I reviewed 587 résumés to help people who were laid off. Here are my best tips on how to build one that stands out — along with the best examples.

In 2020 I organized a résumé marathon to help people affected by the coronaviruses. I wondered how I could help young professionals and students in my network. What positive impact will I have on someone?

I wanted to do something amazing. I will give you feedback for free after reviewing your resume. I will review your résumé as soon as I can if you submit it via the forms within the allotted time.

I received 587 résumés the next day.

There were people from over 30 countries who reached out to me. The same thing was dreamed of by all.

Usually, I work 40-50 hours. I was also working on my masters degree in engineering at the University of Toronto. I calculated that I would have at least five minutes to review each résumé. For 587 résumés that totals at least 49 hours of productive time, and the only way to fit this amount of time into my agenda was to cancel all my side activities on Saturdays and Sundays.

I usually include three parts in my review.

1. 1. A 20-second look at the résumé (this is an amount of time that recruiters usually spend on each one)
   2. A list of issues and inconsistencies that could be improved
   3. Suggestions on how to further improve the résumé with examples and templates

I've created more than 480 versions of my own resume for tech and management consulting companies, and I've learned a lot. I was able to get offers from prestigious companies thanks to some of these lessons.

Here are my 5 rules and recommendations on how to make yours stand out.

1. Start with your contact details

Recruiters see this part of the resume first.

Add your phone number, email, and location straight away.

Don't use your full address or postal code if you want to show only the city or state.

It's obvious that you have a cell phone and email, so don't use any images or icons.

Eugene Hayden

There is an example.

Line one contains the full name.

The second line is a domain of your expertise.

The contact details are listed in line three.

2. Write a brief summary statement.

Tell me about your passion in 3 words. This is an example.

Eugene Hayden

You should keep on with your professional experience after the summary statement. Move your education to the bottom if you want to get an internship.

3. Use active verbs describing achievements, not processes

Don't use passive verbs like monitored, analyzed, assisted, etc.

You can make your achievements measurable by using quantifiable information. These words can be used to measure your impact.

Eugene Hayden

4. Integrate your tech skills into your experience (see my Business Insider article on how to do it)

Only advanced skills are displayed. This is an example.

Eugene Hayden

5. Add "Leadership Experience" or "Volunteer Experience" (if applicable)

It's better to share more personal achievements than it is to title them.

If you have less than 50% of the text on the page, you should not use another page.

If you have less than 7 years of experience, your résumé should fit a single page.

One extra page should be added for each seven to 10 years of experience. Recruiters and hiring managers don't want to see an 8 page résumé from one of the applicants.

The 20-second rule needs to be respected. Recruiters are busy and if you help them to review and understand your resume quicker, you will win. This is an example.

Eugene Hayden

Here are more examples of good résumés:

1. For MBA students

Eugene Hayden

2. For undergraduate and graduate students with < 3 years of experience

Eugene Hayden

3. For professionals (3-7 years of experience)

Eugene Hayden.

4. For professionals (7+ years of experience)

Eugene Hayden

It was shocking to see that 85% of résumés had the same type of mistakes, such as missing contact details, and no summary statements.

I am happy that I was able to help people get their dream jobs. I thought the hours spent were worth it.