches if necessary. To preserve formatting, save your resume as a PDF; this will ensure that hiring managers see the same document as you do.
2. Reduce the size of your text from a 12-point font to a 10-point. You may also decrease the section headers’ size or use strong or italicized fonts. Reducing the font size across the board makes your resume legible while keeping it on one page. If your resume is crowded on one page, adjust the line spacing.
3. Instead of paragraphs to describe your job duties, use bullet points to save space. Smaller points add clarity to your resume since you’re focusing more on keywords, action verbs, and accomplishments instead of using filler words that don’t help you earn a promotion. Keep your bullet points brief and scannable at one or two lines each.
4. To add several parts of your resume on the same line, use multiple columns. Using the same line provides you more space to expand on your career highlights, knowledge, and education sections. Add a 1- to 2-inch offset column on the right or left side to include information that may be summarized into brief bullet points. Columns also make your resume look better aesthetically and make it more scannable.
5. Reduce the space you use by condensing your contact information and employment history portion into one line. To save room, move the name of your employer, address, job title, and employment timeline for your work experience to a single line. Your physical address, email address, and mobile phone number should be on one line. To make things simpler to read, separate your information with pipes. For example: “Silvia Mike | Silver Springs, SM | silviamike@gmail.com | 443-347-9865.”
6. If you don’t have enough room in your summary and education sections, consider cutting down on content. You demonstrate that you have the minimum requirement for the job while preserving space for more essential information by keeping your education section brief. Only put the year you graduated from college on your resume if you’re a recent graduate. If you possess a bachelor’s degree, omit your high school studies. If you don’t have any room left over at the end of your summary, remove it entirely.
7. Now, look at the job description and identify the required key skills and qualifications. Make sure to include these in your resume, as they will be the most important to the employer.
8. Look at your work history and decide which positions are most relevant to the job you’re applying for. Include only the essential information from each position and leave off any irrelevant details that will not be pertinent to the hiring manager.
9. Finally, don’t forget to proofread your resume and ensure there are no typos or grammatical errors.
Why is it an Advantage to Limit Your Resume to a Single Page?
A one-page resume is advantageous because it forces you to be concise and clear about your skills and experience. It also allows you to focus on the most relevant information for your applying a job. Additionally, a one-page resume makes it easier for hiring managers to scan and read quickly.
If you have a lot of relevant experience, don’t worry – there are ways to make everything fit onto one page. By reducing your margins, using smaller font sizes, and condensing your contact information, you can still include all important information without going over to a second page. Just remember to proofread before you submit your application!
Should You Include Your Address on Your Resume?
Most experts agree that you shouldn’t include your physical address on your resume.
There are a few reasons for this:
-It takes up valuable space that could be used to list additional skills or experience.
-It’s unnecessary, as most employers will contact you by phone or email if they’re interested in scheduling an interview.
-It can potentially discriminate against applicants who live in certain areas.
If you’re concerned about employers being able to find you, don’t worry – there are other ways to list your contact information (such as your city and state) that won’t give away your exact location. Additionally, many online applications have fields where you can input your contact information, so there’s no need to include it on your resume.
In short, it’s usually best to leave your address off of your resume. By doing so, you can use that extra space to highlight other qualifications more relevant to the job you’re applying for.
Should You Include Your Date of Birth or Age on Your Resume?
No, you should not include your date of birth or age on your resume.
This information is unnecessary and can potentially discriminate against older applicants. Additionally, most employers will be able to determine your age based on your education and work experience dates.
If an employer is interested in finding out how old you are, they will ask you during the interview. Until then, there’s no need to include this information on your resume.
Should You Include a Picture on Your Resume?
Most experts agree that you should not include a picture on your resume.
There are a few reasons for this:
-It takes up valuable space that could be used to list additional skills or experience.
-It can discriminate against applicants who do not look a certain way.
Here are More Tips on Why You Should Keep Your Resume to One Page:
- It makes your resume more readable. Hiring managers only have a few seconds to review your resume when they look at the resume in their inbox. They will have time to discover work experience and skills that match their needs if your resume is limited to one page.
- You may pick the finest achievements. When you reduce your resume to one page, you choose the most essential qualifications that depict your career.
- It demonstrates your innovation. When you only have one page to describe all of your skills and achievements, you must be creative. You demonstrate your capacity to utilize space and critical thinking to communicate more significance by keeping your resume to one page.
When should your resume be two pages?
Resumes usually have 2 pages. The standard length is a two-page resume that can fit all of the keywords in your resume. Here’s the case where two-page resumes are not necessary: You can use keywords and skills in a shorter amount of pages. If you are concerned about the two-page resume limiting the hiring manager’s ability to perform a six-second resume review, remember these six seconds come from a review of your performance on your application. A lot of people who review resumes prefer reading an organized two-page resume to reading an empty one-page resume.
A two-page resume is ideally suitable for job seekers with 10 or more years of relevant work experience. The additional page could provide the hiring manager with crucial information.
Why do you need to create a two-page resume?
If you work in high-pressure jobs then it’s worth making two-page resumes. The most important one may be that some employers now utilize Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) to perform a preliminary screen of applications received (especially through digital application processes). The software program privileges resume utilizing and repeating certain keywords to assess both the placement and frequency of the industry-specific keywords. It looks at how many years one has in a particular job skill.
Your resume should probably need at least 2 pages showing your future career progress. If you’ve worked for more than 10 years you will need a professional overview and perhaps a career highlight. This is an extremely good chance to put in more keywords. A two-page resume also satisfies all your relevant skills, education and qualifications.
Conclusion – How many pages should your resume be?
One-page resumes are generally the best way to go in certain circumstances. A single-page resume is concise, easy to read, and can be tailored to fit any job you’re applying for. However, if you have a lot of relevant experience, there are ways to make everything fit onto one page by reducing your margins, using smaller font sizes, and condensing your contact information. Just remember to proofread before you submit your application!
If you are a senior executive, a two-page resume is a must.
Do you have any other questions about resumes? Get your resume in front of the hiring manager fast. Book a complimentary consultation with a certified professional resume writer!
Also, make sure to check out our resume templates.
