7 Items to Eliminate From Your Resume
If you want to land an outdoor job that you love, it’s important that your job application highlights the qualifications that make you a perfect fit for the job at hand. This may mean eliminating unrelated experience - even if it’s an accomplishment you’re really proud of. In order to create a resume that catches the eye of a hiring manager, every statement on your resume should lead back to the job description.
You know the feeling: you find a position you’re stoked about and you meet most of the qualifications. “This is it!” you tell yourself. You submit your application and wait - a few days pass by…then a few more…suddenly it’s been three weeks and you are feeling extremely discouraged. You’ve been ghosted by yet another employer.
These situations can leave us feeling confused, frustrated, and ready to give up (especially when it happens over and over again). It’s time to give quickly refresh your resume and eliminate the following items. Remember, every item that you eliminate from your resume frees up space for you to add valuable details and experiences that show that you are the perfect candidate!
Unrelated Work Experience & Side Jobs
Many people have held some type of side job — babysitting, dog walking, yard work, snow shoveling, and working at the university coffee shop…side jobs galore! The hustle is real, but these jobs aren’t going to WOW the hiring team.
The idea that your resume needs to include your complete work history is outdated. The United States has been through multiple recessions over the past two decades with sky high unemployment rates. Because of this, stints of unemployment (or side jobs) are no longer a red flag - they are the norm. So, unless an employer specifically asks for your complete work history, your resume should only include relevant work history (aka jobs that are related to the role you’re applying for).
So, eliminate unrelated experience so that you can better showcase the qualifications that the employer is looking for.
Past Extracurriculars
Delete all extracurricular activities, groups, and clubs that are over 3 years old or are completely unrelated to the job you’re applying for. These activities may be important for college or internship applications, but once you start your career, extracurriculars are less important.
Expired or Unrelated Certifications
You can be proud of your many certifications and accomplishments without including them on your resume. Your resume is a highlight reel, so the space is precious! Every sentence needs to answer the question, “Why are you the right fit?” If a certification doesn’t set you apart from other candidates and excite the hiring team, then it’s OK to leave it off.
Skills Without Context
You may want to include a section on your resume to highlight the skills and knowledge that don’t directly fall under a past job. In this case, include a “Skills,” “Knowledge,” or “Accomplishments” section! Now, you don’t want to simply use this section to list your skills. Instead, add some details about your skill level or how you’ve used these skills in the past.
For example, if you list “photography” as a skill, the hiring team doesn’t know if you are a landscape photographer, skilled at portraits, direct photoshoots for fashion magazines, or use your iPhone for social media photography. Your skill level can vary greatly, so provide more details! Saying “Advanced skills in landscape photography and editing,” will leave a lot less up to interpretation.
Your GPA & Graduation Details
Your degree, school, and year of graduation are important on all resumes. But, there are very few cases when you need to include your GPA and extra graduation details (like honors or clubs). Only include your GPA and extra details if your GPA is above 3.5 and…
You are applying for internships, graduate positions, or positions that are only open to recent graduates.
A specific GPA is required to be considered for a position.
You are still in college or graduated within the past 6 months.
If you don’t meet those conditions, eliminate it! Once you are out of college, you are on the same playing field as everyone else, regardless of your honors or GPA.
Paragraphs
Your resume should be full of bullet points and lists. On average, hiring managers review resumes for 7 seconds, so you want to create a document that can be quickly scanned. This way, the hiring manager can easily identify your accomplishments, skills, and qualifications.
Creative Fonts & Formatting
Keep it simple. Many companies use applicant tracking software to scan resumes before they reach a real human. These systems cannot identify text boxes, tables, and photos. Your awesome resume will get tossed to the side if it can’t be read. Further, fancy fonts and bright colors are off putting for most outdoor industry employers. If you are a well qualified candidate, you don’t need an extravagant document - you’re qualifications will catch their eye.
Every piece of your resume should lead back to the job description. You may need to eliminate several bullets that you’re really proud of. It can be tough, but it will pay off in the long run when you land the interview!
Don’t forget, for everything you eliminate, you get to ADD skills and experience that are more in line with the job description! Write a resume that is full of relevant experience, skills, certifications, and volunteer work!
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