A recruiter has shared the things that she believes job seekers should omit from their resume in a viral post on LinkedIn.
Queen Nwaguru, 32, is a technical recruiter from Nigeria. Her recent post on the career-based social site has received thousands of reactions and hundreds of comments.
Here, Nwaguru shared eight things to remove from your resume, from your marital status to your hobbies.
"Working closely with numerous candidates, I've observed that crafting an effective CV is a global challenge," Nwaguru told Newsweek. "Many talented individuals are overlooked due to poorly constructed resumes filled with irrelevant information. This motivated me to raise awareness about the importance of refining CVs."
In the post, she listed the following things to cut from your resume:
1. Marital status
In many countries anti-discrimination laws usually prevent employers from inquiring about marital status, meaning that including this on your resume is irrelevant.
2. Your school details if you attended college
Once you've attended college or obtained other higher education qualifications, focus on earlier education is generally not so important.
3. Your date of birth
Similar to marital status, employers cannot make decisions on employment based on age, and so including this information is not relevant.
4. Your religion
Unless the job or industry is related to a religious organization, adding your religion to your job application can introduce bias and take up unnecessary space.
5. Your full home address
"Just state and local government area is ok," Nwaguru said in her post. This will give potential employers enough information about your location without compromising your privacy.
6. Your hobbies
While it is nice for employers to know a little bit about you, Nwaguru advised against including them in your resume.
"Nobody is going to shortlist your CV because you like playing games," she said.
7. Your ID number
Your ID information isn't usually required until later stages of the hiring process, and could be a personal security risk to include on your CV.
8. Irrelevant work experience
While lots of work experience can be tailored to fit different roles, Nwaguru said it is important to avoid including totally irrelevant experience.
"For example, [if] you are applying for nutrition job and you indicate that you have been working as a sales executive of Nivea," she said.
On LinkedIn, people who viewed the post were split on whether they agreed with the resume tips or not.
"I totally disagree," said one LinkedIn user. "There are no rules."
"It all depends on the type of employment you are applying for," said another.
Some were completely with Nwaguru. One commenter wrote: "I agree with all your points."
Nwaguru explained that it is all about making sure your resume is easy for potential employers to digest.
"These unnecessary details clutter the CV and take up valuable space that could be used for pertinent information," she said. "Removing them streamlines the document and increases its impact, thereby enhancing the chances of securing a job."
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Alice Gibbs is a Newsweek Senior Internet Trends & Culture Reporter based in the U.K. For the last two years ... Read more
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