Resume screening is the first stage in the interview process. It doesn't matter how strong you are in CS, algorithms or LeetCode, if you submit a poorly-written resume that doesn't pass the resume screening stage, your hopes are dashed. Hence it is important to nail this stage.
The following content is by Christina Ng and rephrased for the purpose of this handbook. You can follow her on [Medium](https://medium.com/@christinang89) or [Quora](https://www.quora.com/profile/Christina-Ng).
While many engineers can be rather qualified for the role they are applying for, they miss out on getting a shot at the interview as they might never get past resume screening. The main issue was that they do not understand how recruiters worked.
Before writing your resume, it is important to understand the recruiting structure and how recruiting is done.
Before opening up a position/starting the search for candidates, I usually consult very closely with the team manager/decision maker to find out the specific skill sets that are relevant for the position. These skill sets are typically grouped into "Must have", "Good to have", and "Special bonus".
- "Must have"—Typically, most of the must-haves include a degree (or not) in a relevant technical field, some years (or not) of experience in a particular programming language or technology
- "Good to have"—Includes experience/familiarity with secondary languages/technologies which may not be directly relevant to what the candidate would be working on, but could be required due to some interfacing with other components of the project. It could also include softer skills such as being a good team player, clear communication, etc
- "Special bonus"—Recognized skill sets/experiences which are difficult to come by. Probably not a requirement, but would definitely be useful for the position
Now that I am armed with this list, the search for candidates begin.
Typically, I do not seek that "one perfect candidate". What I seek for is the "best fit candidate". The search is essentially a numbers game. I know that for a specific job posting, there would perhaps be X applicants. At each stage of the interview process, some percentage of the candidates will be eliminated, leaving only a final Y% of the initial pool to choose from. Since Y tends to be a rather small number, recruiters will try to maximize X.
When I am looking at your resume, I am doing a keyword match against the skill set checklist. If I see a good amount of the right keywords in your resume, it is a pass. If I need to spend more than 10 seconds trying to figure out what you are writing about, it is a fail. If I see an excessive amount of keywords (much looking like spam), it signals a red flag and goes into the "maybe". Depending on whether I think I have enough candidates for the day, you could eventually go into the pass or fail stack.
There are lots of articles writing about how recruiters only spend an average of about 10 seconds to screen each resume. The news is, this is true because resume screening is such a menial, robotic and repetitive task. In fact, many applicant tracking systems (ATS) now are so advanced that they can parse your resume automatically, search for specific keywords in your resume, and score your resume based on the weights pre-assigned to each keyword.
Finding a job is a two-way fit—the company wants someone with the relevant skills required, but it is also important for the applicant to fit in the company culture, and be able to gain something out of their stint. Hence, honesty is the single most important criteria in a resume.
There is a delicate balance between finding the right job vs. finding a job. Getting rejected does not always mean you are not good enough. Sometimes, it just means you are not a right fit for what the company is looking for.
When hiring fresh grads, I know that many of them will not have as much experience as someone who has years of industry experience. Hence, I would look out more for soft skills, such as attention to detail, initiative, passion, ability to get things done, etc. Note: this applies only if you have met the minimum threshold of proficiency/competency in the skill set checklist.
