It is easy for recruiters to review and identify red flags on a resume – as they do this on a daily purpose. Being a recruiter, it becomes important for you to identify such flags – as failing to do, might end you up hiring the wrong candidate. Here are some of the common red flags you might come across a resume.

1 – Inappropriate Formatting

Bad formatting portrays that the candidate is not suitable for the role. Tiny fonts, objectives, references, or too many bullet points are all examples of inappropriate formatting. Hobbies, irrelevant work experience, and political or religious information are also some of the sections you shouldn’t come across in a resume.

At present, there are three resume writing formats in 2022 – Chronological, Functional, and Combination. Chronological format is considered to be the most ideal – as it effectively lays out the flow of resume content.

Also, the candidate needs to highlight sections that are most suitable for the job they’re applying for.

2 – A Generic Resume

Most candidates use a cookie-cutter generic resume for every job posting – which is considered spamming. Candidates need to tweak their master resume, to the specific job posting they seek to apply for.

Also, make sure that there aren’t any big words or unusual vocabulary on a resume. Besides being difficult to decipher – such language indicates that the candidate has a lack of confidence. The resume content should be clear and succinct.

3 – An Overconfident Candidate

“Overconfidence will drown you in a sea of reality”. This is a BIG red flag for recruiters. Overconfident candidates are filled with presumptuous talks such as “A great team player” or “Leadership qualities” – which are needed to be disregarded. As a recruiter, that’s for you to decide.

But how exactly do you figure out whether the candidate lacks interest – or that he is actually invested in working with the company? Send them a questionnaire.

4 – Clichés Are A No-Go!

According to professional resume writers – clichés such as “I’m hard-working”, “Solid team player” – are platitudes that are being constantly overused. As a recruiter, this might make you cringe. Only if the role requires a specific skill set or ability – the candidate should include on in their resume. There should not be an overuse of “overused clichés”.

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