With Resume Keywords, Context is King

You have likely seen the advice that you need to customize your resume for every job application.

It may seem like an incredible chore, but it can be very empowering.

Recruiters want to hire you, but they are very busy. You DON’T want to make them work too hard to see your value. And they DON’T want a resume stuffed with random keywords with no context. Customizing and providing context is how you make recruiters happy. Here is what one funny and generous recruiter has to say about keywords:

See below for the exact steps for how to optimize YOUR resume.

Is this just for Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS)?

No. The popularity of Applicant Tracking Systems jumpstarted a conversation about resume keywords and their importance, but recruiters now are pretty vocal about the fact that most resumes are reviewed by actual human beings, not just robots.

Here’s the thing…

Humans respond to keyword optimization too. Recruiters know what keywords they are looking for (they wrote the job posting!), and they want to see them quickly and easily. Help them!

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Include Relevant Resume Keywords in ALL Sections

To make it easy to customize for a specific job, you need a Base Resume that has everything you have ever done, which will encompass a wide variety of resume keywords.

This is like having a closet full of clothes that you can pick and choose from to make the perfect outfit for a specific occasion. It becomes the database you draw from to create a customized resume.

• Every (even somewhat) relevant job.
• Everything you did in those jobs, with each bullet point focused on one function/task/accomplishment. As an example, I mean one bullet point on press releases, one bullet point on blog posts, and yet another on impression tracking.
• Every project, whether personal or from a job, if it is related to your profession.
• Every accomplishment from those experiences, no matter how “small.” If you have ever exceeded a goal, or gone above or beyond, employers want to know:

What have you achieved in the past few years that you would talk about in an interview?

What projects are you most proud of?

Where have you exceeded expectations?

How have you made an impact on your organization?

Take stock of your accomplishments, and don’t self-edit. Many women don’t even recognize their accomplishments because they are “just doing their job.” Women have a tough time articulating their achievements, but if you don’t, no one is going to do it for you. If you have access to past performance reviews, check them out. Think about how your workplace will be different after you are gone.

Once you have a list, provide details for each achievement. You want the recruiter to understand YOUR  contribution.

See the difference between these two bullets?

Make a point to track your future accomplishments. Also, start saving those emails you get telling you what a great job you’ve done! Call it your Mood Booster file.   

• Every educational achievement (degrees, other training, online or in-person, all of it). If you have a Bachelor’s degree, include the full phrase “Bachelor of Arts in…” or Bachelor of Science in…” rather than BA or BS.
• Minors and concentrations.
• Educational awards and distinctions.
• Title of your thesis, if applicable.
• Relevant coursework if not obvious from your degree (e.g., you took coursework in Business Strategy although you were a Philosophy major).
• Every certification, again with the full title.
• Every licensure with the license number if applicable.

• Every concept or category you have developed skills in, such as digital marketing. These are what people call competencies (more broad than specific skills).
• Every specific skill, such as e-mail list management.
• Every software or technical tool, such as Mailchimp.
• Don’t forget to include MS Office and other skills you assume everyone has.

• If you are early in your career, you may have academic projects that are highly relevant.
• If you have done personal projects or side gigs that are relevant, include these as well.

• You may not state these explicitly on your resume, but take time to note professional skills (a.k.a. “soft” skills) and personal qualities that make you a strong applicant.
• Do you have a strong work ethic? Are you a persuasive communicator? Good at resolving conflict? Just note them here as a reminder to try to include them somewhere.
• They can be incorporated into a Summary or Profile section at the top, and woven in elsewhere.

Don’t worry about length, or formatting, for any of the above. You will never send this version of your resume to anyone, but you will use it to craft your laser-focused application for a specific job.

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Reframe Your Concept of What a Resume Is

You might be thinking about this all wrong…

A resume is a billboard, not an obituary. It’s a marketing document to get an interview for a specific job, not a list of everything you have ever done. I have many clients who have trouble downplaying something on a resume because they are proud of that degree or that accomplishment. It’s understandable–those can represent a lot of blood, sweat, and tears.

But, if an experience is irrelevant to the job you are applying for, it’s just getting in the way. You can still feel proud, but you are trying to make it EASY on the recruiter. You might include it, but leave off the details.

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Figure Out Which Resume Keywords to Highlight

Fortunately, employers provide lots of keyword clues in their job postings. A careful read is a MUST, but also use AI tools like ChatGPT to analyze job postings and give you a list of Experience and Skill keywords. Use different tools to get a variety of responses. Always review the results and closely read the job posting yourself to inform your choices too.

If you have an inside contact you can get even better information about what they are seeking, and raise your chances of getting an interview tremendously. Here are some other sources to explore to identify keywords.

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In your bullet points, provide examples, tell stories, and include keywords in context. A random list of keywords doesn’t let recruiters visualize how you might use those skills. In the video above, this is a BIG pain point for hiring managers.

• Championed, secured budget, and implemented 2 new ed-tech career coaching tools (FOCUS2 and InterviewStream), increasing student engagement by over 20%.

And don’t, under any circumstances, include keywords in white text at the bottom of your resume. It will only hurt you.

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1. Open your Base Resume document. Save it under a new file name that incorporates your name and the company name (not just Resume2.docx!)
2. Review your Experiences. Do you have some that are related to the job, and others that are not very related? Consider splitting your Experience section into two sections, Related Experience and Additional Experience.
3. Start with your most recent related Experience. Delete any bullet points that are truly not relevant. Re-order the remaining bullet points in order of importance to the employer.
4. Do the same for other related Experiences.
5. Edit your Additional Experience section. You could include just the employer, your title, and dates.
6. Review your Skills section. Emphasize the important ones by moving to the top, bolding, or otherwise highlighting.
7. Review your Education section. Probably not many changes needed here.
8. Lastly, zoom back to the top and complete a Profile or Summary section. Think of the 2 or 3 key things you want this employer to know about your experience and capabilities. This is the place to really hit hard. In the example below, the applicant has other skills but highlighted the ones the employer expressly is seeking. Her work experiences detail how she has used her skills.

Need more help?

Learn more about how to create a resume recruiters will love in this 42-page guide, plus get a free resume template!