Red Flags Recruiters Notice In Resumés

We spoke with Pascal Theriault, a recruiter for HiHello, in episode #4. He shared with us the red flags that jump at recruiters when they look through a resumé.

A big red flag for recruiters is when there are typos in a resumé. This shows that the candidate may not be so good at paying attention to detail and shows a lack of interest in the application process. Your resumé is your presentation card, and recruiters spend between 5 and 30 seconds on each resumé they get. If you weren’t diligent enough to proofread your resumé before sending it out, this might disqualify you from a role!

Another flag is when recruiters receive a resumé mentioning interest in a completely different role than the one for which the candidate is applying. It’s a good idea to tailor your resumé for each role, but if you do so, be sure to send them the correct one! Otherwise, this also shows a lack of interest and professionalism.

Similar to the above, recruiters like when your skills section includes skills relevant to the role for which you are applying. If you are applying for a role in accounting, perhaps you should remove your skills in graphic design from your skills section. This helps make your resumé look tailored and relevant for the role.