Logo
Back to ResourcesCareer Coach Checklist

Ultimate Resume Checklist

Work through each section before you submit. Career coaches use this exact framework to review hundreds of resumes - now it's yours, free.

Build my resume with AIExplore more resources
💡

Career coach tip

Print this page or open it side-by-side with your resume. Check each item only when you can genuinely say "yes" - not just "mostly". Recruiters spend an average of 7 seconds on a first scan. Every item here affects whether you make it past that scan.

01Contact & Header

  • Full name in a slightly larger font (16-18 pt) at the very top
  • Professional email address (firstname.lastname@domain.com)
  • Phone number with country code if applying internationally
  • City and state / country (full home address is not needed)
  • LinkedIn profile URL — customised to your name, not the default number
  • Portfolio or GitHub link (only if relevant to the role)
  • No photo, age, marital status, or nationality (avoids bias in most countries)

02Professional Summary

  • 3-4 lines max — tight, punchy, and role-specific
  • Opens with your title / level (e.g., "Product designer with 3 years...")
  • Includes your top 2 measurable achievements
  • Matches keywords from the job description naturally
  • Written in first-person without the pronoun "I"

03Work Experience

  • Reverse-chronological order (most recent job first)
  • Company name, your title, location, and dates (Month YYYY - Month YYYY)
  • Each bullet starts with a strong action verb (Led, Built, Reduced, Designed…)
  • At least one number in every bullet (%, $, volume, team size, time saved)
  • Focus on impact, not just duties - "what changed because of you?"
  • No more than 5-6 bullets per role; cut the rest
  • Gaps longer than 3 months briefly addressed in a summary or cover letter

04Education

  • Degree, major, institution, graduation year
  • GPA only if 3.5+ or explicitly required by the employer
  • Relevant coursework listed if you have under 2 years of experience
  • Honours, distinctions, or scholarships on a separate line
  • Certifications and online courses in their own sub-section (if many)

05Skills

  • Hard skills only - tools, languages, frameworks, platforms
  • Grouped by category (e.g., Languages · Frameworks · Tools · Platforms)
  • Matches terms used in the job description (ATS keyword match)
  • No soft skills listed here (they belong in your bullets, shown via evidence)
  • Proficiency levels omitted unless specifically requested

06ATS & Formatting

  • Saved as a PDF with a clean, machine-readable font (Calibri, Arial, Lato)
  • Single column layout unless you have design experience
  • Consistent spacing - same margin on every page (0.5"-1")
  • No tables, text boxes, headers/footers, or graphics that confuse parsers
  • File name: FirstName_LastName_Resume.pdf
  • Under 2 pages for under 10 years experience; 1 page preferred for students
  • Tailored - at least the summary and top skills edited for each application

Final sanity check

  • ✦ Read it aloud — does every bullet sound natural?
  • ✦ Ask a friend to read it cold and tell you what role they think you're applying for.
  • ✦ Paste the job description and your resume into jotlee's ATS scorer — aim for 80%+ match.
  • ✦ Send a test PDF to yourself and verify it opens cleanly on mobile.
Check my ATS scoreNext: Career Storytelling Workbook