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Pop quiz question: how long do you think a recruiter spends on a typical resume? A) 1 minute, B) 2 minutes, C) 30 seconds, D) 6 seconds. I didn’t make this very hard, given my post title. Yes, the answer is D! According to new research from theladders.com, recruiters spend an average of only 6.25 seconds on a resume before deciding whether that candidate may be a good fit for the job. Now more than ever, candidates have to work hard to wow the recruiters, and do it in well under 10 seconds! Here are some additional statistics that I found interesting – 80% of that 6.25 seconds is spent on basic resume content, like name, job titles and employer names, start/end dates of employment, and education. The other 20% goes toward scanning for keywords matching the job description.

What does this mean for you, the job seeker? First and foremost – no typos or grammatical errors. This may seem obvious, but for those of you who have spent countless hours writing and refining your resume, it’s easier than you think to miss something. Make sure to get a second, and even a third, pair of eyes to review your resume before it goes to anyone. Second, a resume should have concise and easy to read content from start to finish. More specifically, don’t use paragraph explanations of your experience, keep bullet points short (use sub-bullets if you must, for must-have details), and remember that your resume doesn’t have to (and shouldn’t!) include every last detail of your past employment. Lastly, when applying for a specific job opening, be sure to review the ad or job description for keywords so you can include them in your resume. This does take more work, but your goal is to perk up that recruiter on the first pass of your resume. Matching multiple keywords will help you get to the top of the list. You have just over six seconds to make an impression, so make those six seconds count!