Interview - Resume' coloring choices

[SkinnyGoomba]

Since this goes hand-in-hand with our sartorial choices, I'd like to get a feel for what resume' paper and ink coloring choices are preferred by the forum.

I found a very subtle off-white from the Paper Source called SF-white, its not noticeably off-white until compared to white paper. I find that noticeably off-white paper is a bit too intentional.

For ink, I'm thinking of Midnight blue, one shade away from black. I again dont want it to be intentional appearing.

What are your resume' style choices, and for recruiters and hiring managers what do you guys prefer to receive.

I'm with anyone who feels that its whats on the paper (other then the ink) that counts but I'd like to present myself in the best possible manner within my reach.

 

[dv3]

I've never submitted a resume by hand or via snail mail, I don't see the point of doing this.

 

[ManofKent]

My last two successful applications have been electronic, and I'm in the UK, so bear that in mind, but I prefer plain white and prefer typed resumes.

 

[SkinnyGoomba]

Allow me to clarify, this for in person face-face presentation.

I'm off the habit of bringing a couple copies of my resume' with me for interviews.

 

[gdl203]

Regular white paper is the best. Thick cream papers only have downside IMO ("paper looks too nice, what is this guy trying to cover - let me find what's wrong with his experience" - it's very subtle and maybe subconscious but there's no point going there)

 

[oshinex]

A bit offwhite on thick stock paper if you were to hand deliver the resume. I never used any ink other than black though.

 

[Don Carlos]

Don't stray too far from white in your paper choice. I've submitted about a billion and read about a billion resumes in my day, and I can say from reasonable experience that anything veering too far away from white and into yellowy/creamy territory is just harder to read and more annoying. Since a typical recruiter or hiring manager is reading a lot of resumes, your goal should be to make your resume as easy on the eyes as possible. Easiness to read trumps exoticism 99 times out of 100. You also don't want to look like you're trying too hard or being too cute.

Now, it doesn't really matter which shade of white you go with. You could go with bone, pale nimbus, eggshell, or whatever else floats your boat.

As for the ink, I am not sure where you'd go about sourcing midnight blue, but if you can find some, and you really think it's worth the price and hassle, then go for it. IMO, sourcing and using nonstandard printer inks is not worth the expense. Also, anything too differentiated from basic black is going to look strange and/or be hard to read. So I just don't see the investment in time or money being wortwhile here, and if anything, I see the potential risk as quite high. Unless you're talking about making the font on the computer midnight blue, and then printing with standard inkjet or color laser ink? Either way, I see the potential downside outweighing any potential upside.

Finally, an unfortunate fact of life: chances are that you're going to be submitting most of your resumes over email these days. If not, your original hard-copy submission will be taken and xeroxed and passed around -- thus negating all of the hard work that has gone into selecting the ink and the paper.

Definitely make the effort to print your resume on good stock if you're handing it off in an initial interview. But beyond that point, the version of your resume most people see will be the xeroxed or hastily printed copy version.

 

[SkinnyGoomba]

Thanks for the tips guys, I think this is reinforcing that I made a decent decision by going with a paper thats very subtly off-white, so much so that you cant tell its off-white until comparing it to white. Didnt go too thick ether, just went with the recommended thickness for txt not for a coversheet.

GLD, good point! I dont want anyone to think i'm trying to hard, or making up for something, I just want to look professional.

I spent a little time last night comparing shades of white, and the closest to white i could get was the best choice in my eyes.

As mentioned prior this is in addition to the resume' submission over the internet that the recruiter has probably read already, its just been my experience that its helpful to have a few hard copies on hand, that I can control where they came from.

 

[Don Carlos]

I'd be remiss if I didn't include this, btw:

 

[gdl203]

Originally Posted by Arrogant Bastard

Definitely make the effort to print your resume on good stock if you're handing it off in an initial interview.
I really disagree with this but that's just one man's opinion

 

[Sartrolliast]

Make sure it's all in italics. Tres elegante!

 

[SkinnyGoomba]

Originally Posted by gdl203

I really disagree with this but that's just one man's opinion

Do you prefer printer paper?

 

[gdl203]

Originally Posted by SkinnyGoomba

Do you prefer printer paper?

Yes. Cheap printer paper. No fancy fonts (Times is fine), no fancy borders or decorations - all about content.

 

[dv3]

Originally Posted by SkinnyGoomba

GLD, good point! I dont want anyone to think i'm trying to hard, or making up for something, I just want to look professional.
You are trying to hard by doing this. Print if off in black ink with whatever plain, white paper is in your printer. That is professional.

 

[Don Carlos]

Originally Posted by gdl203

I really disagree with this but that's just one man's opinion

You disagree with using good paper in an initial handoff? You're suggesting plain printer paper, then?

Obviously you don't want to stray too far into cuteness/trying-too-hard territory, but come on, you've at least got to look like you're taking the process seriously. I'm not suggesting super-thick card stock or anything; it's got to be relatively subtle. But stepping up a notch in quality from plain printer paper is a sign of the right amount of effort.

To your other point, I don't think anyone's suggesting fancy bordering or fonts. At least I'm not.