Rate Your Resume Yourself

You have put in hard work and are through with resume composition. You are oozing with the confidence that now all the dream jobs are going to fall in your lap. But wait a minute. Before firing the salvo of resumes in all possible directions, and taking the plunge, it will be a good idea to check whether your resume is the perfect killer resume you are expecting it to be?

 Rate the resume  
Use the following checklist to rate your resume yourself. All you have to do is to go through the set of questions given below. Based on the questions, rate your resume yourself on the scale of 1 - 5. Use 5 as the highest score and 1 for the lowest number while you rate the resume on each question:

· Have you analyzed and given a thought as to what skills might be crucial for the positions you are interested in and the vacancy ads you are replying to? Does your resume highlight those skills and hard sells you at first glance?
5 4 3 2 1

· You have claimed the job titles and mentioned your skills by august statements. Do your claims present yourself as aptly qualified for the level of position and salary you are seeking?
5 4 3 2 1

· Employers spend little time, as little as 5 to 10 seconds, glancing at resumes as they go through the pile of resumes on their desk. In this little time, your potential employer is going to either discard you or set your resume aside for further review. If one takes a quick glance at your resume, where does the attention go at first, second, third, fourth and then fifth glance? Is this the most important information you want to sell about yourself to catch the attention of the HR manager in that critical 5 to 10-second glance?
5 4 3 2 1

· You have mentioned you earlier job descriptions. You have also dwelled on your skills and strengths. Does the information you have given has depth to convince your potential employer that you are capable of making real time contribution as an employee? Does your resume explain how you have helped to improve productivity, streamline operations, cut down costs, improve morale, maximize sales or profits?
5 4 3 2 1

· You might have some gaps in your professional career. If you have gaps of more than 1 year between jobs, have you used year-to-year dates rather than month-to-month dates to detail your work history?
5 4 3 2 1

· If your education credentials are your strong point, then have you put forward this qualification in education and training in depth? Does this section of your resume illustrates as to how your education or training is related to the job and position you are seeking? Does it demonstrates and conveys logically the skills you've gained which enables you in giving a good performance in this job?
5 4 3 2 1

· You have a vision of the Dream Job. However, if some of your job titles do not match the job you seek, and make you appear less qualified, have you altered them or replaced them with skills you possess that do match the job you want?
5 4 3 2 1

· Are your career objectives in sync with the type of position you want or are applying for? Have you mentioned the skill set you possess and types of skills you wish to use to achieve the career objectives? Does it present you as well-qualified for the job?
5 4 3 2 1

· If you were to graph each job title or skill heading in your resume, how would you rate each one on the scale by asking yourself, "Does the job title to be offered make my image go up or down in reference to the job and the salary I want?" Do all the job titles and skill headings in your resume present a close match to the job you want?
5 4 3 2 1

 Analysis:  
Poor Rating 12 points or less: If your resume scored 12 points or less, you're in big trouble. It reflects the fact that your resume is poorly drafted and does not convey your skills and qualifications. It's likely that you will receive few, if any interview-calls by using this resume. It's also very probable that the job offers you do receive will be at lower pay rates than what you want! You need to redraft your resume urgently.

Average Rating 30 points or less: If your resume scored 30 points or less, you're still in big trouble! Since most resumes are extremely weak and score only 30 to 12 points, it means that your resume is not better than 60% to 70% of all resumes submitted to employers. This is certainly not an august company you wish to be with. With the majority of such resumes never lasting even one interview - it's likely that your resume won't either. You also run the risk of any salary-offer you do receive being below the level you want. You still have got to put in more work in your resume development to focus on the content and the representation, The approach and the use of appropriate words shall reflect optimism, a positive outlook and a genuine interest in the company and post applied for.

Above Average Rating 38 or less: If your resume scored 38 points or less, it's still likely you won't get the desired number and quality of interviews you seek or the salary offers you expect. With a score in this range you could consider that your resume is in the top 30% to 20% of resumes being received by employers. However, remember that since the employers generally select candidates to interview from the "best" resumes they have received and you are not even in top 10% of the resumes received by them. That means it's still likely you will lose interviews and job offers to other applicants who score 45 points on this quiz!

Top Rating 45 points: If you have been truly objective about your resume, worked hard on it, proofread it to eliminate the possible typographical errors, maintained a positive approach in tone and specified your skills and experiences, then you should be able to score 45 points - congratulations! That your resume is one of the best floating around in corporate world will be revealed by the positive results you would achieve in job market. It should lead a number of queries from the corporate wherever you send your resume. You would be likely to see from 30% all the way up to 100% requests for interviews for every 20 resumes submitted by you. Once you've been interviewed you'll know if your resume presents you strongly, because the salary-offers you generate should come in at or above the salary you are expecting. If these parameters aren't achieved, then it's likely that your resume isn't a Top Scorer. It needs to be worked on and developed further!