Your CV sucks? 10 resume mistakes to avoid (if you really want the job)

We’re going to show you how to create the best-possible CV by avoiding common GameDev resume mistakes.

Okay, so grab your CV, a glass of your favorite beverage, and let’s tackle it.

Let’s start from the top…

Resume Mistake #1 – Your BIO suck

Your professional summary… You have no idea how important that is.

(and how many people get it wrong.) It’s the first thing that anybody will read about you.

• Check out the needs of a studio
• Think about what you can bring to the table to meet them
• Keep it short

Also, one more important thing: don’t use the objective statement and cliche phrases like “works well in a team or individually” or “blue-sky thinker with a can-do attitude.”
Remember, the CV is describing you and your experience, achievements.

As for the objective statement, it’s not valuable for anyone.
It’s too vague and usually sounds generic. (too generic).

And cliche phrases? Sure, it looks fancy, but it doesn’t tell much about you.
Not convinced? Okay, then see for yourself which one sounds better and is more readable:

“A high-achieving professional with a strong work ethic able to work well in a team to consistently achieve my goals and improve my skillset.”

or

“A software engineer with hands-on experience in all levels of testing, including performance, functional, integration, system, and user acceptance”

Hope that this example will show you how to tweak your professional profile description and help you avoid one of the most common resume mistakes while job searching.

Resume Mistake #2 – Your CV doesn’t fit the job

Another one of the biggest gamedev resume mistakes is not tailoring your CV to the job.

Your resume and cover letter should be targeted to appeal solely to the niche of employers and vacancies that you are applying to.

How to do that? Read the job description of the role you want to apply to and pick up the keywords and phrases they’re using in their job descriptions. Use them in your resume. Trust me – we, recruiters, are looking for those keywords while we’re looking at your CV.

Tip: If you use a color theme in your CV, you can try to adjust it to the exact same color theme as the company’s color. This will for sure be easily spotted by recruiters or hiring managers.

Resume Mistake #3 – Exaggerating the truth or lying

Yes, people do that, and it’s not a good way to introduce yourself to the company. As we know, the truth has a habit of coming out in the end, and the later it will be discovered, the worse it will be for you.

Whether it’s about the education or key skills and experiences you’d need to get the job you want so bad, it’s never okay to lie. Suppose you don’t have any experience for the position you want to be hired in. In that case, you can highlight your skills or technologies that may be relevant to the job.

But don’t lie, just don’t. It’s one of the biggest resume mistakes of them all.

Resume Mistake #4 – Your job descriptions are soooo loooooong

Another resume mistake is too long job descriptions.

Have you ever copy-pasted the whole list of responsibilities from the job description you’ve applied for and got hired? Yeah, don’t do that while writing your resume. Firstly, it’s usually really long, and no one wants to read a book, right? (at least not in your resume.) Secondly, sure, you should put the responsibilities in your resume, but try to make that as short as possible. You can just focus on the most important ones that are the most relevant for the job you’re applying for.

And focus on achievements, that’s really important. For example, if you’ve implemented a feature that helped the whole team in your past job to be more efficient, write it down! Highlight your key achievements. You can put them in the separate section of your CV or ideally in the responsibilities for each role.

“Less is more,” and this principle also applies to your job application.

Focus on quality, not quantity. Too much information might simply distract the recruiter or hiring manager from understanding how you can add value to the company.

Oh, and one more thing, it’s best for your CV to be a maximum of 2 pages long. There is no need for it to be longer. In most cases. Of course, if you’re a CTO or CEO, it might be longer, but remember to keep it as short as possible.

Resume Mistake #4 – Grammar mistakes, and typos

Yes, from all the gamedev resume mistakes this one also can show recruiters or hiring managers that you are not entirely committed. You did not take the job application process seriously. It’s always good to proofread, you can do it yourself, or you can just ask someone to help you since you may be biased.

Besides that, right now, there are so many spell checker apps that it’s really a shame not to try them out. Try Grammarly, for example.

Resume Mistake #5 – Poor formatting

The perfect resume must be easy to read. It doesn’t matter if it’s the layout or fonts. It applies to everything.

• Don’t use fonts that are hard to read or too fancy.
• Use a clear, readable layout
• Make sure the CV is easy to read either on PDF or when printed. (Sometimes recruiters have to print out your resume)
• Send your resume in PDF format

PDF is a must. It’s the most popular format for resumes.

What you don’t know is that recruiters often use the ATS system (Applicant Tracking System). It’s software that manages your entire hiring and recruitment process. So you want to make sure that your CV will not be a hot mess when it is processed by it.

Gamedev Resume Mistake #6 – Wrong Contact information

It’s obvious for everyone to put your contact info in your application, but…

Make sure they’re correct. Check it 2 or even 3 times before sending the CV.

And by the way, don’t use any unprofessional-sounding email addresses. If you use only 1 email address, like, for example, johntheemperor@gmail.com, create a new one. It doesn’t look good. And your CV has to make a good first impression. The best one is john.doe@gmail.com or jdoe@gmail.com.

Avoid numbers. (might be confusing and easy to misspell). No titles (Emperor sounds cool, but the hiring manager reading it might not have the same sense of humor).

Yourname@gmail.com will always be the best choice.

Resume Mistake #7 – Adding irrelevant links to the dead social media accounts

First and foremost, check all your social media after typing your name on Google. Then, add the relevant ones to your resume.

This is one of the worst GameDev resume mistakes. If you have a GitHub profile, add the link ONLY if you use it. If you don’t have any projects or repositories there, or you have one you created two years ago and no commits, then just don’t add it there.

And yes, recruiters check GitHub, so if your repositories are empty, just leave it, don’t add it to your CV.

You can include other social media links if they’re relevant, of course. The ones that it’s always good to add are your Linkedin profile and your personal blog or website.

Resume Mistake #8 – Including too much of your personal information

Marital status, height, date of birth, gender, religion.

Including that is a resume template’s relic of the past. Unless the job you are applying for is in modeling, where some of the info might be important (height, eye color). It’s not relevant for any other jobs. You can skip. 

And it’s also illegal for employers to ask for such information and make hiring decisions based on that.

Resume Mistake #9 – A Photograph? You can ditch it.

As the space in your CV is limited enough, you don’t have to make it harder for yourself by adding your photo and limiting it even more.

We’re working in gamedev. It’s not that relevant. You should convince the person reading your resume with compelling content, so use the given space wisely by filling it out with relevant information.

Resume Mistake #10 – Crappy file naming

Another one of the gamedev resume mistakes is poor file naming.

I know you probably created a couple of CVs (as they should be tailored for every role you’re applying for), but the name of the file you send also counts. It’s not as important as for example correct contact information, but it doesn’t look great when prospective employers that you’ve emailed your CV can see “My CV 3rd draft BEST ONE!!111 ALMOST FINAL”.

It just looks unprofessional if you haven’t given the file a suitable name.

How to improve it? Easy. Just name the file you want to send like “John Doe CV”. Aaaand… That’s it. It takes a few seconds, and the general outlook of the resume creates a more polished image.

Hopefully, this will make it easier for you to understand what recruiters reviewing CVs most of the day are paying attention to. And what GameDev resume mistakes to avoid while creating one.

Honestly, we can talk about ‘the perfect CV’ for hours and hours, that’s why if you have any questions, need a career guide or would like to ask one of our recruiters to take a look at your CV drop us a note here in the comments or on our social media or simply email us at jobs@8bitplay.

Start using these tips in practice. Check our hot job openings now!

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