Most CVs are not rejected for weak experience. They are rejected for avoidable mistakes: a typo in the first line, a file the ATS could not parse, a title that does not match the job. This is the checklist to run in the final five minutes before you click apply, so the version you send is the version you meant to send.
Content checks
Before anything technical, confirm the substance holds up. A recruiter spends seconds on the top third of the page, so it has to earn the rest.
- Name and contact are current: phone, email, and a working portfolio or LinkedIn link.
- The top third sells you: your strongest role and clearest result sit above the fold.
- Every bullet has an outcome: a number, a scope, or a result, not just a task.
- The title matches the target: your headline reflects the job you are applying for.
- No unexplained gaps: dates line up and any break is accounted for or reframed.
Technical and formatting checks
Now the mechanics that decide whether a machine can read the file at all.
- Saved as PDF, named clearly: firstname-lastname-cv.pdf, not final-v7.docx.
- Single column, standard headings: Experience, Education, Skills, nothing exotic.
- Consistent dates and tense: past roles in past tense, current role in present.
- Keywords from the posting appear naturally: the real ones, in real sentences.
The last look
Read the whole thing out loud once. Your ear catches what your eye skips: a repeated word, a bullet that trails off, a claim that sounds inflated. Then check the length against the role, one page early-career, two pages if you have earned it.
Speed this up with the resume checker for a full scored pass, the ATS checker to confirm it parses, and the keyword scanner to match the posting. If a check fails, the resume builder fixes the structure for you.