Writing a one page resume, may prove to be more challenging than writing a 2 or 3 page resume. If you don’t have a lot of work experience or you are only going to write down 1 or 2 jobs, this is the way to go; however, there are times when you need to write a one page resume and you need to condense all the information in one page.

4 tips on what content to include in order to write a successful 1 page resume

Tip # 1: Determine the position you are applying for: Before you even start to write your one page resume, make sure you have a clear idea of exactly what position you are applying for in order to determine which information is relevant and which information not to include.

Tip # 2: Include information only once; do not repeat any information: If you performed the same duty while in different companies or while in different positions, list it only once.

Tip # 3: Only include your high school education if you just graduated from high school, in which case you are probably not struggling to fit your resume in one page. If you attended college or university it is understood that you graduated from high school. Same goes for any other course or training that requires a basic training; if you completed the training at a higher level, there is no need to include the basic level.

Tip # 4: Do not explain facts or duties that are obvious. Just state the fact as clearly as possible without going into unnecessary details. If you say that you performed reception or secretarial duties don’t write ” filing, phone answering, transferring calls, mail distribution, preparing couriers, answering email”. Those duties are implied when you say reception or secretarial duties. Only mention something that would be uncommon for the position and that gives you more qualifications such as organized travel arrangements for senior staff.

3 formatting tips that will help you write a successful 1 page resume

Tip # 5: Re-write your bullets: Go over the information in your bullets and write it several times trying to condense it as much as possible. Try several options, when writing the same sentence, without changing the meaning. Bullets are a very easy way to write lots of information. Bullets allow you to go straight to the point, getting rid of unnecessary verbs, prepositions nouns etc. When using bullets you can change ” I used to train, supervise and manage a team of over 20 staff members” to “Trained, supervised and managed 20+ staff”

Tip # 6: Write your contact information, phone and e-mail address, in one line across the paper

Tip # 7: Format your resume. Once you finish writing down all of your information, go back and format your resume once more. You would not believe how much you can do and you can fit in one page with the appropriate formatting. Try changing the font type and size. There is a lot of difference between fonts. Make sure the spacing is single space and that the margins are not too wide, top, bottom, left and right

When writing a one page resume, you must determine which is the most relevant information and format it in such a way that is easy to read keeping in mind spacing and margins. One page resumes are very effective if well written, clear and not overly crowded.