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Stop Sending Generic Resumes! How to Tailor Your Resume to Land the Interview
Picture a recruiter clicking or flipping through resumes hastily when one suddenly pops out and stops them in their tracks. They think, “Wow, this person looks like the perfect fit! Let’s set up an interview.”
How do you make sure your cleared resume has the same effect? You need to be qualified, of course—but more importantly, you need to make that crystal clear to whoever reads your resume (and quickly too).
And how do you do that, you might ask? It’s simple: tailor your resume.
Why Tailoring Matters
A recent Security Cleared Jobs: Who’s Hiring & How podcast guest, Hannah Nyberg of BlackSky shared, “The biggest mistake I’ve seen, from day one of recruiting, is when people don’t craft their resume for the job.” Recruiters are overwhelmed with resumes to sift through, and tailoring your resume can mean the difference between landing in the “yes” pile or being overlooked.
“A recruiter, on average, spends seven to 10 seconds looking at a resume to decide if it’s worth spending any more time on,” explains Hannah Nyberg. “That’s nothing! I look through hundreds of resumes a day. So when you apply to a job, make sure you’re pulling out and mirroring that language to make it clear, so you can get to that first conversation.”
Listing your qualifications and experience in your own words is a good starting point, but it doesn’t always get you over the hump and into the phone screen / interview stage when the competition is stiff. To really be effective, you need to customize your resume to reflect the specific language and requirements in the job posting.
This not only helps you rank well or “get past” the applicant tracking system (ATS) but also grabs the attention of busy recruiters who are looking for clear connections between your background and their needs.
Let’s dive into five strategies to help you tailor your resume, ensuring you catch the eye of recruiters, land that coveted interview, and get one step closer to your next cleared job.
1. Start with a General Resume
Before diving into the specifics of tailoring your resume, it’s important to have a general version of your cleared resume on hand. This general resume will be used for situations like Cleared Job Fairs, job boards, or networking events where you’re casting a wide net and not targeting a particular position.
Hannah Nyberg suggests, “Have one long resume that has all of your experience. Then when you apply to a job, pull out what’s relevant, pull out what they’re looking for in that job post, and try to explicitly mirror the requirements on the posting.”
Having a general resume allows you to save time when tailoring it for a particular role. You won’t need to start from scratch, but instead, you’ll have a foundational document that you can easily adjust.
2. Analyze the Job Description
When it’s time to apply for a specific role, the first step is to closely examine the job description. This serves as a roadmap for what the employer is seeking in a candidate, and it provides critical information on the qualifications, experience, and skills that should be highlighted in your tailored resume.
Look for keywords that are repeated throughout the job description, as these are often terms the employer will be searching for. For example, if the posting emphasizes experience with “cybersecurity threat analysis” or “counterintelligence operations,” make sure to incorporate those exact phrases into your resume.
3. Align Your Experience with the Job Requirements
After analyzing the job description, identify the parts of your experience that most closely align with the role’s requirements. Your goal is to mirror the job description as much as possible, without misrepresenting your qualifications. As Hannah Nyberg advises, “Pretend the recruiter has no idea what they’re doing. You have to make it explicitly clear that you are qualified—without lying—for the position.”
For each job you apply to, highlight the most relevant aspects of your career that align with the job description. If the employer is looking for someone with experience managing large-scale defense projects, prioritize any past roles where you led similar initiatives.
This step is about being strategic. You don’t need to list every position or project you’ve worked on, only those that best showcase why you’re a strong candidate for this particular job.
4. Incorporate Keywords Naturally
Tailoring your resume means paying close attention to the keywords used in the job description. As Sebastian Lambert of Iron EagleX explained on our podcast, “The best way that you can beat an ATS is to really review the job description of the position that you’re applying for before you apply. Make sure that you’re matching up those keywords…If I don’t see those keywords, then how do I translate to the program manager that this person is qualified?”
Applicant tracking systems often scan resumes for select keywords before a recruiter even sees them. This makes using the right terminology crucial. Identify key phrases in the job posting, such as specific technologies or certifications, and ensure they are reflected in your resume. However, avoid simply stuffing your resume with keywords. Instead, integrate them naturally into your job descriptions and skills sections.
5. Tailor Your Resume for ATS Compatibility
As Tony Gilbert of Raytheon described for podcast listeners, “I’m gonna start putting keyword searches into our applicant tracking system. If there’s a qualification for a bachelor’s degree, I’m gonna put ‘bachelors,’ and it’s going to narrow from 500 to 100. And then I’m going to keep putting more qualifications until I have my top five or 10. And then I’m going to look at their resumes and I’m going to do a recruiter screen. But if you’re missing one of the major qualifications, because you just didn’t know or you’re just too lazy to tailor your resume, then you could have missed out on the perfect opportunity.”
This is a reminder that your resume should not only be tailored to the job but also formatted for ATS compatibility. Some best practices for ATS formatting include:
- Avoid using complex formatting like tables, columns, or graphics.
- Use standard section headings such as “Work Experience” or “Skills.”
- Incorporate keywords directly from the job description.
- Avoid overuse of acronyms unless they’re well-known in your industry.
This approach will help ensure your resume passes through ATS filters and lands in front of a recruiter.
The Time and Effort Will Pay Off
Tailoring your resume may take extra time compared to submitting the same general resume to every job. However, the results are worth it! By customizing your cleared resume for the specific role in question, you stand a better chance of making it through the initial screening process and into the interview stage.
As Tony Gilbert of Raytheon aptly sums it up, “You have to tailor your resume to every job you apply to. You’re better off applying for five jobs with a specific, tailored resume to the basic qualifications/requirements of the job than applying to 100 jobs with a general resume.”
Focusing your energy on a few targeted applications will yield better results than casting a wide net with an untailored resume. By starting with a general resume, carefully analyzing job descriptions, aligning your experience with the job requirements, and integrating the right keywords, you increase your chances of landing an interview. Taking the time to tailor your resume for each role shows recruiters that you’re not only qualified but also a serious contender for the position. As a result, you’ll be better positioned to make the most of every security-cleared job opportunity that comes your way.
this won’t work when employers set up their ATS to require a single resume as part of your profile. it seems the assumption employers and the ATS designers are making is the job seekers are only applying for one and only one job at an organization.
it will be challenging for a candidate to maintain hundreds of indiviually tailored resumes if they’re applying for a ultitude of jobs.
Ronald, you bring up a great point. There are some ATSs that will override your previously submitted resumes with your most recent one. We’re in the process of polling our cleared employers to see how prevalent this truly is. And as you noted, it can be challenging to stay organized with so many versions. But one of the ideas behind tailoring your resume is to take your time applying for jobs that you’re a match for and revising your resume to make that immediately clear to the recruiter/hiring manager reading it. This definitely takes more time than applying to many jobs with one general resume. It’s a quality-over-quantity dilemma in some ways. You may end up applying for fewer jobs (especially at one employer) if you take the time upfront to match yourself to the best role and tailor your resume to give yourself the best chance at moving forward in the hiring process for that specific opportunity. In the case that you do want to apply for multiple roles at one company, or the recruiter even instructed you to, reach out to the recruiter directly for advice. They are your advocate in the hiring process and will let you know what their preferences are and how you can best stand out in the process.