Resume Experiment Presentation

Jul 10, 2024

Resume Experiment Presentation Notes

Introduction

  • Topic: An experiment on resume effectiveness.
  • Context: Applied to over 500 jobs with five similar resumes over two months.
  • Objective: Determine what factors recruiters care about in resumes.
  • Important Result: The findings were surprising and impactful.

Experiment Plan

  • **Method: **Created one control resume and four variations with small tweaks.
  • Testing: Applied to 100 jobs with each resume.
  • Measurement: Number of interviews received, termed as the interview rate.

Control Resume (Resume #1)

  • Name: Used a stereotypical Caucasian male name.
  • Company: Listed Facebook (Meta) as first work experience.
  • Content: Bullet points remained constant across resumes.
  • Outcome: Received 18 interviews (18% interview rate).

Variation Resumes

Resume #2: Different Company Name

  • Company: Changed from Meta to an obscure company name (Indigenous Ninjas Energy Synthesis).
  • Outcome: 10 interviews (10% interview rate).
  • Insight: Brand name significantly impacts interview rate.

Resume #3: Different Template

  • Format: Used a visually appealing template from Canva.
  • Content: Kept information consistent with Resume #1.
  • Outcome: 8 interviews (8% interview rate).
  • Insight: Aesthetic templates do not perform as well as simple, structured ones.

Resume #4: Ethnic Woman's Name

  • Name: Changed to an ethnic female name.
  • Company: Updated company to another big tech name.
  • Outcome: 10 interviews (10% interview rate).
  • Insight: Name ethnicity affects interview rates.

Resume #5: Job Gap

  • History: Included a three-year job gap.
  • Outcome: 8 interviews (8% interview rate).
  • Insight: Job gaps negatively impact interview rates. Suggested solutions:
    • Remove months to minimize visible gaps.
    • Take and list courses/projects to fill the gap.

Conclusions & Recommendations

  • Effective Resume: Simple, structured resumes are more effective.
  • Brand Name Importance: Listing prominent companies can double interview rates.
  • Aesthetic Templates: Visually appealing resumes are less effective unless for design roles.
  • Ethnic Names: May result in fewer interviews.
  • Dealing with Job Gaps: Remove months, take courses, and include projects to mitigate the impact.
  • Final Ranking:
    1. Resume #1: 18 interviews (18%)
    2. Resume #2 and #4 (tie): 10 interviews (10%)
    3. Resume #3 and #5 (tie): 8 interviews (8%)

Contact & Further Help

  • Contact: Reach out on Instagram (@jerryjhley) for more help or questions.
  • Feedback: Encouraged to leave comments on the presentation.

Note: Keep resumes simple and structured for better recruiter response.