The US résumé: one page, no photo, results first

Updated 4 Nov 2026 · 3 min read

In the United States, a CV usually means an academic document listing publications. For almost every other job you send a résumé: a short, focused marketing document that proves you can do the job. American recruiters are direct, busy and wary of anything that could expose them to a discrimination claim.

What to remove

US equal employment opportunity laws forbid hiring decisions based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age (40 and over), disability and other protected characteristics. To stay clear of that, employers prefer résumés without:

• a photo,
• date of birth or age,
• marital status, children, gender,
• nationality or place of birth,
• a full street address (city and state are enough),
• hobbies unrelated to the job.

If you need sponsorship or already have authorization, one line is enough: "Authorized to work in the US (green card)" or "Requires H-1B sponsorship". Many people leave this to the application form instead.

Length and layout

• US Letter paper (8.5 × 11 in).
• One page for most people with under ten years of experience. Two pages are fine for senior candidates with relevant depth. Three is too many.
• One column, standard fonts, clear headings. Most large employers use an applicant tracking system (ATS) to store and search résumés, and simple layouts are parsed most reliably.
• Centered name and contact line at the top is the classic American look.

The summary

Replace the old "Objective" with a Summary: two to four lines with your title, years of experience, specialty and best evidence.

Cloud engineer with 8 years of experience running Azure and Windows environments for 2,000+ users. Cut hosting costs 30% through automation. AZ-305 certified.

Bullet points that win interviews

Each job gets three to six bullets. Start with a strong past-tense verb, show what you did and prove the result with a number when you can:

• Weak: "Responsible for server maintenance."
• Strong: "Automated patching for 60 Windows servers with PowerShell, cutting maintenance windows by 50%."

Numbers can be money, time, percentages, volumes, people or rankings. If you don't know an exact figure, a fair estimate ("about 40 tickets a week") is better than nothing, as long as you can explain it in an interview.

Skills and keywords

Add a Skills section with the tools and methods named in the job posting that you really master. Recruiters search the ATS with these exact words, so use the posting's vocabulary: if it says "Kubernetes", don't write only "container orchestration".

Education and certifications

Recent graduates put education first; everyone else puts it after experience. Leave out graduation years if you prefer not to reveal your age. Certifications go in their own section with the issuing body and year.

What not to write

• "References available upon request": it is assumed.
• Personal pronouns: write "Led a team of 6", not "I led a team of 6".
• Salary history: never on a résumé.

Checklist

1. No photo or personal details.
2. Letter size, one column, one page if you can.
3. A three-line summary.
4. Bullets that start with verbs and end with results.
5. Keywords from the job posting.
6. Saved as PDF unless the employer asks for Word.

The USA model in CV Passport uses Letter paper, a centered one-column layout, removes every personal field and warns you when the résumé goes over one page.