I've reviewed hundreds of resumes from African graduates. The same mistakes show up again and again.

Here are the 5 that get you rejected before a human even looks at your CV:

1. Generic objective statements — "Seeking a challenging position where I can grow" tells the recruiter nothing. Replace it with a 2-line summary of what you bring and what you're targeting.

2. Listing duties instead of results — "Responsible for managing social media" vs. "Grew Instagram following from 200 to 2,400 in 3 months during internship." One gets interviews. The other doesn't.

3. Wrong format for ATS — Most companies in Africa now use applicant tracking systems. Fancy designs, tables, and graphics get parsed as garbage. Clean, single-column layouts win.

4. Missing keywords from the job post — If the listing says "data analysis" and your resume says "working with numbers," the ATS filters you out. Mirror the exact language.

5. No contact section or broken links — Sounds basic. Still happens constantly. Double-check your email, phone number, and LinkedIn URL actually work.

Fix these five things and you're already ahead of 80% of applicants.

Want the full toolkit? Resume templates, cover letter frameworks, and interview guides built specifically for the African job market — all inside the Get Hired Starter Kit.