Three seconds. That’s the average time that a fashion recruiter takes to decide if your application is worth considering for the position or not. That’s how long it takes them to evaluate your resume and decide whether to continue reading it or move on to the next one. Can you pass this three-second resume test to get a job in fashion?
Writing your own resume is never easy and you may feel discouraged especially when you have no experience or if you have not seen results for your applications until now. I understand perfectly how you feel because over 10 years ago when I had to write my first resume to follow my dream of working in fashion, I felt totally lost. I didn’t know which template was best and above all I had just graduated so I was afraid that companies would never choose me due to my lack of experience.
In the end, I made it to two job-interview rounds because partly recruiters were impressed by my resume. And even earlier than I expected, I was sitting at the desk of my favorite fashion company, Alexander McQueen, starting my first internship.
So keep the tips below in mind when writing your next resume.
How do recruiters decide if your resume is worth reading?
You might think that the best resumes — and therefore the candidates who get the job — are the ones who have the most experience (preferably already in fashion) and studied at the top fashion schools. First of all, this is a huge misconception. And if you think about it, it would be impossible for a fashion recruiter in just three seconds to go through all your degrees and experiences.
In reality, fashion recruiters pay attention to something else in a resume.
First impressions count. And your resume is the first impression a fashion company makes about you.
The first impression they make is all about the general aspect of your resume — the layout, design, and structure. If you can catch the recruiter’s attention at this step, then you are off on the right foot.
On average, a fashion company receives 500 resumes for the same position. So it becomes quite obvious that recruiters will quickly discard the resumes that are flat or messy at first glance.
If your resume is flat or messy, that’s how you’ll be perceived as well by a fashion recruiter. The might think that you are probably not a detail-oriented person, or that you don’t care much about the position. If a candidate cannot even make a presentable resume, how can the company assign them more responsibilities?
A resume shows your personal branding
Your resume is part of your personal branding; the way you structure it, and the template, the font you chose, the size of the font, the colors… They all say things about your personality.
Fashion recruiters can already capture your personality and mindset from your resume; that’s why it only takes a three-second test to get an immediate idea of you and decide whether or not you might be the right fit for the job.Â
It’s not enough to have lots of experience and the best skills if the design of your resume is poor and it doesn’t enhance how amazing you are. In fact, many times the problem with resumes is not that people don’t have the right skills or enough experience to get the job. Most of the time, the mistake is in the way they present themselves.
You could match the job perfectly, and have 10/10 of the skills outlined. But if your resume is not designed and formatted correctly, you might not get the job.
A proof of your potential
On the other (positive) side, having a brilliant resume can get you the job even when you don’t meet all the requirements! Remember that an outstanding application can overcome any lack of skills and experience required.
As we said, your resume is a reflection not only of your experience but of your personality, especially when you are at the beginning of your career and you don’t have much experience to leverage.
If you can impress recruiters or bosses with a brilliant resume template, you are showing them you have the potential the fashion industry is looking for!
Experience isn’t everything
Before you ask, even if you are at the beginning of your career and the only thing you could add to your resume is your degree, that’s okay. A short resume is enough to start a career in fashion. If fashion companies wanted to hire only people with some kind of experience already, internships and entry-level positions would not exist.
And yet, when you are competing with other 500 average applicants, it can be challenging to stand out. That’s why you need to bet on a creative application that impresses recruiters and shows them you think out of the box and you have the potential they are looking for.
So, if until now you thought it’s more important to give weight to the content and experience, you can see how critical the visual aspect of your resume is. That’s what a recruiter will consider if they can’t base their decision on your previous experience because you are at the beginning of your career. Quality over quantity, remember that.
Want more tips to get noticed by fashion recruiters? Consider using unconventional strategies in your applications, which I share in my free webinar.
