Contact information and objective

• Name

• Pronouns

• Address and phone

• Social media information

• Objective

Contact information refers to information located at the top of the first page. This typically includes your name and email address. The remaining contact information pieces may be optional: address, postal code, telephone number and website/LinkedIn/Github/social media page/blog links. In North America, no other personal information is typically included (e.g., photo, nationality, marital status). You need not include “cell”, “tel” or “email” as these pieces of information are self-explanatory.

Students applying for co-op postings through WaterlooWorks must include their academic level, plan name and student ID number in this section.

Name

Your name will appear in the largest font size, so it is the most prominent text. A résumé is not a legal document and therefore you do not need to include your legal first name on it. While you will need to include your first and last name, feel free to provide the preferred/chosen name you would like to be referred to by in the workplace (e.g., a shortened name or a nickname) with the option to include your legal name if you’re comfortable doing so. There is no definitive position for your legal name: it could appear in brackets after your preferred/chosen name or appear first with your preferred/chosen name appearing next to it.

Consider using a consistent name across any professional social media sites as well as in your email address to avoid confusion. Some people may decide to anglicize their name for a variety of reasons — including fears of discrimination from hiring managers — while others opt to retain their name as an important marker of their identity and culture. More information about your rights and dealing with discrimination is available in the Safety and Your Rights section. If you would like further support in making this decision, you can book an appointment with a career advisor to help analyze your options. Colleagues should be expected to learn the correct pronunciation of your name and apps, like LinkedIn, provide pronunciation tools to support this. You may need to use your legal name on applications and onboarding paperwork once hired.

Pronouns

You have the option to include your pronouns after your name on your résumé or elsewhere (e.g., the signature line on your cover letter). Whether you disclose your pronouns and at what stage is a personal decision. Employers are increasingly encouraging employees to disclose pronouns in email signatures and there is more widespread awareness of the importance of inclusive workplaces. Nevertheless, for some, sharing only their preferred name and not their pronouns can provide a greater sense of safety and could help prevent potential bias or discrimination during the hiring process. If you’d like to discuss the different considerations about whether to include your pronouns in further detail, you have the option to book an appointment with a career advisor.

Address and phone

Addresses are optional on a résumé. You may wish to include one if it would be advantageous to do so, for example if you’re applying to a position close to your home. You can omit location, or you can include a more generalized location (e.g., Waterloo, ON) which lets the employer know you live in the area without disclosing your exact address. Omitting your location may reduce the bias employers may have for hiring locally. Your full address should not be required until you are hired. Including your phone number may be optional. As area codes become more portable, they do not necessarily correspond with where you’re residing. If you include a phone number, ensure that the recorded message on your voicemail is something that you are comfortable with an employer hearing. Include an email address that aligns with how you wish to present yourself and that you will be checking regularly (or that is forwarded to an email you do check).

Social media information

Approximately 70% of hiring managers agree that looking at candidates' social media profiles is an effective way to screen applicants (Express Employment Professionals, 2020). For those conducting social media screening, more than half (55%) have found content that caused them not to hire the applicant. Consider making your personal social media profiles private and/or include links to a professional e-portfolio, LinkedIn profile and/or personal webpage/blog relevant to your industry or employer.

Social media websites can give a wider overview of your career than a selective résumé as you can provide more detail and visuals about certain projects you’ve done. In some cases, they may also give you a unique opportunity to include a portfolio of your work, or an extracurricular hobby you have a strong passion for (e.g., photography). Before including your social media links, ask yourself if you’d like the employer to explore your social media and whether disclosing that information is relevant and appropriate to the role you are applying for.

See examples below:

The objective section is not as commonly used as it once was. Including an objective section on a résumé submitted for a posted job is often discouraged, as the employer already knows what you are looking for, and this valuable space could be used for an introductory section such as a summary of qualifications.

If you would like to include this section, it is typically best to do so on résumés for career/job fairs or perhaps as part of an email “cold-calling” campaign. In these cases, the objective may serve as a mini-cover letter.

An objective provides a brief summary of your professional identity and your career aspirations, such as what types of roles you’re interested in and why. The “why” of the objective should provide more detail than “to get a job in X field.” It should ideally be more specific to your pursuit of that specific job, for example: “Seeking a position as a financial data analyst specializing in funds and investment analysis” or “Seeking a challenging position in the field of training and development where I can contribute my program development, leadership and organizational skills.”