Trying hard to land an interview but still not getting a callback? Amidst the pandemic, you are not the only one who is facing such troubles. With a sudden slowdown in the economy, the availability of job exposures and opportunities is decreasing. In such a situation, your resume needs to convey something more than the rest. If you cannot impress the recruiter at the first stage with your resume material, the chances of getting an interview call are low.

Need to think of a solution

Whether you are a fresher in the job field or are looking for a better opportunity in your career, the resume makes a significant difference in your prospects. You may have multiple job-related skills and an excellent academic record, but still, your resume may get rejected at the initial screening. It is normal to worry about why my resume is not getting shortlisted. Worrying is not a solution; you have to find a concrete way out to resolve the issue. How do you rectify it? Either you can check for online solutions and work on your resume, or you can approach a professional resume writer to write an impressive resume for you.

Common reasons why resumes get rejected

Before you go online to check for a solution or connect to a professional writer, you need to understand where you are going wrong with your resume. Without understanding the mistakes in resume, you cannot address the points where you need improvement. Even if you hire a pro-writer, understanding the mistakes and pointing them out is important. To make you task of finding out the probable loopholes in the resume, here are some of the common mistakes to note. Read the following pointers and compare them with your resume to figure out the mistakes.

• You do not live in the region where the job is located

Sometimes, the reason why your job application rejected immediately is not because of the content in the resume. For example, you have applied for a job located in city X, and you live in city Y, which is a thousand kilometers away from city X. Thus, while screening your job application, the recruiter may reject it at once, based on your residing location. Before the pandemic, when things were running at a smooth pace, you may have landed a chance of getting a call to attend the interview. But now, recruiters try to shortlist at once so that the online interview process is shorter. So, the next time you send the resume for a remotely located job, mention in the resume that you are willing to relocate.

• Your experience level did not match the job

The pandemic has hit the world economy badly. Companies are now reducing their staff strength and not encouraging new recruits. Those companies which are recruiting new employees are also looking for experienced candidates. For freshers, the time is certainly very tough. Also, the current job market situation is quite stressful for any experienced professional who is willing to switch careers or a better opportunity. Thus, before applying, you have to ensure that your current experience or skills match the mentioned criteria of the particular opening.

• Your resume is very generic

As a job seeker, you have to understand that a recruiter goes through hundreds of resumes in a day. A resume that follows a generic content pattern and template can never catch the attention of the resume screener. For getting noticed at the first screening session, your resume needs to be better than the rest. The writing has to be crisp and informative in a compact way without any errors. A professional writer can give you tips on making the resume unique.

• Making your resume too long

Most job seekers think that including every detail of your academic and professional achievement in a resume makes it more impressive to the recruiter. But it is a completely wrong idea! Yes, you must mention every relevant academic and professional achievement in the resume, but making it a descriptive one is a big no! A long-composed resume does not make it to the shortlist or increase your chance to land an interview call. Make it compact and informative wisely.

• Your resume did not make it past the ATS

Another key reason why my resume is not getting shortlisted is for the ATS factor. What is an ATS-friendly resume? ATS means an application tracking system, and every company utilizes it to shortlist candidates for job interviews. For passing through the ATS scan successfully, the format needs to comply with the ATS rules. If your resume is not appropriate for an ATS scan, it will certainly get rejected at the first screening stage.

• Having irrelevant tons of subjective skills

Having hundreds of skills does not always make you fit for a job role. For example, you are applying for the job of an accountant. If you mention your skills in programming in the resume and job application, will it be helpful? Resume-making needs to have a clear perspective of the job you are applying for. Thus, before sending it to the recruiter, ensure that you highlight the relevant skills for the specific job to increase your chances.

• Talking about Job Roles, not accomplishments

Those who have been working for multiple years, often boast about their professional achievements. It is good to mention your career-related acclaims but only stressing on them will not make a good impact. Instead, mentioning the job roles and responsibilities helps in the process. The recruiter gets a fair idea about your capabilities by going through your previous job roles, and thus you reduce your chances of getting rejected.

• Having large gaps in employment

Career breaks and gaps are a big reason why a job application rejected immediately. Especially with this covid ridden situation, companies prefer hiring experienced candidates. Also, if you are a fresher but have a gap in your academic profile, it is a drawback for your resume. Thus, even if you have a gap in your career or academics, ensure to mention the valid reason behind it. With a proper and valid explanation supporting the gap, there are chances that the recruiter may not reject it right away.

• Inaccurate details

Wrong information related to your job responsibility or false information is among the crucial reasons behind getting rejected. Recruiters have a profound idea of job roles and skills for which they can easily identify the loopholes. Thus, providing such inaccurate information about your previous job roles or academics can be a boomerang for you. Stay true to the right information and describe it compactly by complying with the ATS rules.

• You did not proof read your application

Many job seekers who hire a professional writer to write their resume do not check, proofread the final resume and send it right away. Even if you have connected to a professional writer, the responsibility is yours to check the content thoroughly. Without proofreading the resume, you can never figure out if there is any wrong information in the resume.

• Having spelling and grammar errors

Before thinking about why my resume is not getting shortlisted, have you checked for the grammar errors in the resume? Spelling mistakes and grammar errors in the resume content are some of the greatest drawbacks. It not only annoys the recruiter but also makes you appear careless. Do not convey this image to the recruiter and make a smart decision by checking it through grammar-checking software.

• Using an invalid email address

If your email id is invalid, how will you receive a notification for the interview? Also, if your email id contains 0 and o in it, it is better to make a new one for professional purposes. Many people get confused between the zero and the alphabet ‘o’, and thus you never receive the actual email. For this, it is better to always check before sending the resume and update it with a valid id.

• Not having up-to-date information

Is the phone number you have provided in the resume still working? Have you updated the experience section in the resume? These are some common mistakes in resume for which you can miss out on the chance to get a callback. Avoid such mistakes and provide up-to-date information. Always check the resume thoroughly before ending.

Other than all these mentioned factors, there are tons of other reasons why your resume may face rejection. Before you send the job application, check it rightly to avoid all the said mistakes or the following ones-

Using the “functional” format
Having a bad online presence
You lied on your application
Wrong chronological order in the resume
Too much personal information
Writing the resume in 3rd person

How Writrox can help you?

Writrox, offers professional resume writing services, is your one-stop solution to avoid all these mistakes in the resume. With the highly proficient writers of the company, you get a well-composed resume that can capture the attention of the recruiter. With a well-written resume with correct information in it, you increase your chances of landing the interview call. Perform better than your competitors with the right resume material crafted by professional writers. Connect to them and watch your career elevate.