30 Dec What Do HR Executives Find Attractive In A Resume For Freshers?

Despite the pandemic, the fresher hiring sentiment is positive in India. 17% of Indian employers are keen to hire fresh graduates, as opposed to only 6% globally. It means if you are a fresher looking for a job in India, you have significantly better career prospects. Information Technology, telecommunications, technology startups, healthcare and logistics are the main sectors fueling this demand. All you need is to have a focused approach to outshine your competitors. The first step to getting your dream job is to craft a resume for freshers that instantly grabs the attention of recruiters.

When a recruitment team visits a campus or invites applications online, they receive resumes in bulk. They are inundated with so many resumes that they do not have the time to give each resume a fair share of time. According to a report, recruiters spend only 6 seconds on each resume. Needless to say, your resume for beginners has to be perfect to impress them in such a short timeframe.

So, what do recruiters prefer in a resume for freshers? Let’s find out.

A Professional Summary

A professional summary goes at the top of your resume, right below your name and contact information. As a fresher, you may wonder if it makes sense to include a professional summary when you are just getting started. Well, it does and can make a substantial difference in your application.

Firstly, it indicates your ability to articulate. Secondly, it demonstrates your hands-on experience vis-a-vis your college projects and internships concisely. Thirdly, your goals help the recruiters to evaluate if they match with that of their company.

Hot tip: While writing a professional summary, write no more than three sentences. Mention your college project and/or internship experience, awards or recognition received in college and your goals to be in this profession.

Also Read: Things To Consider While Deciding The Format For A Resume

Educational Qualification

When making a cv for beginners, mentioning your education details is a must. Recruiters want to know the stream of engineering that you have pursued or your specialisation in an MBA program. It is a key selection criterion, and if you are not sharing these details, there is a high chance that recruiters are going to ignore your resume and move on.

It is recommended to include your past and present grades in a fresher resume, regardless of the job you are applying for. Some employers also consider a minimum passing grade when they are evaluating freshers.

Projects and Internships

After checking that your resume meets all the selection criteria, the recruiters are likely to jump to this section. After all, it is the only section that showcases relevant work experience. In this section, mention the details of all the projects and internships.

Write at least 2-3 bullet points under each project to explain what it was about and your role in it. Also, mention the skills you used to work on your projects and the outcome.

Hot Tip: Use numbers wherever you can to convey the impact of your project to solve a real-time problem.

Achievements

By mentioning your achievements and awards, you demonstrate how you have pushed boundaries in the past. Recruiters prefer such freshers who have excelled and proven their mettle in a field.

Your achievements could be academic, related to sports, music, arts or pretty much anything as long as you have participated in a competition and earned recognition. At times, they also indicate a few personality traits like leadership and organizational skills, collaborative approach, or taking initiative. The recruiters can pick up these subtle hints in your resume and consider you for an interview round.

Extra-Curricular

Employers want well-rounded candidates to infuse fresh energy into their organizations. When you mention your volunteering experience or your out-of-academia interests, they get an indication there is more to your personality. There have been umpteen instances when a fresher interview was based entirely on such interests. Several candidates have been selected purely by talking in-depth about an extra-curricular activity.

Hot Tip: Include only those extra-curricular activities that you are passionate about and have considerable experience in.

Conclusion

When you are new to the corporate world, the process of applying to jobs and giving interviews can seem daunting. The best way to approach this is by preparing yourself. Making a resume for freshers that can catch the attention of the recruiters is often the first step. With the information given above, you can now nail it easily.