When you are looking for a job your resume is usually the thing that an employer sees. In South Africa the people who hire and the computer systems that look at resumes like a resume that’s simple and easy to read. This resume should not be, than two pages. Some resumes have a lot of designs but these designs can actually hurt your chances of getting an interview. A professional resume is what gets you noticed,. It is important that your professional resume is done correctly.
At the top of the page I will put a header. The header will have my name, my mobile number, my professional email address and the city or province where I live. I do not need to include my ID number or my marital status. I also do not need to include my home address. This is because most employers do not need this information when I am applying for a job. They just want to know my name, my number, my email address and where I live such, as the city or province.
Your professional summary needs to be short and to the point. It should tell people who you are and what you do in three or four lines. You should say what kind of job you are looking for. For example if you just graduated you can say what you studied, what you are good, at and that you want an entry-level job.
Do not write a lot of text. Talk about your personal life. Keep your summary short and focused on what you do and what you want.
When you are listing your work experience you should always start with the job you have or the most recent job you had. You need to include your job title, the name of the company you worked for and the dates you were working there.
You can use bullet points to talk about what you did at your job and what you were able to accomplish. Try to talk about what you achieved like “I helped with making daily reports” or “I was part of a team that worked really fast.”
Do not forget that work experience is not just, about the jobs you got paid for. Even if you were an intern or you were learning a skill or you were volunteering, that still counts as experience.
When it comes to education you should start with your qualification. So you need to write down the name of the institution what qualification you got and the year you finished. If you are still going to school just say “in progress”. You do not have to tell us about your school.
* Institution name
* What qualification you got
* The year you finished
Just remember to put your education first. If you are still studying for your education just say “in progress”, for the year.
The skills section is really important for those ATS systems. You should use clear keywords that are related to the job you want. For example you can use things like electrical maintenance, data capturing, customer service or Microsoft Excel. Do not try to rate your skills with stars or percentages it is not necessary, for the skills section. Use Microsoft Excel and customer service and basic electrical maintenance as keywords to make it easy for the ATS systems to find your skills.
When you are making your resume keep it simple. Use a font like Arial or Times New Roman. Do not use pictures or lots of colours.
Just save your resume, as a Word Document. Unless the person you are sending it to says they want a PDF.
Finally, always proofread your resume. Small mistakes can cost you an opportunity. A professional, modern South African resume is not about being flashy — it is about being clear, relevant, and easy to read.