Your resume is your ticket to landing your dream job.
But if you’re not careful, it can also be why the hiring manager doesn’t call you for an interview.
The job market is competitive, and hiring managers are careful about who they invest time in. If they see a red flag anywhere on your job application, it can immediately cost you an opportunity.
Thankfully, most resume red flags are very easy to catch and correct before it’s too late. Just grab your resume and read our article to ensure none of them slip through.
We’re going to cover:
- What Qualifies as a Red Flag on a Resume
- Hiring Managers’s 13 Biggest Resume Red Flags
- 5 Controversial Resume Red Flags
…and more.
Let’s dive in!
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What Are Resume Red Flags?
Resume red flags are critical mistakes that make hiring managers hesitate about going through your job application in more detail.
Red flags are like warning signs that something isn’t quite right – whether it's about your work experience, professionalism, or attention to detail.
A red flag raises questions about your qualifications, makes the hiring manager's job harder than it needs to be, or suggests you’re not taking the application process seriously enough.
Some red flags are so big that hiring managers might immediately discard your job application. Even if they don’t disqualify you, red flags will tip the scales against you and make it harder to land the job you want.
So, it’s extremely important to identify these setbacks in your resume and address them before submitting your application.
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Quick Tip
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Top 13 Resume Red Flags to Avoid
Some resume mistakes are so critical they can make a hiring manager immediately toss your job application aside. We’ve compiled a list of the biggest ones to watch out for:
#1. Unexplained Employment Gaps
Having gaps in your employment history isn't automatically a red flag – but failing to explain them is.
When hiring managers see unexplained gaps in your resume, they might worry you're hiding something. But notice how "unexplained" is the key word here. A gap becomes a red flag when you leave it up to the hiring manager's interpretation.
Did you take time off to care for a family member? Maybe you were fired from your previous job? Or you were focusing on education or personal development?
These are all valid reasons for employment gaps, but the hiring manager won't know unless you tell them. Hiring managers understand that life happens. What they're really looking for is evidence that you used this time productively and are now ready to fully commit to a new role.
So, handle employment gaps properly by being upfront about them in your resume.
For example:
Resume Gap Example
Career Break12/2022 - 05/2023- Took time off work to care for an ill family member.
- Obtained several Advanced Digital Marketing certifications.
- Maintained industry knowledge through freelance consulting projects
- Developed project management skills through volunteer work at a local non-profit
Notice how this example explains the reason for the gap while focusing on growth and professional engagement during that time. The hiring manager can see that while you weren’t formally employed, you were still developing skills relevant to your career.
#2. Only Listing Responsibilities
The day-to-day tasks at your previous job don’t tell the hiring manager anything about your performance or the value you bring to their team.
The hiring manager probably knows your responsibilities by reading the job title. Remember – they write the job descriptions, so if you’re applying for a similar job you’d be repeating what they already know.
For example, if you’re looking for a new social media marketing position, they already know you managed social media and had to increase the employer’s outreach there.
Hiring managers are far more interested in your results and how you achieved them. So, focus on your most impressive achievements!
Let’s look at an example:
Incorrect Example
- Responsible for managing social media accounts
- Creating content for Instagram and TikTok
- Helped run various social media campaigns
Correct Example
- Grew Instagram following from 5K to 25K in 6 months through targeted content strategy, resulting in a 40% increase in social media-driven sales
- Developed and executed 3 viral campaigns reaching 100K+ viewers each
- Trained 2 junior team members who now manage our TikTok channel
Notice how we included clear, measurable results in our second example. These quantified achievements show exactly what you accomplished, how you did it, and what your impact was.
Vague statements like “managed a team” or “increased sales” can be a red flag, too. Describe your achievements correctly by providing enough concrete data to give yourself credibility.
#3. Not Tailoring Your Resume
Every time you send a generic resume to a job posting, you're missing an opportunity to show why you're the perfect candidate for that specific role. This makes not tailoring your resume to the job an immediate red flag.
The first way to effective tailoring is to add a resume summary in the header.
This short paragraph at the top of your resume aims to catch the hiring manager’s attention by listing your application highlights. This includes years of experience, one or two impressive achievements, and some of your most relevant skills and qualifications.
Then, of course, is your actual work experience section. This is a keystone section of your resume so, you have to make it impressive.
This means you need to highlight experience and skills that matter for the position you're applying to. Don’t make a generic, cookie-cutter resume you can send for any position in the company – zero in on the exact things that make you right for this specific position.
Using generic text templates or AI-generated content is an immediate red flag here. Phrases like "results-driven professional with a proven track record" appear on thousands of resumes and tell the hiring manager absolutely nothing about your actual capabilities.
Let's look at how the same digital marketing experience can be tailored for two different jobs:
Social Media Assistant Example:
Digital Marketing AssistantFull Picture CompanyNew York, NY09/2023 - 12/2023- Analyzed various social media platforms for trending content.
- Managed company social media accounts.
- Posted interesting content on the company's Facebook page, increasing engagement by 25%.
Content Writer Example:
Digital Marketing AssistantFull Picture CompanyNew York, NY09/2023 - 12/2023- Assisted the Marketing Manager in writing press releases and new blog posts, which increased web traffic by 25%.
- Created engaging content for email marketing campaigns and boosted newsletter subscriptions.
- Revitalized old blog posts with updated information and SEO optimization, improving organic search rankings by 30%.
As you can see, both examples focus on transferable skills. Since digital marketing includes a wide array of skills and responsibilities, the first example puts the focus on social media, while the second emphasizes relevant content writing experience.
#4. Overhyping Your Contributions
Exaggerating what you’ve achieved on your resume could seriously damage your career prospects.
Taking full credit for team achievements is a huge red flag. Claiming you "increased company revenue by 50%" when you were part of a ten-person team that collaborated is misleading. Hiring managers know that significant results usually come from team efforts, so that might raise some eyebrows.
Having different versions of your work history on your resume and LinkedIn profile is also a major red flag. Hiring managers often cross-reference these, and any discrepancies will raise serious questions about your honesty.
Grandiose, false claims about your skills or experience will eventually come to light even if you land the job, and then you’ll be in serious trouble.
Lying on your resume can have severe consequences beyond just losing a job opportunity. Many companies have policies to terminate employees who lied during the hiring process, even if it’s been years since they were hired. Some industries even maintain blacklists for candidates caught lying about their credentials.
#5. Poor Resume Formatting
One of the biggest red flags out there is bad formatting.
This mistake can make your resume hard to read, visually unappealing, or just plain unprofessional. Even with stellar qualifications, a badly formatted resume might get overlooked simply because the hiring manager can't quickly find the information they need.
One major formatting mistake is not using the reverse-chronological format for your work experience. Hiring managers want to see your most recent and relevant experience first; they don't want to scroll through your entire work history to find out what you're doing now.
That being said, most formatting red flags are related to your resume’s design and layout.
Some of these include:
- Inconsistent fonts or font sizes throughout your resume
- Bright colors for the main text instead of just accent elements (like headings, section titles, or links)
- Cramming too much information into small spaces
- Inconsistent spacing between sections
- Poor alignment of text and bullet points
- Hard-to-read font styles or font sizes that are too small
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#6. Including Irrelevant Personal Information
Adding personal information that isn't relevant to the job can distract hiring managers from your professional qualifications. At worst, it can give them reasons to question your judgment or a justifiable reason to toss your application aside.
Your resume should always focus on you as a professional. Personal details such as age, marital status, religious beliefs, or political views do not belong here. In many countries, including the USA, employers are not even allowed to consider this information in their hiring decisions.
Likewise, adding links to your personal social media accounts can be very risky. If a hiring manager checks your public Instagram stories and finds inappropriate content, controversial opinions, or complaints about previous employers, your application will likely end up in the rejection pile.
Even if you don’t include links to your social media, it’s important to consider your online presence. If the hiring manager looks you up on Facebook or Instagram, are they going to find a public profile of yours that you’d rather they don’t see?
Finally, think about any hobbies and interests you might want to add to your resume. This is an optional resume section that we recommend including only if you have space you’d like to fill with something interesting about yourself, but there’s a right and wrong way to do it.
Let’s look at two examples:
Unprofessional Example:
ABOUT MEAge: 31Relationship Status: SingleInstagram: @partyking95Hobbies: Partying, Netflix and chillInterests: Cryptocurrency trading, street racing
Professional Example:
Hobbies & Interests- Reading about computer science
- Writing tech reviews on my blog
- Running coding workshops for teenagers
- Weightlifting and mountain biking
The second example demonstrates leadership, industry engagement, and community involvement–all valuable traits relating to your professional capabilities.
#7. Making Your Resume Too Long
Unless you have decades of relevant experience, your resume should fit on a single page.
Hiring managers spend a mere six seconds skimming each resume. If they can’t find the most relevant information at a glance, it’s a major red flag.
A two-page resume guarantees the hiring manager will miss your most relevant work experience or impressive achievements.
Now, this doesn’t mean you always have to stick to a one-page resume.
If you’re a seasoned professional with years of relevant experience, a two-page resume is acceptable. But for most candidates, even with five to ten years of experience, one page is more than enough.
Your resume isn't meant to be a complete history of your career. It's a carefully curated document that shows the hiring manager what makes you perfect for the job. If you want to go into more detail, expand on your experience and achievements when you write a cover letter.
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Quick Tip
Are you applying for a job in academia? Then a one-page resume won’t be enough. Learn how to write an academic CV with our detailed guide!
#8. Using Overly Complicated Vocabulary
Using complex language on your resume isn’t how you impress hiring managers. Fancy words and corporate jargon don't make you sound more professional either - they make you harder to understand.
Hiring managers want to quickly understand what you've accomplished. If they have to decipher complex sentences just to figure out what you did at your last job, they're more likely to move on to the next candidate.
Besides, using that kind of overly complicated vocabulary implies that you don’t understand what the job requires or that you lack basic communication skills. Either way, huge red flag!
Just use clear, straightforward language in your resume, the same that you'd use in a professional conversation. You don't need to sound like you swallowed a thesaurus to prove you're qualified.
Let's look at two ways to describe the same role:
Incorrect Example:
Business Development RepresentativeGlobal Solutions Inc.Singapore06/2022 - Present- Leveraged strategic methodologies to facilitate synergistic partnerships while orchestrating mission-critical revenue generation initiatives.
- Implemented innovative customer-centric paradigms to maximize stakeholder satisfaction metrics.
- Utilized cutting-edge technological solutions to optimize mission-critical operational procedures.
Correct Example:
Business Development RepresentativeGlobal Solutions Inc.Singapore06/2022 - Present- Built relationships with 50+ potential clients, converting 40% into active accounts worth $2M annually.
- Improved customer satisfaction scores by 25% through a personalized follow-up system.
- Streamlined sales process using CRM software, reducing average deal closure time by two weeks.
The first example is vague, overly complicated, and doesn’t say anything useful. The second clearly tells the hiring manager exactly what you achieved and relies on concrete results instead of fancy words.
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Quick Tip
Did you miss the mark somewhere on your resume? Check out these 51 essential tips to fix your resume ASAP!
#9. No Career Growth
Staying in the same position for too many years can be a red flag for employers.
Hiring managers want to hire candidates continuously developing their skills and taking on new challenges.
Career advancement doesn't always mean getting promoted to a managerial position. It can also mean expanding your responsibilities, learning new skills, or moving to more complex projects. But your resume needs to show this progression clearly.
A static career path might suggest you're not proactive at work or that you’re resistant to learning new things. Unfortunately, this doesn’t always mean “stability” for employers. The job market is extremely fast-changing these days, and employers value candidates who invest in career growth.
Let's look at two different ways to present your career progression:
Static Example:
Sales RepresentativeTechPro Solutions2018 - 2023- Made cold calls to potential clients
- Maintained existing customer relationships
- Generated monthly sales reports
- Met annual sales targets
Growth Example:
Sales RepresentativeTechPro Solutions2018 - 2023- Started as a Junior Sales Rep and got promoted twice based on consistent top performance
- Progressed from local accounts to managing the company's top ten enterprise clients
- Developed a new sales training program now used by the entire department
- Increased personal sales quota from $500K to $2M through expanded responsibilities
Even within the same company, you can show how your career has developed. The second example clearly demonstrates how you've grown your skills, taken initiative, and earned greater responsibility over time.
#10. Many Short Employment Periods
Having multiple jobs that lasted less than a year can raise serious concerns for hiring managers.
While strategic job changes for career advancement are increasingly common, a pattern of very brief employment periods is definitely a red flag. Especially if these different jobs are evidence of complete career changes.
Short stints at multiple companies might suggest you get fired frequently, can't adapt to new environments, or lack commitment. If you’re aiming to change your career again, it might tell the hiring manager you get bored too easily.
An unexplained pattern of brief employment periods will concern hiring managers even if there are good reasons for these changes.
That said, there is a difference between job hopping and the too many short employment periods we’re referring to here.
While the terms are sometimes used interchangeably, job hopping now typically means making strategic moves every few years for better opportunities. This could be switching employers at a frequency of anywhere between one and a half and three years. In that case, there’s also a process for quitting your job the right way.
But frequently leaving positions after just a few months is much more concerning to employers, and hiring managers will bring it up during the interview – if they interview you at all.
#11. Grammar Mistakes and Typos
The fastest way to ruin a first impression is by not proofreading your resume.
Any spelling errors immediately signal a lack of attention to detail and, possibly, laziness. Even a single typo can cost you an interview opportunity.
If you can't take the time to perfect a document that represents your entire career, hiring managers will question how careful you'll be with important tasks at work.
Submitting a resume rife with mistakes suggests that you either don't know proper grammar and spelling, which is a basic professional skill, or you don't care enough to check your work thoroughly.
But don't rely solely on spellchecking tools here; they won't catch every error. Ask someone else to review your resume or at least read it out loud to yourself. Take a break and proofread it again with fresh eyes.
We recommend paying special attention to commonly confused words like "their/they're/there" or "affect/effect," and double-checking the spelling of technical terms, company names, and job titles. Your resume needs to be perfect, so take the time to polish it.
#12. Using an Unprofessional Email Address
Your email address is often the first point of contact between you and potential employers. So, it’s only normal that using an unprofessional email address can immediately damage your chances of being taken seriously.
This might seem like a small detail, but it matters immensely. Your email address appears at the top of your resume, in all your job application forms, and in every communication with the hiring manager. Make sure it projects professionalism.
Creating a professional email address takes less than five minutes, but many candidates still use email addresses they created in high school or college. This can make you appear immature or unaware of professional standards.
Let's look at some examples:
Professional Examples:
- jane.doe@email.com
- jane.done.95@email.com
- j.doe@email.com
- john.doe.marketing@email.com
Unprofessional Examples:
- partygirl123@email.com
- gamerdude_1995@email.com
- ihatework247@email.com
A professional email address should use simple combinations of your first and last names and, if needed, a professional qualifier or number. They're easy to remember, read, and appropriate for all business communication.
#13. Not Following Application Instructions
Not following basic application instructions is an immediate red flag that shows you either don't pay attention to details or don't respect the hiring process. Either way, you're not getting a job interview.
When employers ask for specific requirements, such as including a cover letter, providing professional references, or using a specific subject line in your email - they're often testing your ability to follow directions. It’s the very first screening you’re faced with.
Ignoring these instructions will probably ruin your chances of submitting a perfect job application.
This also extends to file formats and naming conventions. If the job posting asks for a PDF resume named "LastName_FirstName_Resume.pdf," sending a Word document named "My Resume Final Version 2" shows you're not detail-oriented.
5 Controversial Resume Red Flags
Red flags can be subjective and not all recruiters or hiring managers agree on them.
So, while they might not spell disaster for every job application you submit, consider that some hiring managers might think of the following as red flags:
- Not Having a LinkedIn Profile. Employers may find it odd that you’re not on LinkedIn. While not every profession requires it, LinkedIn has become a standard tool for professional networking and verification of work history.
- Only Listing Years for Job Roles. Some hiring managers see this as an attempt to hide employment gaps. While using only years (e.g., "2022-2023") isn't automatically suspicious, most prefer seeing specific months to understand your exact tenure in each role.
- Including a Photo. This is especially controversial in the US, where including a photo might create legal concerns about discrimination. However, in some countries and industries, a professional photo is expected or even required. For example, if you’re applying for a role as an actor, a photo is definitely part of the job application.
- Overdoing the Job Description. While you should describe your role clearly, some candidates write paragraphs about every detail of their daily tasks or use too many buzzwords. This can make your resume unnecessarily long and hard to read. Try to focus on words that show your initiative, like powerful verbs.
- Omitting Information. Leaving out specific dates, such as degree completion years, or other standard details might make hiring managers wonder if you're trying to hide something. However, some argue this information isn't always relevant and they could ask you to provide it during the interview to clear up any confusion.
Key Takeaways
Woo! You’ve made it to the end of our list!
Now, you’re all set to avoid any possible red flags in the job application you’re preparing.
But before we let you go, let’s do a quick review of what we talked about.
- Focus on achievements over responsibilities. Instead of listing what you were supposed to do, show what you actually accomplished with concrete numbers and results.
- Tailor your resume for each position you apply to. Generic resumes and AI-generated content are immediate red flags that show you're not invested in the role.
- Keep your resume concise and well-formatted. Unless you have decades of relevant experience, stick to one page with consistent formatting, professional fonts, and reverse chronological order.
- Be completely honest about your experience. Exaggerating achievements or having discrepancies between your resume and LinkedIn profile can have serious consequences for your career.
- Pay attention to details. Small mistakes like typos, grammatical errors, or not following application instructions can cost you an interview opportunity, no matter how qualified you are.
