The heading on a resume contains personal information. At times, you’ll want to protect this information.
Typically, the heading includes the following:
Name
Address
City, ST, ZIP
One telephone number that can receive messages
One professional email address
LinkedIn page or an online portfolio
Before I get into how to protect your personal information, I want to share an employer’s tip about the placement of the heading.
Format
If you are submitting your resume in person or as an attachment, center your heading – this is the tip I received from an employer. He stated that aligning your heading to the left or right makes it difficult for an employer to find your resume once it’s filed. For instance, if you left or right-align your heading, and your resume is filed so that the heading sits at the bottom of the file, an employer may overlook your resume. Centering increases the chances of an employer finding your resume. This detail may seem insignificant, but remember, this advice is from an employer who probably missed a few resumes because of this detail.
If copying-pasting online, the placement of the heading doesn’t really matter since the program will most likely left-align your information once pasted.
Privacy
If you know the person or company you are submitting your resume to, you can provide your personal information. However, some companies don’t reveal their information in job listings. For example, it might just say, “Local Retail Company seeking admin help” and they might only provide an email address for correspondence. Anonymize yourself in this situation. It would look something like this:
Experienced Bilingual Admin
Houston, TX
expbilingualadmin@gmail.com
Notice how you can protect your personal information by replacing your name with a skill or occupation. Also, if you’ve revealed your name in your email address, change this as well and consider creating an email address that focuses on a skill or profession, for job search purposes only. Lastly, you don’t have to list your phone number or complete home address.
For information on privacy, check out Privacy Rights Clearinghouse, Fact sheet 25 and 25a.
Josie Toth is a Regional Facilitator for Workforce Solutions. She facilitates job search skills and career exploration classes in the 13-county Houston-Galveston area. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies and enjoys encouraging others in their pursuit of meaningful work.
blogforce.wrksolutions.com 