21 Resume Tips That Get More Interviews in 2024

Small Changes, Big Results

Most resumes lose interviews not because the candidate is unqualified, but because of small, fixable mistakes. These 21 tips cover the changes that make the biggest difference — based on what recruiters and hiring managers actually look for.

Formatting and Structure

• Keep your resume to one page if you have under 10 years of experience.
• Use a clean, single-column layout that ATS software can parse easily.
• Choose a professional font like Calibri, Arial, or Georgia at 10-12pt.
• Use consistent formatting for dates, bullet points, and headers throughout.
• Save as PDF unless the job posting specifically requests another format.
• Leave generous white space — dense text is hard to skim and gets skipped.

Writing Stronger Content

• Replace the objective statement with a summary that highlights what you offer, not what you want.
• Start every bullet point with a strong action verb: Led, Built, Grew, Launched, Reduced.
• Quantify achievements whenever possible — numbers prove impact better than adjectives.
• Mirror the exact keywords from the job description to improve ATS match scores.
• Focus on accomplishments, not responsibilities. Show what you changed or improved.
• Tailor your resume for each application — a generic resume always underperforms.

Skills and Keywords

• Include a dedicated skills section with 8-15 relevant, specific terms.
• Spell out acronyms on first use so both humans and ATS can parse them.
• Remove outdated or irrelevant skills — every line should earn its place.
• Match the job posting's exact phrasing for critical skills and tools.

Final Polish

• Proofread three times, then ask someone else to proofread again.
• Remove your street address — city and region are enough and protect privacy.
• Make sure your email address is professional, not a novelty handle.
• Include a link to your LinkedIn profile, cleaned up and current.
• Test your resume by pasting the job description into a word cloud tool — make sure the biggest words appear in your resume too.

Put These Tips Into Action

Our free resume builder applies these best practices by default — clean formatting, ATS-friendly structure, and section prompts that guide you toward stronger content. Build your resume in minutes and start getting more interviews.