creating effective resume

How to Make a Resume in 2024 | Beginner's Guide

For most job-seekers, a good resume is what stands between a dream job and Choice D. Get your resume right, and you’ll be getting replies from every other company you apply to.

If your resume game is weak, though, you’ll end up sitting around for weeks, maybe even months, before you even get a single response.

So you’re probably wondering how you can write a resume that gets you an interview straight up.

Well, you’ve come to the right place!

In this guide, we’re going to teach you everything you need to know about how to make a resume, including:

• The 8 Essential Steps to Writing a Resume
• 11+ Exclusive Resume Tips to Up Your Resume Game
• 27+ Real-Life Resume Examples for Different Professions

….and more!

So, let’s dive right in.

How to Make a Resume (The Right Way!)

Before we go into detail about how you should make a resume, here’s a summary of the most important steps and tips to keep in mind:

• Choose a resume format carefully. In 99% of cases, we recommend the reverse-chronological format .
• Add the right contact details. Leave your headshot out and make sure to include your job title , a professional email address, and any relevant links. (E.g.: your LinkedIn profile , online portfolio, personal website, etc.).
• Write an impactful resume summary. Unless you’re an entry-level professional, always go for a resume summary. If you do it right, it’s your chance to get the hiring manager to go through the rest of your resume in detail.
• Pay attention to your work experience section. Take your work experience section from OK-ish to exceptional by tailoring it to the job ad, making your achievements quantifiable, and using action verbs and power words.
• Add the right skills for the job. Keep this section relevant by only including the hard and soft skills that are required for the position.
• Keep your education short and to the point. Your most recent and highest degree is more than enough for a strong education section. You only need to add more details here if you’re a recent graduate with barely any work experience.
• Leverage optional resume sections. Optional sections like languages, hobbies, certifications, independent projects, and others can set you apart from other candidates with similar skills and experience.
• Include a cover letter. That’s right, cover letters matter in 2024, and the best way to supplement your resume is by adding an equally well-crafted cover letter to your job application. To make the most of it, check out our detailed guide on how to write a cover letter .

To get the most out of our tips, you can head over to the resume builder and start building your resume on the go as you read this guide.

New to resume-making? Give our ‘7 Resume Tips’ video a watch before diving into the article!

#1. Pick the Right Resume Format

Before you start filling in the contents of your resume, you have to make sure it’s going to look good. 

After all, the first thing hiring managers notice is what your resume looks like, and then they start reading it. So, this is your best chance to make a great first impression.

Start by choosing the right resume format.

There are three types of resume formats out there:

• Reverse-chronological. This is by far the most popular resume format worldwide and, as such, it’s the best format for most job-seekers.
• Functional. This resume format focuses more on skills than work experience. It’s a good choice if you’re just getting started with your career and have little to no experience in the field.
• Combination. The combination resume format is a great choice for experienced job-seekers with a very diverse skill set. It’s useful if you’re applying for a role that requires expertise in several different fields and you want to show all that in your resume.

So, which one should you go for?

In 99% of cases, you want to stick to the reverse-chronological resume format . It’s the most popular format and what hiring managers expect to see. So, in the rest of this guide, we’re going to focus on teaching you how to make a reverse-chronological resume.

Fix Your Resume’s Layout

With formatting out of the way, let’s talk about your resume’s layout , which determines the overall look of your resume. 

Does it look organized or cluttered? Is it too short or too long? Is it boring and easy to ignore, or is it reader-friendly and attention-grabbing?

Here are some of the best practices you should apply:

• Stick to one page. You should only go for a two-page resume if you have decades of experience and you’re sure the extra space will add significant value. Hiring managers in big companies get hundreds of applications per job opening. They’re not going to spend their valuable time reading your life story!
• Add clear section headings. Pick a heading and use it for all the section headers so the hiring manager can easily navigate through your resume.
• Adjust the margins. Without the right amount of white space, your resume will end up looking overcrowded with information. Set your margins to one inch on all sides so your text fits just right on the page.
• Choose a professional font. We’d recommend sticking to a font that’s professional but not overused. For example, Ubuntu, Roboto, or Overpass. Avoid Times New Roman, and never use Comic Sans.
• Set the correct font size. As a rule of thumb, go for 11-12 pt for normal text and 14-16 pt for section titles.
• Use a PDF file. Always save your resume as a PDF file, unless the employer specifically requests otherwise. Word files are popular, but there’s a good chance they’ll mess up your resume’s formatting.

Another thing you need to consider in terms of your resume’s layout is whether you’re going for a traditional-looking resume template or something a bit more modern :

If you’re pursuing a career in a more traditional industry, like law , banking , or finance , you might want to stick to the first.

But if you’re applying to a tech company where imagination and innovation are valued, you can pick a more creative resume template .

Want to Save Time? Use a (Free) Resume Template

Anyone who’s ever tried creating a resume from scratch knows how boring the formatting can be.

Before you can even start filling in the contents, you need to tweak the margins, adjust font sizes, and make sure everything fits into one page while still looking good.

What if you could skip past all that and still create a compelling resume?

Try one of our free resume templates . They’re pre-formatted, so all you have to do is fill in the contents.

They’re also created in collaboration with recruiters from around the globe, ensuring that the templates are visually appealing and ATS-friendly!

See for yourself how one of our templates compares to a resume created in a standard text editor:

#2. Add Your Contact Information

Now that we’ve got all the formatting out of the way, let’s get into what your resume is all about— the information you put on it .

The first thing you want to do when filling out the contents of your resume is to add your contact information .

This section is pretty straightforward but crucial. Your contact details belong at the top of your resume in a designated resume header , so the hiring manager can easily find them.

Even if everything else about your resume is perfect, that all flops if you misspell your email address or have a typo in your phone number. If the hiring manager can’t contact you, it’s a missed opportunity.

So, double-check, and even triple-check your contact information section and make sure everything is factually correct and up-to-date.

Must-Have Information

• Full name. Your first and last name should stand out at the top of your resume.
• Email address. Stick to an address that’s professional and easy to spell, like a combination of your first and last name. (E.g.: [email protected])
• Phone number. Add a reliable number where the hiring manager can easily reach you.
• Location. Add your city and state/country. If you plan to relocate for the job or want a remote position, specify it on your resume.

Optional Information

• Job title. Add your professional title underneath. Write it down word for word, whether it’s “Digital Marketing Specialist” or “Junior Data Scientist.” Just don’t make up job titles like “Marketing Wizzard” or “Data Manipulator.” They’re not quirky; they’re just unprofessional. 
• LinkedIn profile . We recommend that you include a link to your updated LinkedIn profile since over 77% of hiring managers use the platform when evaluating a candidate. 
• Relevant links. Include links to personal websites or any social media profiles that are relevant to your field. For example, a developer could include a Github profile, while a graphic designer could link their Behance or Driblle account, and so on.
• Date of birth. Unless this is specifically required in the job ad, the hiring manager doesn’t need to know how old you are. It’s not important for their decision-making, and at worst, it might lead to age-based discrimination.
• Unprofessional email address. Your quirky, old high school email address doesn’t belong on your resume. Instead of [email protected] , go for a [email protected] type of address.
• Headshot. (USA, UK or Ireland) Depending on the country where you’re applying, it might even be illegal to include a picture of yourself on your resume . While it’s the norm to include a picture in most of Europe and Asia, always check the regulations for each specific country or industry you’re applying to.

All clear? Good! Now, let’s look at what a great example of a resume's contact information section looks like:

#3. Write a Resume Headline (Summary or Objective)

It's no secret that recruiters spend an average of less than seven seconds on a resume .

When you receive hundreds, if not thousands, of applications daily, it's physically impossible to spend too much time on each.

So, what the hiring managers do to go through resumes more effectively is to skim through each resume and read it in depth only if it piques their interest.

This is where the resume headline comes in.

Placed right next to (or underneath) your contact information, this brief paragraph is the first thing the hiring manager is going to read on your resume.

Now, depending on how far along in your career you are, your resume headline can be either a resume summary or a resume objective.

So, how do you choose between a resume summary and a resume objective? Here’s all you need to know:

Resume Summary

A resume summary, as the name suggests, is a two to three-sentence summary of your career so far. If done right, it shows that you’re a qualified candidate at a glance and gets the hiring manager to give you a chance.

Here’s what your resume summary should include:

• Your job title and years of experience.
• A couple of your greatest professional achievements or core responsibilities.
• Your most relevant skills for the job.

Here’s an example of a well-written resume summary: 

Experienced Java Developer with 5 years of experience in building scalable and efficient applications. Contributed to a major project that enhanced application performance by 25%. Strong background in Spring Framework and microservices. Aiming to apply robust coding skills to develop innovative software solutions at XYZ Tech Solutions.

Unless you’re a recent graduate or amid a career change, we recommend you stick to a resume summary. Otherwise, a resume objective might be a better option for you.

Resume Objective

A resume objective is supposed to express your professional goals and aspirations, academic background, and any relevant skills you may have for the job.

It communicates your motivation for getting into a new field, so it’s the go-to headline for recent graduates and those going through a career change. As with a resume summary, a resume objective should be brief—around two to four sentences long.

So, here’s what it would look like if you’re a student:

Hard-working recent graduate with a B.A. in Graphic Design from New York State University seeking new opportunities. 3+ years of practical experience working with Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop, creating illustrations and UX/UI design projects. Looking to grow as a designer and perfect my art at XYZ Design Studio.

Or, on the other hand, if you’re going through a career change, it might look more like this:

IT project manager with 5+ years of experience in software development. Managed a team of developers to create products for several industries, such as FinTech and HR tech. Looking to leverage my experience in managing outsourced products as a Product Owner at Company XYZ.

#4. Prioritize Your Work Experience

The most important part of your resume is your work experience.

This is where you get to sell yourself and show off your previous accomplishments and responsibilities.

If you manage to master this section, you’ll know most of what’s there to know about how to make a resume.

There are plenty of good practices for writing your work experience . But before we dive into all the nits and grits, let's start with the basics.

The standard format for each work experience entry is as follows:

• Job title/position. Your job title goes on top of each work experience entry. When the hiring manager looks at your resume, you want them to know, at a glance, that you have relevant work experience for the job.
• Company name/location/description. Mention the name of the employer and the general location, such as the city and state/country where you worked. In some cases, you may also want to briefly describe the company, like when the organization isn’t particularly well-known.
• Dates employed. Add the approximate timeframe of your employment at each company. You don’t need to give exact dates since the standard format for this is mm/yyyy.
• Achievements and responsibilities. This is the core of each work experience entry. Depending on your field, you want to list either your achievements or responsibilities. List them in bullet points instead of paragraphs, so they’ll be easier to read.

Here’s a real-life example:

Your work experience entries should always be listed in reverse chronological order , starting with your most recent job and working your way back into the past.

Now that you know how to list your experience, we’re going to show you how to write about it in a way that makes you stand out from the competition, starting with: 

Are you a student with no work experience? We’ve got you covered. Check out our guide to writing a resume with no experience here.

Focus on Achievements Whenever Possible

One of the most common resume mistakes is only listing responsibilities in your work experience section.

Here’s the thing—in most cases, the hiring manager knows exactly what your job responsibilities are.

For example, if you’re a sales manager, your responsibilities would be:

• Reach out to potential clients over the phone or email.
• Maintain relationships with existing company clients and upsell relevant products.
• Tracking and reporting on leads in CRM.

Coincidentally, this is also the same list of responsibilities for every sales manager out there. So, 90% of all other resumes probably mention the same thing.

To stand out from the competition, you want to focus on writing achievements in your resume instead. These can be how you helped your previous company grow, reach quarterly quotas, and so on.

Let’s compare how responsibilities hold up next to achievements for the same job:

• Exceeded sales team KPIs by 30%+ for 3 months straight.
• Generated over $24,000 in sales in 1 month.
• Generated leads through cold-calling
• Managed existing company clients

Keep in mind, though, that in some fields, there just aren’t that many achievements you can mention. Let’s say you’re a warehouse worker .

Your day-to-day responsibilities probably include:

• Loading, unloading, and setting up equipment daily.
• Packaging finished products and getting them ready for shipping.
• Assisting in opening and closing the warehouse.

In fields like this, it’s pretty hard to distinguish yourself through achievements, so it’s okay to stick to responsibilities instead. You can still make them shine by following the rest of our advice about listing your work experience.

Keep in mind, though, that in some fields, there aren’t that many achievements you can mention. Let’s say you work in a warehouse. Your day-to-day responsibilities probably involve:

• Loading, unloading and setting up equipment on a daily basis.
• Package finished product and get it ready for shipping.
• Assist in opening and closing the warehouse.

In such fields, it’s pretty hard to distinguish yourself, so it’s totally OK to stick to responsibilities instead.

Tailor Your Resume to the Job

Tailoring is what sets an amazing resume apart from an okay one.

Hiring managers don’t need to know about every single job you’ve ever worked at or every single skill that you have.

They only want to know about your jobs, experiences, or skills that are relevant to the role you’re applying for.

For example, if you’re applying for a job doing Google Ads, you don’t need to talk about your SEO internship from eight years ago.

By focusing your resume on whatever is important for the specific role, you’re a lot more likely to stand out and catch the hiring manager’s attention.

Let’s take a look at an example of a job ad:

As you can see, we’ve highlighted the most important requirements.

To tailor your resume accordingly, you just need to mention how you meet each of these requirements in your resume.

You can highlight your relevant achievements and qualifications in different parts of your resume, such as:

• In your resume summary, where you should recap your years of experience.
• Throughout your work experience section, where you should list achievements and responsibilities that reflect your social media marketing experience.
• In your education section, where you can let the hiring manager know you have the degree that they’re looking for.

Include the Right Amount of Work Experience

If you’ve got over a decade’s worth of work experience, you’re probably wondering whether all of it belongs on your resume. In most cases, you’d end up writing a novel if you listed everything you’ve ever done, and that’s not how long a resume should be .

If you’re new to the job market, on the other hand, you probably don’t have any experience, and you’re wondering what you could even add to this section.

So, here’s how much information your resume should include, depending on your level of experience:

• No experience. If you’re looking for your first job , you won’t have any work experience to fill this section with. So, you can either keep it empty and focus on all the other sections or fill it up with any experience gained in student organizations, extracurricular activities, volunteering, and other projects.
• Entry-level. List all your work experience so far. While some of it won’t be relevant, it can still show the hiring manager that you do have some actual work experience.
• Mid-level. Only mention relevant work experience to the position you’re applying for. There’s no need to waste space on jobs that aren’t related to what you’re after.
• Senior-level. List up to 15 years of relevant work experience, tops. If your most recent experience is as a marketing executive , the hiring manager doesn’t care how you started your career as a junior marketing specialist 23 years ago.

Consider Applicant Tracking System (ATS) Software

Did you know that over 70% of resumes don’t even make it to the hiring manager ?

Most companies these days use ATS to evaluate hundreds of resumes instantaneously and automatically filter out the ones that don’t meet their criteria.

For example, if a resume doesn’t mention a specific skill or isn’t formatted correctly, the ATS will automatically reject it.

Fortunately, there are some easy ways to make an ATS-friendly resume .

Here are a couple of tips to help you get past those pesky robots:

• Stick to one page. Sometimes employers set a limit on how long a resume should be. This means that if your resume is longer than one page, it might get automatically disqualified.
• Incorporate keywords. Tailoring your resume to the job helps a ton with beating the ATS. Just carefully read the job description to find hints for what the ATS will be looking for. Then, whenever you find keywords related to your responsibilities and achievements, make sure to include them in your work experience section.
• Use an active voice. Passive voice is too vague and unclear, so make sure to use active voice as much as possible when describing your previous jobs. (E.g.: “Managed a team of ten people,” instead of “ A team of ten people was managed by me.” )
• Leverage powerful action words. Instead of starting each of your sentences with “was responsible for," make your work experience impactful by using words that can grab attention. Saying that you “spearheaded” or “facilitated” something sounds a lot more impressive than “helped.”

Want to make sure your resume formatting passes the ATS test? Choose one of our tried and tested ATS-friendly resume templates , and you’ll be good to go! 

#5. List Your Education

The next section on your resume is dedicated to your academic qualifications. Let’s start with the basics!

Here’s how you should format the education section on your resume :

• Program Name. Your major and degree type should be listed. (E.g.: “B.A. in Business Administration” )
• University Name. Add the name of the institution. (E.g.: “New York State University” )
• Dates Attended. Use a mm/yyyy format for the dates you attended. (E.g.: “08/2008 - 06/2012” )
• Location. If your university is less well-known, you can also add the location. (E.g.: “Stockholm, Sweden” )
• GPA. Use the appropriate grading system for the country you’re applying to work in. (E.g.: In the USA, it would be “3.9 GPA” )
• Honors. Add any honors and distinctions you’ve been given. (E.g.: Cum Laude, Magna Cum Laude, Summa Cum Laude )
• Achievements. You can mention interesting papers you’ve written, projects you’ve done, or relevant coursework you’ve excelled in.
• Minor. “Minor in Psychology”

Pretty simple, right? Now let’s see what an education section looks like in practice:

This example includes all the necessary information, plus an eye-catching award and relevant classes this candidate has taken.

Resume Education Tips

Now that you know how to list your education on your resume, let’s take this section to the next level.

Just follow these expert tips:

• If you’re making a resume as a student and don’t have any work experience yet, you can list your education section at the beginning of the page instead of work experience.
• You can add your expected graduation date if you’re still pursuing your degree.
• If you already have relevant work experience, just keep this section short and sweet. Recent graduates can expand on their education more and add optional information like projects, classes, academic achievements, etc.
• Always list your degrees in reverse chronological order, starting with your highest degree on top. Your highest and most recent degree is usually enough, so if you have a Master’s degree that’s relevant to the job, there’s no need to mention your earlier degrees.
• Don’t add your high school degree to your resume if you already have a university degree. It doesn’t have as much weight, and you can use the space for something else.
• Only mention your GPA if you had an impressive academic career. Anything below a 3.5 GPA doesn’t need to be on your resume.

Are you in the process of applying for college? Check out our guide to writing a college application resume to wow that admissions officer!

#6. Emphasize Your Know-How in the Skills Section

After your work experience, your skills are the first thing the hiring manager is going to look for. In fact, together, work experience and skills make up 90% of the hiring decision .

So, this is the place where you want to mention all the know-how that makes you the perfect candidate for the job.

There are two types of skills you can include when writing your resume:

• Hard Skills. These are measurable abilities. What you can list here can be anything from coding in Python to knowing how to cook Thai cuisine.
• Soft Skills. Also known as personal skills, these are a mix of communication skills , personal traits, career attributes, and more. They can include leadership, critical thinking, and time management , just to name a few.

Your resume should always cover both hard skills and soft skills . Here’s an example in action:

Now, let’s discuss how you should list your most important skills on your resume.

There are a few essential steps you need to follow:

Always List Hard and Soft Skills Separately

Your resume should be easy and neat to navigate. The hiring manager shouldn’t have to waste time looking for a specific skill because you didn’t separate it into the appropriate subsection.

So, just create separate categories for your hard and soft skills.

Depending on your field, you could customize the name of your “hard skills” subsection to something like “technical skills," “marketing skills," or something else related to your field.

Let’s look at an example of what skills look like on a project manager’s resume :

Methodologies & Tools

• Agile Methodology
• SCRUM Framework
• Waterfall Project Management
• Microsoft Project
• Critical Path Method (CPM)
• Earned Value Management (EVM)
• Risk Management

Soft Skills

• Team Management
• Conflict Resolution
• Negotiation

Tailor Your Skills to the Job

You might have some awesome skills, but the hiring manager only needs to know about the ones that are relevant to the job.

For example, if you’re applying for a job as an accountant, your gourmet chef skills shouldn’t be on your resume.

Look at the job ad and list at least two to three essential skills you have that are required for the role. Remember—there’s no need to list every skill you have here; just keep it relevant.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in Graphic Design or a related field.
• Tech-savvy, with some background in CMS systems such as WordPress.
• Thrives in a stressful environment and juggles multiple tasks and deadlines.
• Strong organizational and time management skills.
• Excellent communication skills.
• Self-reliant, with the ability to manage their own work.
• A can-do attitude and an outside-the-box thinker.
• Proficient in Adobe Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator, Keynote, and Pages.
• Basic understanding of Office software such as Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook.

So, the must-have hard skills here are Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator, Keynote, and Pages. Other good computer skills to have are WordPress or similar CMS systems.

While you can also mention Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook, it’s pretty much assumed that you know how to use them since they’re required for most office jobs.

List Hard Skills with Experience Levels

For each hard skill you list on your resume, you should also mention your proficiency level. This tells employers what they can expect from you and how much training you might need.

• Beginner. You have some experience with the skill, whether it’s from some entry-level practice or classroom education.
• Intermediate. You’ve used the skill in a work environment with good understanding.
• Advanced. You’re the go-to person for this skill in your office. You can coach other employees, and you understand the skill at a high level.
• Expert. You’ve applied this skill to more than a handful of different projects and organizations. You’re the go-to person for advice about the skill, not just in your office but even amongst some of the best professionals in your field.

Just make sure to never lie about your actual skill level. Even if you get the job, once you need those skills you exaggerated, it will be pretty awkward for both you and your employer.

Include Transferable Skills

These are the types of skills that are useful for almost any job out there.

Transferable skills can be both soft skills (e.g.: teamwork, creativity, problem-solving skills, and others) and hard skills (MS Office Suite, HTML, writing, etc.)

Whatever job you’re applying to, chances are you have transferable skills from your experience that can come in handy one way or another. So, feel free to include them, even if they’re not specifically required for the position.

Not sure which skills to mention on your resume for your specific field? Check out our list of 101+ essential skills for inspiration!

#7. Leverage Optional Resume Sections

The sections we’ve covered so far are must-haves for any resume. They’re the bread-and-butter for any job application, and if you get them right, you’ll land any job you apply to.

But if you have some leftover space, there are a few optional sections you can choose from to give your resume a boost!

Are you bi-lingual? Or even better  – multi-lingual? You should always mention that on your resume!

Even if the position doesn’t require you to know a specific language, it can still come in handy at some point. At the end of the day, it’s always better to know more languages than less.

To list languages in your resume , just write them down and assign them the appropriate level:

• Intermediate

You can also use the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFRL) or the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) proficiency scales.

As a given, you should never lie about your language skills. You never know—your interviewer might turn out to be fluent in the language or even be a native speaker!

Hobbies and Interests

If you want to spice up your resume, hobbies and interests could be just what you need.

While this section isn’t a game-changer, it can help the hiring manager see who you are as an individual.

For example, if you listed “teamwork” as one of your skills, hobbies like team sports can back up your claim.

And who knows? Maybe you and your interviewer have some hobbies or interests in common!

Volunteering Experience

If you’re the type of person who devotes their free time to helping others while expecting nothing in return, chances are that you’re the type of employee who’s in it for more than just the money. 

Seeing volunteer experience on your resume tells hiring managers that you’re a loyal employee who’s after something meaningful.

Several studies show that listing your volunteer experience can boost your chances of getting hired, especially if you have little to no work experience.

Certifications

Hiring managers love candidates who invest in themselves, and that’s exactly what they see when you list certifications on your resume .

If you value continuous learning and strive to expand your skill set, that’s always a plus.

Certifications can also show employers how much expertise you have.

For example, if you’re a Microsoft Cloud Engineer and you specialize in Microsoft Technologies, you should definitely include all essential certifications on your resume, such as the Azure Solutions Architect Expert one.

Awards and Recognitions

There’s no harm in showing off a little on your resume. After all, you want to be a candidate that shines above the rest.

So, if you’ve received any awards or recognitions that make you stand out in your field, make sure to add them.

For example, if you’ve been recognized for your contributions to data science or received a hard-to-come-by scholarship , mention it in your resume. Just keep your entries here relevant to the field you’re applying to.

Publications

Whether you’re a freelance writer or a distinguished academic, publications are always impressive.

If you have any published works (online or in an academic journal), you can add them to your resume. Just make sure to include a link so the hiring manager knows where to check your work!

Are you looking for a career in academia? Check out our guide to writing the perfect academic CV to get started!

Working on side projects can show off your passion for your field. Whether they’re university class projects or part-time entrepreneurial endeavors, they’re relevant.

For example, if you worked on a mock software product as part of a university competition, it shows you went through every step of product creation, from ideation to creating a marketing strategy.

This project also shows off your organizational skills , and if you mention it in your resume, you stand a better chance of landing the job you had your sights set on.

But projects can also be personal, not academic. For example, you might manage an Etsy store where you sell hand-made arts and crafts to customers online. This is a great opportunity to highlight your creativity, management, and customer service skills .

Overall, hiring managers love employees who do cool work in their free time, so projects are always a great section to add to your resume.

Looking to kickstart your career? Check out our guide on how to get an internship for useful tips and real-life examples!

Extracurricular Activities

Every college freshman knows that extracurricular experience can make a difference in their application.

Especially if you don’t have a lot of experience outside of school, extracurricular activities are a great way to show potential employers your skills and give them insight into you as a person. Different clubs and after-school projects can help you gain real-life skills and considerably increase your chances of landing your first job after college.

For example, joining a student government organization can hone your leadership skills and teach you how to work as part of a team.

For example, if you’re part of a student government or public speaking club, these activities can help you hone your leadership and presentation skills.

11+ Expert Resume Tips

You’ve got the gist of how to make a resume. Now, it’s time to make it really stand out from the crowd!

Follow these exclusive resume tips to take your resume game to the next level:

• Match the professional title underneath your name to the job title of the position you’re applying for. Hiring managers often hire for several roles at once, so giving them this cue about what role you’re after helps things go smoother.
• Mention any promotions from your previous jobs. Use the work experience entries for them to focus on the achievements that helped you earn them.
• Describe your achievements using Laszlo Bock’s formula : accomplished X as measured by Y by doing Z . This way, your work experience can go the extra mile and show the hiring manager what you can bring to the table.
• Always list your achievements and responsibilities in concise bullet points. This makes your resume more reader-friendly, and it’s more likely that the hiring manager will see your impressive achievements at a glance.
• Don’t use personal pronouns like “I” or “me,” and don’t refer to yourself by name. Stick to a slightly altered third person, like “managed data integrity at XYZ Inc.” instead of “he managed data integrity at XYZ Inc.”
• Name your resume sections correctly, or it might get rejected by the ATS. Swapping out quirky names like “career history” or “expertise” for “work experience” and "skills" makes it easier for the hiring manager to find what they’re looking for, too.
• Prioritize important keywords instead of adding all of them. Make sure the relevant skills, qualifications, and experiences you add all make sense in context, too. Your goal is to get past the ATS and impress the hiring manager.
• Focus on transferable skills if you don’t have a lot of relevant work experience. Any extracurricular activities or personal projects can help you stand out here.
• Add a strategic pop of color to headings, bullet points, or key elements you want to highlight. It can help your resume stand out, but don’t overdo it—you want the information to be more impressive than the color palette.
• Don’t include the line “references available upon request.” Hiring managers already know they can request a list of references from you, so there’s no need to waste valuable space on it.
• Make sure your resume is optimized for mobile viewing. Most hiring managers use their mobile phones as often as desktop computers, so save your resume to a PDF file and make sure your formatting stays intact across any device.
• Rename the resume file you plan to send so it includes your name and the name of the position you’re applying for. It’s a small detail that can turn into a crucial mistake if you forget it.
• Read your resume out loud when you’re done. This is a great way to catch awkward phrases or spelling mistakes you might have missed otherwise.
• Use a tool like DocSend to track your resume. You’ll get a notification any time someone opens your resume, and you can see how long they spend reading it.

FREE Resume Checklist

Are you already done with your resume? Let’s see how it holds up!

Go through our checklist for perfecting your resume and see where you stand!

If you missed some points, just go through your resume one more time and perfect it.

And if you ☑’d everything—congrats! You’ve learned all there is to know about writing a resume, and you’re good to go with your job search.

Need to write a CV instead of a resume? Check out our step-by-step guide on how to write a CV with dozens of examples!

9 Resume Templates for Different Industries

Looking to create an effective resume without dealing with the formatting hassle? Just choose one of the templates below.

#1. Traditional Resume Template

Good for traditional industries like finance, banking, law, and manufacturing.

#2. Modern Resume Template

Good for both contemporary and forward-looking industries, including entrepreneurship, medical technology, and engineering.

#3. Creative Resume Template

Good for creative industries, including entertainment, design, and architecture. 

#4. Minimalistic Resume Template

Good for experienced professionals in basically any industry who want to let their achievements do the talking. 

#5. IT Resume Template

Good for any IT-related profession like software development, cyber security, and DevOps engineering.

#6. Tech Resume Template

Good for the tech industry and everything it encompasses.

#7. College Resume Template

Good for college students and recent graduates alike.

#8. General Resume Template

Good for multiple industries, including HR, education, and customer service.

#9. Executive Resume Template

Good for senior professionals across different industries, including hospitality, marketing, and logistics.

17+ Resumes for Different Jobs

Knowing how to write a resume is one thing, but making a resume that stands out is something entirely different. Without inspiration, even top career experts might stumble on a roadblock or two.

Check out the following effective resume examples for specific jobs to get a better sense of what a good resume looks like:

#1. Nurse Practitioner Resume Example

Check out our full guide to writing a nurse resume here.

#2. Data Scientist Resume Example

Check out our full guide to writing a data scientist resume here.

#3. Business Analyst Resume Example

Check out our full guide to writing a business analyst resume here.

#4. Digital Marketing Resume Example

Check out our full guide to writing a digital marketing resume here.

#5. Software Engineer Resume Example

Check out our full guide to writing a software engineer resume here.

#6. Construction Project Manager Resume Example

Check out our full guide to writing a construction project manager resume here.

#7. Customer Service Resume Example

Check out our full guide to writing a customer service resume here.

#8. High School Resume Example

Check out our full guide to writing a high school resume here.

#9. Student Resume Example

Check out our full guide to writing a student resume here.

#10. Server Resume Example

Check out our full guide to writing a server resume here.

#11. Actor Resume Example

Check out our full guide to writing an actor resume here.

#12. Web Developer Resume Example

Check out our full guide to writing a web developer resume here.

#13. Engineering Resume Example

Check out our full guide to writing an engineering resume here.

#14. Computer Science Resume Example

Check out our full guide to writing a computer science resume here.

#15. Architect Resume Example 

Check out our full guide to writing a data analyst resume here.

#17. Remote Job Resume Example

Check out our full guide to writing a remote job resume here.

#18. Sales Associate Resume Example

Check out our full guide to writing a sales associate resume here.

#19. Receptionist Resume Example

Check out our full guide to writing a receptionist resume here.

Want to see more examples? Check out our compilation of 80+ resume examples for different fields .

• Administrative Assistant Resume
• Bartender Resume
• DevOps Engineer Resume
• Executive Assistant Resume
• Flight Attendant Resume
• Graphic Designer Resume
• Paralegal Resume
• Pharmacist Resume
• Recruiter Resume
• Supervisor Resume

Next Steps After Your Resume

Now that we’ve covered everything you need to know about how to make a resume, it’s time to talk about the rest of your job application.

After all, your resume is only the first step in your job search. To land the job you deserve, you also need to write a captivating cover letter and ace that upcoming interview. Here’s how:

#1. How to Write a Convincing Cover Letter

The companion piece to every resume is the cover letter.

Most job-seekers flinch when they hear that they have to write a cover letter. What do you even mention in a cover letter, anyway? If you were good at writing cover letters, you’d be applying for a job as a writer !

In reality, though, writing a cover letter is very simple once you know its purpose.

Think of your cover letter as a direct message to the hiring manager. It’s your chance to briefly explain why you’re such an awesome fit for the position. And with a few cover letter tips to point you in the right direction, you’ll write the perfect cover letter for your job application.

Just follow this structure:

• Add the contact details. Include the same contact information as on your resume, plus additional contact details for the hiring manager, including their name, job title, the company’s name, and location.
• Introduce yourself. Start your cover letter by mentioning who you are, what your work experience is, and why you’re interested in the position. Mention a standout achievement or two, relevant skills, and what you’d like to do for the company you’re applying for.
• Explain why you’d excel at the job. Find the requirements in the job ad that you meet, and elaborate on how you fulfill the most important ones. Research the company so you know what you like about it, and mention it in your cover letter. Make sure to convey your enthusiasm for the job and confidence that you’ll be a great fit for their team.
• Wrap it up politely. Conclude your cover letter by recapping your key selling points and thanking the hiring manager for their time. Then add a call to action, such as “Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me at the provided phone number so that we can discuss my application in greater detail.” Then, add a closing line and follow it with your full name.

Sounds easy, right? Here’s a real-life example to drive the point home:

Do you need more help perfecting your cover letter? Learn what the most common cover letter mistakes are and check out cover letter examples for all professions here.

#2. How to Ace Your Next Interview

Once you’ve perfected both your resume and cover letter, there’s only one thing left.

It’s time for the final step—the dreaded job interview.

Whether you’re an extrovert or an introvert, you probably hate the interviewing process. No matter how experienced you are, it can be nerve-wracking. Sitting there while someone’s prodding into your past experiences and judging you isn’t fun.

But did you know that most interviewers ask the same questions?

That’s right—all you have to do is learn how to answer some of the most common interview questions, and you’ll be an interview away from landing your dream job!

Just check out our complete guide to the 35+ Job Interview Questions and Answers and learn how to ace your next interview.

FAQs on How to Make a Resume

Do you still have some questions about making a resume? Check out the answers to the most frequently asked questions below!

#1. What does a good resume look like in 2024?

For your resume to look good in 2024, make sure it’s organized and clean and isn’t longer than one page.

Be sure to include information that adds value to your application—leave out the focus on your relevant work experience and skills that you can back up, and list as many achievements as possible. 

If you’re using a resume template, choose one based on your industry. Conservative industries like law, banking, and business require more traditional resume templates. But if you’re going for an industry like design, architecture, or marketing, you can go for a creative resume template . 

Remote work is also big in 2024, so if that’s what you’re after, tailor your resume to match the job you want.

#2. How do you make a resume in Word?

The best way to create a resume in Word is to use a pre-designed Microsoft Word template. To access them, you should: 

• Open MS Word
• Click “file” from the menu bar 
• Select “new”
• Type “resume templates” in the search bar 

That said, Word resume templates are generic, hard to personalize, and overall not very stylish.

Want a resume that looks good and is extremely easy to make? Check out resume templates to get started!

#3. How do I write a resume for my first job?

If you’re writing your first-ever resume for an entry-level position, the hiring manager won’t expect you to have any work experience.

However, you can make up for your lack of experience with your skills and academic achievements.

For example, you can take advantage of extracurricular activities, internships, volunteering experiences, and other non-professional experiences. You can use them to highlight the skills you’ve gained and what you’ve achieved so far.

So, your first job resume should have a resume objective, emphasize your education, and replace your work experience with any internships, volunteering, independent projects, or other experiences.

#4. How to make a resume on Google Docs?

You can make a resume on Google Docs by choosing one of their templates and filling it in on the go.

All you have to do is go to your Google Drive’s template gallery, choose your preferred template, fill in your information, and your Google Docs resume is ready to go! 

That said, Google Docs templates aren’t the most user-friendly choice. You don’t have much flexibility with the layout and formatting isn’t that easy. For example, you tweak a section to the slightest, and the whole resume becomes a mess.

If you want an easier option, check out our resume builder !

#5. What kind of resume do employers prefer?

Typically, employers prefer one-page-long resumes that follow the reverse chronological format. 

Hiring managers receive hundreds of resumes every day, so they don't have the time to read three-page resumes. Try one of our one-page resume templates so you don’t go over the recommended resume length.

Meanwhile, the reverse-chronological format is the most popular because it draws attention to your most recent jobs and professional achievements, which is the #1 most important thing hiring managers look at when evaluating a resume.

#6. How many jobs should you put on your resume? 

You should only include relevant job positions on your resume.

This means that your work experience section should be tailored to the job you are applying for. If you’ve worked five different jobs and they can all add value to your current application, then you should include all five. 

If, on the other hand, you’re applying for, say, a customer service position and some of your past jobs don’t have anything to do with customer service, you should skip them.

#7. Should I put my address on my resume? 

You can put your location (city, state, or country) on your resume, but you don’t need to put your entire physical address.

Putting a physical address on a resume was the norm back when companies would contact you via mail. In today’s world, everyone communicates via email, which is why adding a correct and professional email address to your contact information section is far more important than putting your physical address. 

So, just include your location or-–if you’re a remote worker—specify you prefer to work remotely by writing “working remotely from [location].”

#8. What information should I leave out of my resume?

As a general rule, you shouldn’t include your birthday or your headshot on your resume. This norm varies from country to country but it applies to the USA, Canada, and UK.

If you have plenty of achievements to list under your work experience, then you can leave your basic work responsibilities out of your resume. 

In your education section, you should only include your highest and most recent degree. So, if you hold a Ph.D., you can list that and your Master’s degree and leave your Bachelor’s degree and high school diploma out.

Finally, leave out any skills that aren’t relevant to the job you’re applying for.

#9. Is a resume a CV?

Depending on where you are, a CV (Curriculum Vitae) and a resume might be completely different things.

In most of the world, though, including Europe and Asia, they are used interchangeably for the same document. Both CVs and resumes are one to two pages long, and list skills and experiences relevant to the position you’re applying for.

Sometimes more detailed resumes that go over one page are referred to as CVs. These are typically only used by senior professionals, executives, CEOs, etc.

In the USA, however, a CV is a completely different document. Typically, CVs are detailed and comprehensive documents that highlight your entire academic and professional history. They’re often used for academic, scientific, or research positions, which is why this type of CV can also be referred to as an academic CV.

You can create your CV using one of our CV templates !

#10. Should I write my own resume?

Yes, you should always write your own resume.

Your resume is your opportunity to show the hiring manager your communication, writing, and presentation skills . Employers also evaluate you based on how effectively you can convey information about yourself, and there’s no one that can represent you better than yourself.

Writing your own resume lets you introduce yourself authentically. You have the best understanding of your skills and experiences, and you can personalize them to make your resume stand out.

And, as a bonus, the experience of writing your resume yourself can be reflective and insightful, so it might help you understand your professional journey and career goals better.

#11. Can a resume be two pages?

Generally, we strongly recommend that your resume stick to one page.

Hiring managers go through hundreds of resumes every day, and keeping your resume to one page increases the odds that they’ll see your qualifications faster.

In some cases, like when you have a lot of relevant experience, your resume can go over two pages. But this exception is reserved for senior professionals with over a decade of relevant experience and tons of skills and achievements that simply can’t fit on one page.

#12. Is a simple resume okay?

Absolutely, a simple resume is often more than okay—it's preferable.

Before your resume even gets to the hiring manager, a complicated layout could get it rejected by the applicant tracking system (ATS). A simple resume template can help get your application straight to the hiring manager.

A clean layout can also make sure that your resume is easily readable and looks professional. This can focus the hiring manager's attention on your work experience and skills without excessive clutter or flashy colors to distract them.

Key Takeaways

And that’s a wrap!

If you’ve followed all of our advice until now, congrats! You’re probably an expert on how to make a resume.

To recap, let’s go through some of the most important lessons we’ve learned so far...

• Use the right resume builder to make the process as smooth as possible. You don’t want to mess around with formatting for hours before even starting to work on your resume!
• Focus on your achievements over responsibilities. This can help you stand out from all the other applicants, especially if you back your claims up with data.
• Include all the must-have sections, like the resume summary, work experience, education, and skills. Then leverage optional sections if you have leftover space.
• Tailor your resume for the job you’re applying for. Everything listed on your resume should be relevant to the specific job you’re applying for, and you should write a new resume for every new job application.
• Take the time to perfect your cover letter. It’s just as important as your resume, so make sure you pay as much attention to it!

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How to Write an Effective Resume

September 14, 2020

Download this guide in PDF format

In this guide, you’ll learn how to create an effective resume. You’ll learn strategies for tailoring your resume to the role you’re pursuing, and how to effectively present your skills and experience—whether you’re a new-job seeker or a mid-career professional switching to a new field. You will learn about templates and formats and understand the structure of every core section of a successful resume.

An effective resume needs to present all the important information about you as a professional in a concise and clear way. Format and content are both important. Prior to diving into the details of resume structure, you’ll first want to have a clear understanding of what you are trying to communicate. It’s also important to keep your focus on what matters to the employer and do everything you can to tailor your resume to the role.

Focus on what’s important to the employer

Before writing your resume, try to consider the employer’s point of view. What do they want to know? Answering this question will enable you to focus on the information that is going to be relevant to the employer. This, in turn, increases your chances of getting their attention.

When applying to a specific role, carefully read the job description. This will help you understand specifically what the employer is looking for. If you want to gather additional insights, review multiple job descriptions to see what shows up repeatedly. This will help you gain a broader understanding of the role. Another great way to understand the needs of your potential employer is to schedule networking conversations with industry professionals who can share their experiences and insights.

Keep in mind that focusing on what’s relevant to the employer might mean omitting details about your skills and experiences that are significant to you but are not directly relevant to the role. Deciding what to not include on your resume can be as important as deciding what to include. Irrelevant information might distract or confuse a reader, potentially making them more likely to discard your resume.

Tailor your resume to a role

It is essential that you tailor your resume to each job that you apply for. Even if your target roles have the same general set of requirements—and even if your skills and experience are broadly applicable—you should still adjust the order of your qualifications to match the order on the job description. In this way, you’re putting what’s most important to each employer at the top. 

If you can, try to match the language of the job description. For example, if you have a resume built around recruiting, and you are applying for a talent acquisition role, replace “recruiting” with “talent acquisition” on your resume. Shifting to the employer’s terminology can help them relate to you. This approach can also help prevent you from being filtered out by automated software that relies on keywords to match your resume to the job description and to determine whether it should be passed on to a recruiter or discarded.

Tip : Keep in mind that resumes are traditionally written in the third person without the use of personal pronouns. 

Different Types of Job Seekers

Your resume strategy will differ at different stages of your career journey. Someone seeking their first role will need to use a different approach than someone looking to make a mid-career switch to a new field. In both of these scenarios, you have to communicate your value despite not having experience in the field, but your strategy will differ depending on what information you have available to share.

You can use the recommendations in this section to understand how to communicate your value to an employer in a way that’s appropriate to your skills and experience.

Career changers

If you are an experienced professional but are looking to start a career in a new field, your background can provide you with a unique perspective, and can potentially help you stand out as a candidate. At the same time, you will need to be conscious about clearly establishing yourself as a qualified professional in your new field. Remember that your application will most likely be reviewed alongside applications from people with  directly relevant experience, so you need to make it clear to the employer why they should consider you for the role over those candidates. 

Here are some key things to keep in mind as you build your resume:

Focus on your transferable skills and experiences and highlight the advantages of your diverse background . 

When describing your past experiences, focus on what’s relevant to your new career, and don’t over-elaborate on less relevant details. For example, if you’ve been managing a restaurant and are now shifting into IT support, your customer service skills will be crucial, while your ability to manage staff won’t be as relevant. If, as a restaurant manager, you maintained your computer network and electronics, that will be important to discuss on your resume as well—even if it was a minor component of your role. Finally, try to point out how your background—despite being in a different field—is actually an advantage. For example, you might highlight how the commercial awareness you developed as a restaurant manager can help you understand business needs when prioritizing your work as an IT support professional. 

Adopt the terminology of your new industry. 

Get familiar with the language, terms, and jargon of your new industry and demonstrate this familiarity by using industry-specific words and phrases in your resume. This will make it easier for the reader to understand how your experience is relevant for them, and give them confidence about your engagement with your new field. For example, if you’ve run your own business in the past and are now looking for a role in marketing, use terms such as “marketing funnel” and “nurturing leads” when discussing your past marketing activities—even if you weren’t thinking in those terms at the time.

New Professionals

People who are looking for their first job, and who don’t yet have professional experience to describe, might struggle with how to fill their resumes. When this is the case, you can leverage non-professional experiences such as coursework, extracurricular activities, volunteer work, and life experiences (travel, caretaking, and more) as a means to demonstrate to the employer how you overcome challenges, solve problems, and achieve results. 

It’s important to remember that the employer only knows what’s on your resume. If you think something will help you make your case to a prospective employer, you need to find a way to include that information on your resume. Use sections such as Projects, Volunteer Work, Relevant Experiences as alternatives to Professional Experience for that purpose.

Templates and Layouts

Now that you have an idea of what you want to communicate on your resume, you can start filling out the details. You can design your own resume or use an existing template. There are many templates available online, and you can access them by typing “resume templates” into your favorite search engine. You can also find Google Doc templates by going to Google Docs and clicking Template Gallery at the top right. 

Tip: Whether you actually use a Google Doc template or not, it’s a good idea to design your resume in Google Docs. It will enable you to easily share, get feedback, and download your resume in a convenient format.

You can use your personal taste and preferences when selecting a template, but it’s also important to consider the following factors:

• Ease of reading : Your resume needs to make a great impression and communicate all your most important information in a very short amount of time. Make sure sections are clearly organized and that the font is easy to read, and use margins and white space to prevent the document from feeling cramped. 
• Simple design . Your resume needs to be easily comprehended by both humans and applicant tracking systems (ATS)—the software that companies use to store and retrieve candidate information. ATS’s vary, but many cannot parse graphs and other visual elements, meaning that information contained in them will be lost. Simple designs relying on well-organized text are best. 
• Length. Your resume should be one page, unless you have at least 10-15 years of relevant (not total) experience. Two-column resume templates are appropriate for one-page resumes. Two-page resumes should use the entire width of the page.

Resume Sections

Before you start filling out your resume, you’ll need to decide which sections to include, and in what order. There are core components that should be in every resume. There are also optional components you may want to include, depending on your skills and experience, and the roles you’re applying for. Adjust your template by moving, adding, removing, and renaming sections as necessary.

Core resume sections include contact information, a professional summary, and details about your skills, experience, and education. Make sure to use section labels to help the reader easily navigate through your resume. In terms of order, this will often depend on what you want to highlight to your employer. A recent graduate might want to put their education first, whereas a working professional would lead with their experience. Optional sections could include information on projects, publications, volunteer experience, awards and honors, patents, languages, and more. Let’s take a closer look at each section of a typical resume.

Individual Resume Sections

This is the section at the top of your resume that includes your contact information. Your name is the only part of your resume that should be spelled out in a larger font than the rest of your document. Your contact information should include:

• city, state, zip (no street address for privacy purposes) 
• phone number, email address
• LinkedIn profile URL
• Optional: personal website, GitHub (for technical roles), portfolio (for creative roles)

The Summary section will always be located at the top of your resume immediately following the Header. It should be brief (3-5 lines) and clearly articulate what makes you a great candidate for the role, as well as what makes you stand out from your competition. The Summary sets the context for the rest of the document by calling out the most important things for the reader to know about you.

While there are many ways to write a summary, consider the following format, focusing on your core expertise, strengths, and what sets you apart from others.

Sentence 1: Describe yourself by role and competencies. This is where you provide your professional introduction. Examples:

• Digital Marketing Manager with expert level knowledge of SEO, Social, PPC, and GMB.
• Talent Acquisition expert with 4+ years of experience in the medical device industry.

Tip: If you are changing careers, describe yourself using your desired title. For example, if you are shifting from QA Analytics to Project Management, describe yourself as a Project Manager. You can add “with background in QA Analytics” to acknowledge that part of your career.

Sentence 2 : Connect your expertise to your value prop.  This is where you define how your unique skills will make you a valuable asset to the company. Examples:

• Proficient in creating and editing graphics, figures, and illustrations. Consistently able to create high-quality marketing assets that drive conversions.
• Able to source for full range of positions from administrative to executive level. Able to create a seamless recruiting and hiring process for managers, and consistently present top-quality candidates.

Sentence 3: Include a differentiator. You are likely competing against other people with similar skills, so it’s important to provide a clear reason why an employer should select your resume. Examples:  

• Known for the ability to eloquently present point of view to clients, prospects, and colleagues with expertise, confidence, and clarity.
• Consistently noted in performance reviews as being able to present to clients, prospects and colleagues, with expertise, confidence, and clarity.
• Received 8 awards for customer service excellence.

Tip : Instead of using the word “Summary” to label this section, use a professional headline to help to set the tone for the rest of the document. For example: “Experienced SEO Manager” or “Android Developer | Medical Devices.” 

Immediately below the Summary you should have a list of your core areas of expertise, and your specific skills.

For a non-technical role , include 4-8 short bullets detailing your core skills (also known as Areas of Expertise) organized in two or three columns. To decide what goes on this list, think of what the employer would primarily hire you for. Focus on quantifiable skills like copywriting, agile project management, Google Analytics, or sales funnel management. Keep in mind that skills like communication, time management, and collaboration—which are harder to quantify, and are claimed by most people—are not as effective on a resume. 

Tip : When tailoring your resume to a specific role, the Skills section is your first opportunity to line up with the job description.

For a technical role , it’s important to list out all of your relevant technical skills. If you find that your list is too long to list out each item in a separate bullet, then organize your skills by type—software, programming languages, hardware, data analytics, or any other categories that apply.

Professional Experience Section

The Professional Experience section is uniquely important because it tells the story of what you’ve done in your career. For employers, this is a strong indicator of what you will be able to do for them.

The Professional Experience section should list your roles (company, job title, location, employment dates) in reverse chronological order. If you have significant professional experience, limit your resume to the past 10-15 years, as that is what is most relevant to the employer. 

Ideally, you want to list three to six roles on your resume that demonstrate progress on your career journey. Under each role, you should list your responsibilities and accomplishments in bullets. Responsibilities describe what you were supposed to do, and accomplishments are the specific outcomes that demonstrate how well you performed your role. 

Your most recent role should feature the most detail, with four to six bullets of no more than two lines each. Older roles should provide less information. Begin each bullet with an action verb that puts you in control. Include numbers to show the scope of your role and impact—how many leads did you convert, how much revenue growth did you drive, how many new hires did onboard, how large was the team you managed, and more.

Tip: Avoid chronological gaps in your Professional Experience. If you spent more than six months out of the workforce at any point—whether intentionally (for caregiving purposes or travel) or unintentionally (unemployment)—explain on your resume what you did during that time. Particularly highlight any activities relevant to your professional life, such as independent study, projects, and part-time or volunteer work. 

Example 

Big Box Story, Service Associate, Middleton, CA 01/2015 – 02/2016

• Provided customer service during checkout transactions and assisted customer questions and concerns in a big-box retail 
• Earned 8 Employee of the Week awards in one year on a team of 100+ associates
• Enrolled over 200 consumers in new credit cards within a 15-month time frame (4x average rate)
• Received “Certificate of Excellence” for success at upselling to customers

Education Section

In this section, include degrees beyond high-school in reverse chronological order (include your high-school information only if you don’t have any education or training beyond it). For each entry in the Education section, list the degree, institution, location, and date of completion.

Tip :  You can include pending or incomplete degrees by marking them as “In progress” or “Incomplete”—if you do so, make sure to include information on the classes/work you did complete. 

Finalize Your Resume

Once you’ve completed your resume using the guidance in this document, try to have someone proofread it for you. Recruiters consistently say they will discard resumes with typos, even if the resume is in great shape otherwise.

Tip : Consider asking a few people you trust—especially those familiar with your work—to provide feedback on the content. Don’t feel obligated to incorporate all the feedback you receive, but be open to recommendations that can help enhance the quality of your resume.

In conclusion, please keep in mind that, while there is no such thing as a perfect resume, you can use this guide to create an effective resume that avoids common problems and pitfalls. As you progress in your job search, remember that your resume is a living document. You can make revisions based on any feedback you receive, but try to avoid losing valuable time trying to over-optimize. Focus on your skills and experience, present yourself in the best light possible, and get ready to land that next role!

Keep reading

• Enhance your resume with ChatGPT
• Blueprint for success: Lisa’s degree story began with two certificates from HEC Paris
• Top skill alert: Open doors with spreadsheets

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• Resume and Cover Letter
• How to Make a Resume:...

How to Make a Resume: Beginner's Writing Guide with Examples

30 min read · Updated on May 22, 2024

Your dream job is one resume away!

Your resume is arguably the most important financial document you'll ever own. And before you think, “Yeah – right” let's consider for a moment. Without a resume, you don't get the job, so you can't pay bills, support a family, go to the big game, have that weekend trip, or plan for retirement. Your resume is the doorway to your future, so let's make sure it's perfect.

Part of making it perfect is remembering that it's a targeted career marketing document – not a chronicle of your life. So, how do you write a resume? In this beginner's writing guide, we'll show you how to make a resume and provide examples of what each section should look like. 

Grab a cup of coffee and strap in, because you're about to learn everything you need to know about how to make a new resume!

Table of contents:

The purpose of a resume

Avoid rejection by the ATS

What is your career target?

Build your personal brand, what should your resume look like, how to make a resume – the layout.

How long does it take to put together a resume?

A major resume no-no: typos

How to make your resume more professional

Theory in practice – resume examples

The most basic purpose of a resume is to sell your skills , achievements , and qualifications to prospective employers. This one document can financially make or break you. Let's take a quick look at what being unemployed costs you per day (assuming a five-day workweek):

If you make $40,000 per year, you lose about $155 every day that you're out of work

If you make $50,000 per year, you lose about $190 every day that you're out of work

If you make $75,000 per year, you lose about $288 every day that you're out of work

If you make $100,000 per year, you lose about $385 every day that you're out of work

Clearly, finding out how to make a resume for a job is critical so that you can properly sell your skills, qualifications, experiences, and achievements to prospective employers. 

The job market is tough and highly competitive; you have to stand out in a sea of qualified candidates by creating a compelling narrative that tells a story of value, keeping in mind that your resume is supposed to do a few things for you:

Introduce you to a new company

Underscore how your experiences and education are relevant

Showcase how your skills and competencies will benefit the new company's team

Win interviews

Avoid rejection by the ATS 

What do you know about applicant tracking systems? Job seeking can be compared to throwing your resume into a black hole. You can go through 100 listings on any job search website and complete the online application with zero results. 

Ever had that happen? It's okay, it happens to everyone at some point or another! 

The problem is that you're probably not putting the correct keywords into your resume. When you hit “Submit” on an online application, it isn't magically emailed to the hiring manager. 

Oh, no! 

It goes through a computer system that scans your resume for specific keywords that can be found in the job description posted by the company. And, just so you know, approximately 90% of companies use ATS scans , including everything from mom-and-pop shops to Fortune 500 companies. 

The companies use these programs because they just don't have time for a human to go through all the resumes they receive. Depending on the job opening, a company can get between  250 and 500 applicants . Can you imagine being the person who has to sift through all those resumes? 

Here is where the ATS steps in. It's designed to weed through candidates to narrow the applicant pool, so that the human hiring manager has a more reasonable resume load to go through. It ranks the remaining candidates in order based on how much of a match they are for the position that's open. 

Being overlooked by the ATS is one of the number one reasons job seekers get ghosted by companies.

Once your resume makes it through the ATS and gets into the hands of a hiring manager, don't think they're going to sit down and read each one. Who has that kind of time? You should expect that the first round of resume sorting will consist of them flipping through the stack to pick the ones that stand out within about 6 seconds of glancing at them. 

PRO TIP: Put your resume on a table, stand up, and look at it from a little distance. Is it eye-catching? Can you tell the position you're seeking just by glancing at it? Set a timer if you have to, but no more than 10 seconds.

Speaking of eye-catching, don't make the same mistake as a lot of your rival job seekers by being too generic with your resume. It's easy to fall into the trap of thinking that being non-specific will open doors to more opportunities. The problem is that the hiring manager won't be able to tell exactly where you'll fit within their organization. 

The first step in winning an interview is being sure that your resume actually makes it into the hands of a human being at the company you apply to. Start by defining what you want to do.

So the first, and most important, step in crafting the perfect resume is to narrow down your target career path. The more specific you are with this first step, the more response you'll receive from hiring managers because they'll be able to tell exactly how you fit within their organization. There are four areas to focus on as you begin to chart your career path:

Industry: Do you want to work in private sector, nonprofit, government, or public roles?

Geography: This one is more in-depth than choosing rural vs urban. It also includes whether you want to work in a dynamic or static environment.

Company size: You may not think it, but having an idea about whether you want to work in a small company or one with thousands of employees is important. 

Role: Saving the best for last, you have to know what position you want.

On the surface, it may seem like these things are only important for the job search aspect of landing a new position, but you have to know what voice to write your resume in, too. Part of that is knowing your audience. When you understand your audience, you can build a personal brand that resonates with what they're looking for in a new staff member.

Now that you've gotten your target career path nailed down, the next step is to brand you. Think of yourself as a product and your resume is the packaging. Companies spend a lot of time on their branding and packaging - you have to do the same thing.

The best place to start is with a  career assessment . Taking one of these tests can help you to identify your strengths, what sets you apart from others, and key themes of your professional identity. Just like Nike and Coca-Cola have timeless taglines and catchphrases that succinctly define what they have to offer to consumers, your personal brand has to tell a concise, yet compelling, story. This is where your resume comes in.

Your resume isn't just a piece of paper you give to a hiring manager or upload to a website that says, “I'm interested in this job.” Your resume is a personal marketing tool. You shape that tool with words that describe your experiences and achievements, to impress and grab the attention of the hiring manager. 

Unlike Nike's “Just Do It” phrase, your personal brand isn't something you build and forget. It is fluid and should be revisited and refined as you gain new skills, experiences, and achievements. Weave the elements of your brand into every section of your resume.

There is a common misconception that entry-level resumes look different than executive resumes. The reality is that the only difference is how much content is available to write about. 

Obviously, someone who has little to no experience will have a  short resume  – generally one page. 

When you start to get up to 10 years of experience, then you've earned the second page, so go ahead and use it. 

It's not incremental though

Just because you have 20 years of experience doesn't mean you can have a three-page resume. As you work through how to make a resume, remember that a three-page resume should be avoided, unless you have a lot of career extras like publications, research, patents, publications, or public speaking engagements to talk about. 

Other than the number of pages, your resume should use the same format and layout no matter if you're applying to a job as someone fresh out of college or seeking to be the CEO of a company. 

Chronological resume 

The  reverse-chronological  is the most popular, traditional, and well-known resume format. Its focus is placed on achievements from your career history and is defined by listing your work history starting with your current or most recent job and working backward 10-15 years. 

Employers like this type of resume because it tells them what, when, and where you worked. It's best to use this if your work history is steady and shows growth and development. If you're looking to make a career change, have had frequent job changes, or if you're seeking your first job, this may not be the best format to use.

Pro Tip: You could also get lost in the ATS if your  resume is over-designed . Many resume writers will tell you that you need to stand out in the sea of sameness by adding some personality to your resume through design. While that's true, you need to avoid heavily formatted resumes which are often rejected by computer scanners as being illegible.

Functional resume 

This resume type focuses more on skills and experiences rather than on your work history. It's more of a “what you know and how you apply that knowledge” than a simple list of where you got the knowledge. It plays down gaps in work history and makes frequent job changes less noticeable. If it isn't done properly, though, it can be confusing for the hiring manager to read and understand. There's also a bit of a stigma behind it, because employers know that job seekers use this style to downplay job-hopping. So, the first thing they do when they get a functional resume is check employment dates. If you can avoid using this style, it's best to do so.

Combination resume 

There is another resume format that focuses on skills first and then experience last. It's the combination resume, which is sometimes called a hybrid resume. This is the most complex resume type and the best resume for mid-career professionals who are transitioning into another career or for people who have special skills and a strong track record of accomplishments. These types of resumes do take a long time to read and some hiring managers won't take the time unless they're looking to fill a hard-to-fill position.

Curriculum Vitae

Curriculum Vitae (CV) is Latin and means “course of life.” It's a little different from a resume, but some positions require a CV over a resume. The first thing you would notice is that a CV is significantly longer than a resume.  A resume is a self-branding document meant to portray your experience and achievements in a concise and easy-to-read format. A CV goes much further into the depth of your education and accomplishments (think publications, awards, and honors) and even has a section for you to include "Areas of Interest."

The best way to describe a CV is that it's a career biography. The biggest significant difference is that a CV is arranged chronologically in a way that gives a complete overview of your full working career. It also doesn't change based on the career or position for which you're applying.

Layout 

To make things easier for the hiring manager to digest the content of your resume, it should be laid out in a specific way to ensure that the right information is in the right place. 

Hiring managers don't  READ  resumes. They skim through until they find something that piques their interest and then they stop to read

Contact information

Title 

Professional summary , core competencies, experience , education and credentials , awards, certificates, and volunteer work .

Since the reverse-chronological resume is the one that the majority of people will use to apply for jobs, and because it's the format that hiring managers want to see, we'll focus this article on showing you how to make a resume using that style. 

Current contact information 

Location | Phone | Email | LinkedIn | Portfolio (if applicable)

You can be creative and use bold font in your  contact information  and even put a border under it to separate it from the body of your resume. 

• Name: Be sure to list your name the same across all professional documents (e.g., resume, cover letter, thank you note, LinkedIn profile). Don't get hung up with whether to use your legal name (i.e. the name on your birth certificate or driver's license). Write your name in the manner you want people to address you. Also, if you use any abbreviated credentials after your name (e.g. Jane Smith, MD), remember to include them on all professional documents.  You can also include any shortened versions of your name in quotations (e.g. Christopher "Chris" Smith). Just make sure to list it the same way everywhere you put your name.
• Address: It is no longer customary to include your full address on your resume. There have been instances of discrimination against job seekers based on their address. As far as your address is concerned, all you need is the City, State, and Zip Code. A lot of people leave off the Zip Code; however, hiring managers can query the ATS for all resumes within a radius of a Zip Code. If you exclude the Zip Code or put something like, "Greater New York Metro Area," your resume won't be included in the query.
• Phone and email: Put the telephone number and email address where you can easily be reached. Also, be sure that your email address is professional. Using something like [email protected] just won't cut it. The best idea is to use some form of your name. If you're paranoid about having your name in your email address, then you can use some form of the type of position you seek, like [email protected].
• LinkedIn URL: You don't have to spell out the entire URL on the contact line. You can put the words “LinkedIn URL” and hyperlink those words. Before you include your LinkedIn URL, be sure that your LinkedIn profile is optimized for the career you want - because you can bet if they have access to it, the hiring manager will look at it. 
• Portfolio: If you're applying for a position like Graphic Designer or Software Designer, you may have a portfolio of work that you want to make available to someone reviewing your application for employment. Include a hyperlink to the portfolio in your contact information. 
• Headshot / photo: There is no reason to include a  headshot on your resume . Actually, it's seen as taboo and could be the thing that gets your resume rejected, because the hiring manager might assume you think you can get the job based on your looks. However, there are some exceptions, like if you're applying to be a model or actor. 

Do you want a hiring manager to be able to tell immediately what type of candidate you are? Put a title at the top of your resume. Center the text on the line, put it in bold font, and put a blank space above and below. The white space and the small amount of words will help it to jump off the page and immediately be noticed. It will also be the first step in helping you stand out in the sea of sameness.

Also, be sure the title on your resume mirrors the title on the job description that you're applying to, but add a bit of panache to it so that it's not too boring. For example, instead of writing “Financial Services Associate,” write “Client-Centric Financial Services Associate Dedicated to Customer Engagement and Revenue Growth.” Just remember to keep it on one line. 

The very next thing on the page should always be your Professional Summary. But how do you write a summary for a resume?

It's a three to five-sentence statement about you. Where you've been in your career, where you're going, and how you'll use your experience to get there. 

While the professional summary is sometimes referred to as the resume objective , you must remember that the days of writing a  resume objective are dead . Never, ever include an objective on your resume. They are a waste of space and don't relay any information that markets you as the best candidate for an open position. 

Let's take a look at an example of each:

Sales Representative seeking a challenging position that will use my skills and provide opportunities for growth in a dynamic and rewarding company. 

As you can see, the objective is very inward-facing and only talks about what you want out of your career. It provides no value to the hiring manager and eliminates any possibility for them to be able to tell what you bring to the table for them. 

Professional Summary:

Ambitious sales professional offering 10+ years' experience in customer retention and aggressive revenue growth. Conquers goals and quotas through a keen awareness of the human buying motive that allows for quickly overcoming objections. Used historical data and consumer trends to reach new customers and grow territory by 24%. Innate ability to work independently or as a member of a cross-functional team.

The best use of resume space is to write a summary of your career. The effectiveness of this summary comes from the fusing of three things:

Relevant keywords – customer retention, revenue growth, and quotas 

Hard and soft skills – overcoming objections and working independently

An achievement – 24% territory growth

With this professional summary, the hiring manager will be able to tell in an instant what you have to offer their team. 

Even though the skills section of your resume is small, it packs a powerful punch! The skills you list in this section highlight your key abilities and show potential employers what you bring to the table. 

It should contain approximately 12 ATS-friendly keywords and phrases that align with the keywords in the job description. Meaning, this is a fluid section that will need to be  tailored to every job  that you apply to. Technically speaking, your entire resume should be customized to align with each job description. That's one thing that will help you get past the ATS. 

Be sure to include a good mix of  hard and soft skills  because prospective employers not only want to know that you can perform the tasks related to your job (hard skills), but they also want to gain a clear understanding of how you'll fit within the culture of the company (soft skills). 

Tips for building your Core Competencies section:

Include skills that are relevant to the job that you're applying to

Avoid creating a laundry list of everything you know how to do – be selective so that the section is more impactful

Group similar competencies together using categories – technical skills, soft skills, and languages

Prioritize your top skills based on their relevance to the job you want

Update frequently

Be consistent with the formatting

Here is a sample Core Competencies list that contains both hard and soft skills:

Core Competencies

Project Management | Data Analysis | Cross-Functional Collaboration | Digital Marketing Strategy | Python Programming | Customer Relationship Management (CRM) | Negotiation | Team Leadership | Business Development | Financial Modeling | Articulate Communication

This section is meant to show how your career history lends itself to the skills you have that make you the perfect candidate for a given job. There are some general rules of thumb on how to make a resume with a great professional experience section:

Don't go further back than 10 to 15 years

Use no more than 3 to 5 bullets per work listing

Incorporate at least 5 measurable achievements per 10 years of experience (the more the better)

Use stacking for companies where you held more than one role

10-15 Years

The 10-15 years of experience is the most relevant – you can list more than that, but avoid using bullet points for roles over 10 years old. Begin by listing your most recent position first and work your way backward to your oldest position, within that 10-15-year range. If you have 30 years of experience, you can use achievements or skills you learned during that time as talking points during the interview. Listing those older experiences on your resume will only dilute the content.

As you write out your bullet points, keep two words in mind: “so what?” The hiring manager is going to be thinking it, you might as well be thinking it, too. Every time you write something on your resume, think, “So what? Why am I writing this? What value will it bring to my new employer? Will this be THE THING that lands me an interview?"

Achievements

Remove “Responsible for…” from your resume-writing vocabulary. That's because it's crucial that you talk about what you achieved, instead of just what your responsibilities were. Let's face it, there are a lot of things that people are “responsible for” that never get done. So, be sure to talk about things you actually accomplished, as that will be the proof the hiring manager needs to take the next step and call you for an interview.

1. Use numbers whenever possible

The best way to call attention to your career accomplishments is to use numbers. Numbers add credibility to your claims and provide a clear picture of what you bring to the table. 

Don't write this:

• Conducted cold calls to expand client base

Write this instead:

• Increased sales by 15% by making approximately 20 cold calls per day to expand the client base

The latter makes an unmistakable assertion that you had a positive impact, not only in your role but on the company as a whole. You can take it a step further and talk about things like problem-solving skills and how you addressed challenges to lead to team success. These types of  soft skills are highly valued by employers  and could be the thing that lands you an interview.

PRO TIP: Use the  CAR method  for building achievement statements into your resume.

2. Use action words to convey accomplishment

A lot of people make the mistake of copying bullet points from the job descriptions of the roles they've held. This practice makes you sound detached from achievements and focuses more on responsibilities. Using passive language is too generic and doesn't allow a hiring manager to see what you'll be able to accomplish in the new role. 

It's better to use action language to show that you're an achiever rather than a doer. Here are some examples of action words you can use on your resume: 

Worked with others: Advised, Aided, Assisted, Chaired, Coached, Collaborated with, Consulted with, Helped, Instructed, Interacted with, Mentored, Motivated, Supported

Communicated: Addressed, Advertised, Answered, Briefed, Corresponded with, Debated, Explained, Facilitated, Informed, Interpreted, Interviewed, Persuaded, Responded to

Analyzed data: Assessed, Appraised, Audited, Calculated, Computed, Estimated, Evaluated, Forecast, Inspected, Measured, Researched, Surveyed, Tested

Operated equipment: Installed, Maintained, Programmed, Ran, Serviced, Used

Worked with money or contracts: Administered, Appropriated, Authorized, Balanced, Controlled, Directed, Enforced, Financed, Funded, Governed, Invested, Monitored, Oversaw, Purchased

Organized something: Arranged, Assembled, Catalogued, Compiled, Coordinated, Itemized, Routed, Scheduled, Stocked, Tracked

Created: Composed, Customized, Designed, Directed, Established, Founded, Illustrated, Originated, Shaped

Researched: Analyzed, Collected, Criticized, Detected, Diagnosed, Evaluated, Tested

How to make your professional experience section: The formula

There's a formula for writing your professional experience section in a way that focuses on achievements. You'll start by asking yourself these questions about every job you've had:

What was the name of the company?

What was the title of your role?

What dates were you employed? (*Hint: use the MM/YYYY format for your dates)

What did you do every day? (*Example: Leveraged management skills to direct operations of 5 separate but concurrent projects by delegating tasks to staff based on employee acumen and monitoring / controlling budgets)

What is one thing you did at the company that you're really proud of?

What is another thing you're really proud of?

What is one more thing you did that you're really proud of?

When you put all of that together, it should look like this:

Company Name | MM/YYYY to Present

Position Title

Balanced competing priorities on multiple and concurrent projects and program management initiatives using data-driven strategies in Agile environments. Managed key accounts, onboarded new accounts, and oversaw organizational process adoption for nursing facilities, emergency departments, and pharmacies.

Developed $2M Provider Incentive Program that increased community provider partnerships

Saved $800K by using Six Sigma skills to implement DMAIC approach

Coached and mentored 2 direct reports, creating an open environment of communication that facilitated future-facing decision-making

Many people will create separate sections for education history and certifications. That's not necessary. You can include all of it in one section. You can also include extras like  relevant coursework , projects, and achievements. These extras can be truly beneficial for your application if you have little to no work experience. 

There are some general rules of thumb for the education section: 

Spell out acronyms (BS, MS, PhD) and school abbreviations

It is no longer customary to include graduation dates unless you're still in school or graduated within the last year

Never include high school, unless you're still in high school - listing high school doesn't say “ I finished high school, ” it says, “ I didn't go to college .” 

List your degree first and then your school, unless you've obtained multiple degrees at the same institution. 

Here's what a regular education section looks like:

EDUCATION AND CREDENTIALS

Master of Business Administration (MBA) | ABC University

Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) | XYZ University

Six Sigma Black Belt | Council for Six Sigma Certification

If you don't have a lot of experience and need to include some relevant coursework or major projects to inject relevant keywords into your resume, then this is what that would look like:

Relevant coursework:  Marketing, Operations Management, Accounting, Corporate Finance

Capstone project:  Let a team of 4 to execute a market analysis project to expand the Brooms and Handles company into new regions. Used market and consumer analysis data to identify gaps and achieve a 15% projected revenue increase and a 20% increase in customer satisfaction within the pilot program. 

You can include educational information about a degree program even if it's still in progress. Here's what that would look like:

Expected completion:  05/2024

Capstone project:  Let a team of 4 to execute a market analysis project to expand the Brooms and Handles company into new regions. Used market and consumer analysis data to identify gaps and achieve a 15% projected revenue increase and a 20% increase in customer satisfaction within the pilot program.

It is important to list what you do outside of work and school. It helps to demonstrate that you're a well-rounded person. 

Were you the president of a fraternity or sorority? 

Did you get involved with showing new students around campus? 

Have you headed a sales team that produced top awards? 

Were you an employee of the month? 

Do you speak multiple languages?

Did you volunteer for an organization?

Did you perform some major research that ended up being published?

All of these extras allow prospective employers a sneak peek into your life outside of work. They can also go a long way to breaking the ice during an interview, especially if something you do outside work is important or interesting to the hiring manager. 

Keep in mind to list only those volunteer positions, projects, or affiliations that are related to your career goals. 

How long does it take to make a resume?

If you're going to use the resume wizard that MS Word has, you can slap your information together in a day or two. It will get to employers. The bad thing is that it probably won't get a whole lot of attention. 

The "just right resume" can take weeks, because of how much background work goes into it. You'll write it, rewrite it, and write it again, and may even have multiple versions. Ultimately, the exact amount of time that goes into putting your resume together depends on your level of experience, how complex your history is, and the specificity of the job you're applying to. 

Entry-level resumes take the least amount of time, simply because there's less information to include

Mid-level resumes take a few days because of the amount of detail in your work history

Executive resumes, or those for specialized positions, can take weeks - especially if you have to do some digging to come up with accomplishments from your previous positions

Updating an existing resume that's well-maintained can be done in just a few hours

While the time spent can seem like a lot, if you're truly marketing yourself for that “just right” position, do you want your resume to say “This was thrown together in a couple of hours using a template” OR do you want it to say “I know this document is important and a significant amount of time was spent on it to make it perfect?”

The first and foremost thing that will get your resume tossed in the garbage can are typos. The number of resumes with errors that are turned in every day to employers across the globe is so astounding that it bears discussing. 

You must proofread your resume!

The major problem with typos and grammatical boo-boos is that your eyes will read what you intended to type. So, after you've read through your resume a few times and think it's perfect, get a friend to read it. Make sure the friend is one of those brutally honest types. It's better to get it back marked all over with bright red ink so you can fix it before you send it out, than to send it out and then realize there's a mistake in it.

How to make your resume seem more professional

Lazy words: Do you see words like "etc" or “other duties as required” on your resume? Delete them immediately. If you take shortcuts in the language of your resume, hiring managers will wonder if you'll be taking shortcuts at work. 

Cookie cutter resumes: Your resume has to stand out. Because of that, you should avoid throwing something together that you find a sample of online. Make it yours, make it represent you. Many people rely on the resume wizard that comes loaded with MS Word and, while that is a good tool to use to help you remember the sections to include, it shouldn't be the end-all-and-be-all of your resume design. 

Specificity: You've had three jobs in the last 10 years and you've listed every detail of everything you've done during your tenure at those jobs. That makes you a Jack (or Jackie) of all trades, but a master of nothing. You have to be specific to the job for which you're applying. What value do you bring to that employer for that job? What achievements can you highlight?

Tailoring: Considering the rampant use of ATS by companies big and small, you have to take the time to customize your resume so that it gets past those scanners. Remember to use relevant keywords from the job descriptions throughout your resume. 

PRO TIP: You can check to see how to make your resume better! Have it checked against an ATS and get a free, personalized, and  professional resume review . 

Theory in practice – 10 resume examples

It's one thing to have someone tell you how to make a resume, it's another thing to see an example – proof that all of this information can come together in a practical way that makes sense. 

1. Software Engineer resume example

Click here for an example of a Software Engineer resume.

2. Data Scientist resume example

Click here for an example of a Data Scientist resume.

3. Cybersecurity resume example

Click here for an example of a cybersecurity resume.

4. Digital Marketing Manager resume example

Click here for an example of a Digital Marketing Manager resume.

5. Nurse Practitioner resume example

Click here for an example of a Nurse Practitioner resume. 

6. Finance Director resume example

Click here for an example of a Finance Director resume. 

7. Attorney resume example

Click here for an example of a Attorney resume.

8. Administrative Office Assistant resume example

Click here for an example of an Administrative Office Assistant resume. 

9. Information Technology Expert resume example

Click here for an example of an Information Technology Expert resume. 

10. Chief Executive Officer resume example

Click here for an example of a CEO resume. 

Now you know how to make a resume for your next job!

It may seem like it takes a lot of work to make a good resume, but if you've followed along this far there are a few things that should be ingrained in you that will help you write a professional resume:

Know what you want to do – be specific

Make your resume with the right format 

Use a standard layout, whether you are writing your first resume or 50th

Use action words to make your resume stand out

Quantify your achievements to prove that you have what it takes to succeed in a new role

Tailor your new resume to each job

Double and triple-check for errors, typos, and grammar mistakes

If you're still unsure how to make a perfect resume, TopResume has you covered. Our team of  professional resume writers  has the know-how and experience to write a resume for you that will win interviews.

Recommended reading: 

Resume Tricks That Don't Work

What Does Your Resume Really Say About You?

Bad Resume Advice You Should Completely Ignore

Related Articles:

Do Hiring Managers Actually Read Cover Letters?

How to Create a Resume With No Education

Why You Lose When You Lie on Your Resume: Learning From Mina Chang

See how your resume stacks up.

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How to Write a Resume: The Only Resume Guide You’ll Need in 2024

• Kaja Jurcisinova , 
• Updated January 16, 2024 16 min read

Your resume is arguably the most important document you'll create during a job search. So taking the time to learn how to write a resume properly can make a job hunt much quicker and easier.  

What would otherwise take you hours of hard work and research can be done in a few minutes. All you have to do is follow our simple step-by-step guide on how to write the perfect resume. 

In the end, a good resume gives you a chance to make a great first impression and ultimately decide if you'll be invited for an interview. 

What makes a great resume?

• Clear division of resume sections
• Prioritizing relevant information
• Tailored for a specific position
• Typo-free and well-written
• Usage of bullet points

There's more to it, though.

Table of Contents

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What is a resume?

Before you start writing your resume, how to write a resume, step 1: choose the right resume format, step 2: add contact information and personal details, step 3: begin with your professional summary, step 4: list relevant work experience, step 5: summarize your education , step 6: highlight your soft and hard skills , step 7: add optional resume sections.

• Step 8: Wrap it up with a cover letter 

Final tips before you click “Send”

Let's cover the basics first. Before we learn how to write a good resume, we should know what a resume even is. 

The word resume comes from French, meaning “summary” . This is the perfect word because that’s exactly what a resume is: a short, straight-to-the-point summary that details your professional achievements, skills, qualifications, education, work experience, and past employers. It's also known as a curriculum vitae (CV) .

The aim of a resume is to get invited to a job interview . It should aim to convince an employer that you're a good fit for the job. 

Because of that, your resume should be adjusted and tailored to each job vacancy.

TL;DR Here's a step-by-step video guide on how to write a professional resume in 2024

If you’re already familiar with what should be on your resume and just want a quick and informative recap, or if your time is limited, just check out our 5-minute step-by-step video guide .

Before we move on to how to write a resume, we recommend setting a few minutes aside for research. These few minutes can save you hours of frustration and ultimately make your job search that much easier.

Here’s what we recommend to research before you write your resume: 

• Research the company, specifically the “About Us” page. This is a great place to search for keywords you can use in your resume or cover letter. What are their mission statement and their values?
• Research the position you’ll be applying for. Great resumes are tailored to a specific job opening. You can do this by asking these three questions as you go through the job post: “ What are the essential keywords? What adjectives, nouns, and phrases occur repeatedly? What language does the company use?”
• Discover your strong points , as this will make it easier to pinpoint the qualities you want to highlight in your resume. Ask people around you: “What are my skills and abilities, and what are my weaknesses?” Also, look at your past accomplishments. What were the skills and abilities that helped you succeed in the past?

Another way of preparing for writing your resume is by looking at these well-researched, specifically tailored, and properly formatted resume examples in our database. You can even filter them by your job title.

Not enough time?

Let your resume write itself. All you’ll have left to do is edit the draft.

We'll walk you through nine essential steps to help you create a standout resume.

Different resume formats cater to different types of job seekers, depending on the experience level and career goals. The  three most commonly used  resume formats are chronological, functional, and combination (hybrid).

Your resume should include your contact/personal information right at the top, in a so-called resume header. A resume header is  more than just your name and contact details . Depending on your career path, there's a lot more that can (and should) be included in this section. To find out what to include, what to skip, and how to format it keep on reading.

A professional summary (also called resume profile or resume summary) is a short paragraph that summarizes your relevant skills, experiences, and achievements. Think of it as a teaser for the rest of your resume.

This is the most important section of your resume. You need to include key information like : names of companies, locations, job titles, positions held, dates of employment, responsibilities you've had. Then: - list the jobs in reverse-chronological order - write in bullet points - include your quantifiable achievements - avoid buzzwords - use action verbs and keywords from the job description

The education summary section, though important, varies in significance based on your career stage . As an experienced professional, prioritize work history and skills, placing education after. Keep it concise, including university, degree, and graduation year.

Skills fall into two categories: hard and soft. 1. Hard skills are teachable and measurable, acquired through training, and include computer proficiency, language abilities, project management, etc. 2. Soft skills , linked to personality traits, can enhance both work and personal life, encompassing communication, leadership, and time management, among others.

These can include: achievements and awards, certifications and licences, language skills, publications, references, hobbies, social media, volunteering, or custom sections.

A good cover letter should answer the following questions: 1. Who are you?  2. Why are you interested in working for their company? 3. Why are you the best fit for the job opening? 4. How can you enrich their company?

In the following chapters, we look at each step in more detail and give you helpful tips and examples.

Once you know what the company and job require and you’ve identified your strengths and weaknesses, you should be ready to pick the right resume format.  

Make this choice depending on the stage of your career: 

• Are you a seasoned professional ? Then you should pick a resume format that emphasizes your experience.
• Are you a fresh graduate? Then your resume should highlight any transferable skills you’ve acquired during your studies.
• Are you changing careers? Then a combination of the two will produce the best results.

Pick the best option for your career from the three dominant resume formats that are in use today:

• Chronological resume format. Probably the best choice for experienced professionals. Lists the candidate’s jobs and accomplishments in chronological order. Main resume section : Work Experience.
• Functional resume format. Great for fresh graduates, IT professionals, or other skill-based professions. Emphasizes skills instead of experience. Main resume section: Skills.
• Combined resume format . A combination of the previous two.

Let's take a look at what these resume formats look like in practice:

Chronological resume format

Functional resume format, combined resume format.

The resume format you choose will determine how you organize the information on your resume. It will also attract attention to some things and away from others. 

Take time to understand your strengths and weaknesses and choose accordingly.

You want the recruiter to read the strongest and most relevant parts of your resume at the start. For more, check out a guide on how to choose the right resume format .

Your contact/personal information should always be at the top of your resume in a so-called resume header .

Compared to the other resume sections, filling in the contact information section may seem super easy. That's until you start asking more questions.

Should you put your address on the resume? How to include social media , and should you? And what about the date of birth? 

Well, let’s see: 

• Name. Absolutely necessary. Put your first name first and surname last. Middle name is optional.
• Title. Optional. If you’re applying for a position in a traditional or specialized field, it's good to add your Ph.D., MBA, or other titles to it.
• Email address. Absolutely necessary, even when you’re sending your application by email. Your email address should look professional (e.g. [email protected] , NOT [email protected] ). Always use your personal email address, not the email address with the domain of your current employer. 
• Home address. Somewhat problematic. Your neighborhood can say a lot about you in some cases, disclosing living in a certain area can lead to discrimination. On the other hand, if you’re located in the same city as the company, it may help you to get the job, as it saves the company that they'd have to spend on a relocation package (of course, only if the job isn't remote).
• Phone number. Necessary. Many employers will call you by phone to arrange an interview, instead of doing it by email.
• LinkedIn. Recommended. And if you don’t have a LinkedIn profile yet, consider creating one. Make sure your profile is complete and up-to-date.
• Social media. Optional. Include it only if it’s related to your job. GitHub, Behance, and even your Facebook or Instagram profile will do (if you regularly post content that has to do with your profession). Here are a few tips on how to include your social media . 
• Blog/website. Optional. Similar to social media. If you have a blog , website, or digital portfolio related to your chosen profession, don’t be afraid to show it off.
• Photo. Problematic. It depends on the country. In most English-speaking countries, they don’t add a photo. See this guide to know if you should put a picture on your resume .

Your professional summary should be a list of about 4-5 bullet points or a short paragraph that summarizes your relevant skills, experiences, and achievements.

You can think of it as a teaser for the rest of your resume. Make sure it’s interesting enough to hook the hiring manager right in.

But how do you write a good professional summary?

• Write your professional summary last. It’s surprisingly easy to do if you’ve already finished other sections of your resume.
• The first bullet point should describe your professional title. Don’t forget to add the number of years of experience. Write it in bold if the number is especially impressive.
• Pick the most impressive parts of your resume and rewrite them into snappy bullet points. Tease your potential employer into reading further.
• Pack your professional summary with relevant keywords. Think of ATS. This will help you get through automated pre-screenings.
• Quantify every achievement if possible. This will make you look even more professional. 
• Tie every bullet point to the requirements introduced in the job offer.

If you do everything right, you should end up with something like this:

The work experience section is what most people picture when they think “resume” .

The trick is to focus on your past achievements , not your responsibilities. 

Hiring managers are likely to know what your responsibilities were supposed to be. In most cases, your job title says it all.

If you want to stand out, you should tell them how you excelled in your previous job instead. 

And there’s hardly a more effective way to do that than by mentioning your achievements.

But how do you list your work experience on a resume?

• Put your work experience section in the right spot. If you can boast a lot of professional experience, put your work experience section right under your resume summary. If you don’t have enough experience yet, put it just below your education section. Finally, if you prefer to highlight your skills instead of experience, put your skills section first.
• Give it a proper heading. Keep it simple and stick to “Work Experience” or “Employment History” as other headings might not be understood by applicant tracking systems (ATS) .
• List your jobs in reverse-chronological order. Start with your most recent experience and work your way back from there. Based on your level of experience, decide how far back should your resume go .
• Don’t include the job description. Instead of listing what you were supposed to do, try to tell your potential employers what positive results you had.
• Write in past tense. This will help you focus on your past achievements instead of responsibilities. It also sounds better.
• Show your problem-solving skills. In the end, hiring managers want to know how effective you’re going to be in solving real problems. There’s no better way to show your problem-solving ability than to briefly describe how you solved difficult problems in the past. Follow the PAR scheme: What was the (P)roblem? What (A)ction did you take? What was the (R)esult?
• Quantify results. Hiring managers love measurable results. Because of that, a single number often speaks more than a thousand words. Don’t say that you “increased the company’s revenue significantly.” Instead, don’t be afraid to brag about “increasing the company’s revenue by 20%.”
• Use bullet points. Bullet points help you structure each subsection. Try to limit yourself to about 5 bullets per job.
• Avoid buzzwords. People used some phrases in their resumes so much, these words have become meaningless. Everybody seems to be an out-of-the-box creative thinker with a knack for innovation nowadays. But in reality, only very few people really are those things. See what other 10 buzzwords you should stop using on your resume
• Use action verbs . Unlike buzzwords, action verbs carry the weight you need to persuade an employer to hire you. Just to mention a few, these are words like “developed” , “increased” , “facilitated” and others. For more action verbs, check out our resume cheat sheet .
• Keywords. Reread the job description and carefully pick the most important keywords. These are the words that best describe the position you’re applying for, and that will attract the attention of the ATS system. 

In the end, your work experience section should look a bit like this:

The education summary section is where you list your degrees and relevant academic accomplishments.

Based on your degree and where you're in your career, it can be either the least or the most important part of your resume.

Are you an experienced professional?

Once you become more experienced, the education section takes a back seat to your work history and hard skills.

In other words, your education section should come after your work experience section, not the other way around. It also shouldn't be too long. For instance, your grades are no longer relevant.  

It’s enough if you include the name of your university, the name of your degree, and the year you graduated.

Here’s an example:

Are you a fresh graduate?

Then your degree is still one of the strongest cards you have to play.

In practical terms, it means that you should place your education section at the top of your resume — right between your professional summary and work experience section.

It should also be a bit longer. 

These are the things you should add to your education section if you’re a student or a fresh graduate:

• Academic awards. AP scholar, Duke of Edinburgh award, National Merit Award, President’s Award, school subject-based awards, dean’s list, etc.
• Scholarships. Athletic scholarships, scholarships for women, creative scholarships, etc.
• Academic conferences and symposia. Don’t forget to mention the scope and name of the paper you presented at a conference.
• Relevant student societies. Debating or programming clubs. If you were on a student committee of any kind, mention that too.
• GPA. Only include your GPA if it was higher than 3.0 on a 4.0 scale. If your overall GPA was lower, mention your overall GPA. Alternatively, mention your summa cum laude or magna cum laude .
• Academic publications. Producing an academic work worth publishing is impressive no matter the context.

In the end, your education section can look like this:

Before you start writing, you should know there are two types of skills : hard skills and soft skills.

1. Hard skills can be learned, taught, and most importantly — measured. Acquiring them requires deliberate effort, training, and time.

Hard skills can be, for instance: computer skills, language skills, manual skills, mathematics, project management, etc.

2. Soft skills are tied to your personality traits. These skills can come as part of your upbringing, or you can acquire some later in life through self-improvement. These skills can bring value to any job, as well as your private life.

Examples of soft skills include: communication, leadership, time management , creativity, decision-making, etc.

But how to make your skills stand out?

• Focus on what’s most relevant. Do you have any of the skills mentioned in the advertisement for your desired job? Good. Make sure to include them in your resume’s skills section.
• Organize your skills into subcategories. Divide your skills section into several subsections like computer skills, soft skills, languages, and others.
• Don’t underestimate soft skills. 67 percent of HR managers said they’d hire a candidate with strong soft skills even if their technical abilities were lacking. On the contrary, only 9 percent would hire someone with strong technical credentials but weak soft skills.
• There are skills you shouldn’t include. Never include any skills you don’t have, skills that have nothing to do with the job, skills everybody should have, or skills that have become obsolete.

Apart from the standard resume sections we just mentioned above, are also optional sections. 

A good rule of thumb is to add an optional section only if it's relevant to the job you're applying for. If done properly, these sections can help you:

• Fill the gap when lacking experience
• Highlight additional skills and expertise 
• Let an employer know more about who you are

Pro tip: Optional resume sections can be especially important to companies that prioritize hiring candidates who fit their workplace culture. 

Here are some of the most common optional sections: 

Technical skills

This section can be a nice addition when applying for (surprise!) technical jobs. 

Some examples of technical skills are: programming languages, software proficiency, project management, and data analysis.

Technical skills are usually measurable, so if you decide to include them in your resume, use a graph or a scale to illustrate how strong they are. Adding visual elements to your resume not only looks nice but also shows your ability to be precise and analytical.

Achievements and awards

Scholarships, competitions, work-related awards, or even promotions to leadership positions in your job — all of these can be considered important professional achievements. 

Either distribute them across other parts of your resume or put them in a dedicated section. The latter allows you to truly highlighted them. 

And if you choose to include them in a separate resume section, don't forget to mention the dates and the name of the company/institution at which you've accomplished the achievement. 

Professional references

In today's competitive job market, strong professional references can be a game-changer. Consider including a ' Professional References ' section in your resume to provide potential employers with easy access to these valuable resources.

How to format references on resume? Here's what you should list for each reference:

• Their full name
• Their current job title and organization
• Their contact details (email and phone number will do)
• Your relationship with them (e.g., Former Supervisor)

Ensure you have their permission and inform them when actively job searching.

Once you decide who you want your references to be, it's time to ask them if they agree. Here's how to ask someone to be a reference via email .

Certifications and licenses

Listing the certificates and courses that you've successfully completed on your resume is never a mistake.

However, keep in mind that they should be related to the role that you're applying for. 

If you'd like to add a certificate to your CV but you're unsure about where to find the best course for you, check out this carefully curated list of the best online courses that will help you to get a job. 

Publications

In this section, you can mention all the relevant conferences, presentations, and written publications. 

This section is most useful if you're working in academia, marketing, or journalism. 

However, include it in your resume also if you're applying for a position that requires you to be an expert on the topic that you've written about.

Volunteering

This section lists your volunteer work . It should be treated similarly to a work experience section. The reason is that whether your work was paid or not, it still translates to real-life experience. 

This is true especially if you find yourself at the beginning of your career. In that case, feel free to place the volunteering section towards the start of your resume. 

On the other hand, if you're a seasoned professional, locate this section more toward the end of your document. 

This is the part of your resume that's the most personal. Here, let a little loose and let your personality shine through. List you hobbies and interests, even the quirky or unique ones.

Hobbies serve as a great way for a hiring manager to see you more as a person and less as just a name written on a paper. They can also break the ice during the interview stage.

Christy's word of advice

Really, it sounds so simple, but one of the best ways to stand out with your resume is to apply for jobs you’re a close fit for. So many people apply ‘just in case they’ll consider me if even I only meet some of the requirements’, then feel deflated when they’re rejected. The company has spent time figuring out exactly what they need and are paying their staff or a recruiter to find that. Look closely at the minimum/essential requirements, apply for jobs you’re a great fit for, and you’ll have much better luck!

Christy Morgan, Resident HR Expert

Step 8: Wrap it up with a cover letter  

Phew! Almost done with how to write a resume. Just a little bit of editing and proofreading, picking the right resume template , and you should be able to click send, right? 

Well, not quite. At least we wouldn’t recommend you sending it —  yet. 

The truth is that resumes are often put aside when not accompanied by a cover letter. It would be a shame if this happened to you, especially after all the time you’ve spent creating it. 

A good cover letter is a way to stand apart from the competition. It’s where you can show your hiring manager you mean business. 

And, if you're fresh out of college or changing career this step-by-step guide on  how to write a cover letter with no experience  will show you what to focus on instead. 

Here are 4 questions to guide you while writing your cover letter: 

• Who are you (professionally)? 
• Why are you interested in working for their company?
• Why are you the best fit for the job opening?
• How can you enrich their company?

When all it’s said and done, your cover letter should look something like this:

Cover letter example

This cover letter sample was provided by a real person who got hired with Kickresume’s help.

Want more inspo? Browse another 1,250+ cover letter examples by your profession.

And if you really want a memorable cover letter, we’ve got you covered. In fact, we’re certain it will be the only cover letter guide you’ll ever need . 

• The older the job, the fewer the details. In other words, don’t have 13 bullet points on a job from 5 years ago.
• Use off-peak hours for maximum attention , especially if you’re reaching out to an employer directly. Hiring managers are busy people and you want them to receive your resume when they have enough time to carefully read through it.
• Check your resume for typos. If English isn't your first language, employers might be inclined to overlook any grammatical mistakes that you make in your resume. Typos, on the other hand, are unforgivable. Your computer’s spell-check feature can help you fix that.
• Customize your resume for each job application. Every employer is different. And any hiring manager can tell if you’ve just sent them the same generic resume as to everyone else. So make sure you tailor your resume to each individual employer to increase your chances of getting hired.
• Get the introductory email right. It doesn’t matter that you have the best resume ever if nobody gets to read it. Attach it to an email that catches the employer’s attention from the get-go. Pay particular attention to the subject line that will make them read the full email, including the attachments.

FAQ: How to write a resume

One to two pages is the ideal. If you're at the junior stage of your career, one page is more than enough. Similarly, make sure that your resume isn't longer than three pages (and this may be stretching it already), even if you're a CEO.

Generally speaking, content is superior to form when it comes to resumes. However, a nice design is the first thing that catches the recruiter's attention — and that's precisely what you want. Moreover, if you're looking for a job in marketing, art, or design, the design of your resume naturally becomes your selling point, too.

Typos, being too general and not specific enough, not including relevant information, not using action verbs, and writing about duties instead of accomplishments.

The best format for sending a resume is PDF, as it keeps the visuals of the resume unchanged once the document is opened by the recruiter.

1.  Include standard resume sections.  Contact information, resume summary, work experience, education, skills. 2.  Include optional resume sections.  Awards, references, certifications, publications, projects, etc. 3.  Choose a resume format.  The three standard are: chronological, functional, combination.  4.  Use bullet points.  Use bullet points to make your resume easier to scan and highlight important information quickly.  6.  Think about the  margins .  Strike a good balance between not leaving too much white space and making your resume seem cluttered.  7.  Keep it to  one-two pages .  Unless you have extensive work experience, you should generally aim to keep your resume to one page.  8.  Consistency is key.  In all aspects of your resume, including the spacing, font, margins, etc. 9.  Use a professional resume   template  or layout which helps to structure the information effectively and makes it easy to read. 

Good job, you made it! If you still need more information on how to write a resume. You can go further in-depth in our section-by-section resume guide .

This article was recently updated. The original article was written by Noel Rojo in 2019.

Kaja Jurcisinova is a junior copywriter at Kickresume. Kaja completed her undergraduate degree in Art History at the University of St Andrews in 2018 and graduated with a Master’s in Arts and Culture from the University of Groningen in 2021. She was an intern at multiple cultural institutions across Europe, including the Dutch Museum Association in Amsterdam, the Matter of Art Biennale in Prague, and the European Cultural Centre in Venice. At the moment, she resides in Visby on the Swedish island of Gotland.

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Tips for Making a Great Resume

Your resume is the key piece of your job application. Here's how to get it right.

Table of Contents

With the current labor shortage and low unemployment rate, job seekers are at an advantage. However, that’s not to say you don’t need a professionally written resume. Employers still want to find and hire the best employees for each open position, and resumes are the first step in that search. Use the following strategies to make your resume stand out and demonstrate that you are the best candidate for the job.

How to create a great resume

Here are some tips for creating an impressive resume.

1. Assemble your job history and skills.

The first step in creating your resume should include your relevant job history, industry experience and applicable skills. While you might feel tempted to add every place you’ve ever worked at, narrow down your history to only list relevant roles or experiences. This will keep your resume concise and direct hiring managers and recruiters to the right place. However, this also might mean creating multiple resumes and tailoring them to the specific job/company you’re applying to.

From there, format your resume so that it is easy to identify your qualifications. For instance, if you advanced in a company quickly, draw attention to that growth, said Claire Bissot, SPHR and director of Kainos Capital. If you excessively job-hopped, bullet those jobs without providing specifics and detail more applicable positions. This will play to your assets.

When structuring your resume, make sure the information is presented in a logical order, said career coach Veronica Yao. 

“A hiring manager [will] read your resume starting at the top and ending at the bottom. However, if they don’t finish reading the whole thing — and they often don’t — you still want to ensure your strongest points come across.”

2. Use an original resume template.

Employers appreciate originality. While it’s helpful to refer to a professional resume template, don’t follow it rigidly, as this might actually deter potential employers.

“I often pass over resumes that match Microsoft Office templates,” Bissot told Business News Daily. “The templates are meant to be a guide to get started, but it should be expanded on to make it your own.”

Showcase your expertise in an appealing and eye-catching manner so you stand out from other applicants, especially if you’re in a creative industry. Include hyperlinks, aesthetic formatting, colors and shading, testimonials and other unique features. Use your resume to tell your career story. For instance, you can write an interesting “about me” section to personalize and summarize your experiences.

3. Fill out the sections.

Use bullet points or short lines to outline your job responsibilities and accomplishments for each role you’ve listed on your resume. This will help recruiters and hiring managers better understand your experiences and how you’ve helped that company grow. 

Typically, it’s best to use action verbs and data-backed words rather than “fluff.” For example, if you’re outlining social media marketing experience, rather than simply stating “I managed social media platforms for my client,” write “Increased social media lead generation by X percent year-over-year.” This cuts to the point and backs up your credentials with hard data to showcase your success. 

4. Choose the file type.

Most employers prefer resumes as Microsoft Word documents (.doc) or PDF files. Microsoft Word documents are the most traditional and widely accepted file types for resumes, but PDFs ensure the formatting doesn’t become wonky after submission. 

However, when you’re dealing with applicant tracking systems (ATS), Word documents are easier for these systems to read through and pick up on important keywords. This is important if you want to stand out in modern recruiting. If you submit a PDF or other file, you might get automatically rejected if the system cannot read it. A general rule of thumb is to save both versions of your resume and submit a Word document to applications on job sites and a PDF when sending directly to a recruiter or hiring manager. [Read related article: Ways AI Is Changing HR Departments ]

5. Proofread the draft.

Before you submit your resume anywhere, proofread it yourself and ask a trusted friend or professional contact to do the same. One minor mistake or grammatical error could result in countless rejections. Your resume is your first — and often only — chance to impress a potential employer, and you should treat it as such.

Here are a few things to look at:

• Spelling, grammar and punctuation: A hiring manager will likely automatically dismiss your application if they spot a typo or grammatical error. “Make sure it’s error-free and easy to read,” said Diya Obeid, founder and CEO of ATS company JobDiva. “HR reps equate typos and errors with laziness. Use good English — the written word has a huge impact on the employer.”
• Formatting: “Review formatting very closely, including font, alignment and spacing,” Bissot said. “Related issues can often be perceived as a sign of lacking technical skills and/or attention to detail.”
• Headings: Yao said that candidates often submit applications addressed to the wrong employer or outline experience that’s irrelevant to the role. “Receiving a resume that’s crafted and addressed to someone else — or worse, a competitor — can be a huge turnoff and will set a negative tone even if they do choose to continue reading your application.”

Resume writing tips

It can be difficult to succinctly present all of your experiences and qualifications on one page, but there are many ways to spruce up your resume without going overboard. To help you land an interview, we rounded up some of the best resume-writing tips.

1. Keep your resume short and direct.

The No. 1 rule of writing a resume is to keep it short and to the point. The general rule is no more than one page unless you have a good reason for it to be longer, like an extensive career or a lot of highly applicable work experience.

An easy way to keep your resume concise is to include only recent, relevant experience. While that yearlong first job might have taught you a lot about the field, you don’t always need to include every detail from your entire career history.

Most experts recommend including jobs from the previous 10 or 15 years only, although this time frame may be shorter if you are new to the workforce. Including too many unrelated work experiences can make your resume appear too busy and draw attention away from your relevant qualifications. Your resume should be focused, clear and concise.

2. Highlight relevant skills and experiences.

Using the same resume for every job you apply for is not the best approach. Instead, your resume should target the specific job you are applying for. Prioritize the skills, qualifications and experiences that are directly applicable to the job you are trying to land.

Choose three or four former positions or experiences that best highlight the skills required for each position for which you apply. Employers value brevity; this is not the time to list every position you have ever held. For example, if you are applying for a marketing position, you could include your former retail experience and bullet the communication, branding and interpersonal skills you learned in that position.

If you don’t have a work history that directly relates to the job you are applying for, be creative with how you present your other experiences. Draw on the skills you used and how your contributions benefited the organization or project. [Read related article: 22 In-Demand Skills to Help You Get the Job ]

3. Demonstrate results with numbers and metrics.

When you write about your previous work experience, it is always a good idea to quantify your successes with numbers. Metrics can highlight your achievements and give the hiring manager or recruiter a clear sense of how you impacted your previous place of employment. For example, someone who previously worked as a sales representative might say that they “executed more than 50 cold calls daily, with an average 5 percent conversion rate.”

4. Craft a career snapshot.

More recently, career experts have urged job seekers to do away with the old “objective” statement and instead consider including a brief summary, called a “career snapshot,” at the top of their resume.

“With the career snapshot, you present a branding statement that briefly explains your unique value as well as your skills and qualifications,” said Tomer Sade, CEO of Book a Space. “This would then be followed by a few bullet points that highlight your experience and your accomplishments. Whatever you list here should be relevant to the position you’re applying to.”

“The top third of your resume is prime resume real estate,” added Lisa Rangel, an executive resume writer and CEO of Chameleon Resumes. “Create a robust summary to capture the hiring manager’s eye.”

Think of your career snapshot as an answer to the question “How would you describe your work experience in one sentence?” The summary is an opportunity to sum up your most relevant and important skills, experience or assets right off the bat.

5. Optimize your text.

If a company uses an ATS to collect and scan resumes, a human hiring manager may never see any application that doesn’t fit the job criteria they’ve entered. Trish O’Brien, vice president of human capital operations at Lifelong Learner Holdings, emphasized adapting your resume to the position to increase your likelihood of passing the first level.

“Make sure you’ve carefully reviewed the posting and … [used] the appropriate keywords in your resume to get past the screener,” O’Brien said. “Be truthful, but understand that the first pass on your resume is likely via an ATS.”

A helpful tip is to make sure you include keywords from the job post in your resume. Copy and paste the job description into a word-cloud generator to identify the most frequently used terms, and make sure the terms that apply to you are used in your resume. You can also create a “core competencies” or “areas of expertise” section of your resume to list all of your hard and soft skills, and then reiterate those skills when you bullet your experience.

6. Think beyond your job duties.

Hiring managers don’t want to read a list of your job duties. They want concrete examples of your accomplishments in previous positions that show how you can make a difference in this new position.

Rangel said that specific merits are more engaging to read than just your experiences. For example, “I reduced operating expenses by 23 percent in six months” is far more interesting to an employer than “I have 30 years of sales experience.”

When deciding what information to keep or cut out of your resume, focus on striking abstract traits and qualifications in favor of concrete, quantifiable results.

“The best resumes highlight a job candidate’s actions and results,” said Bob Myhal, chief marketing officer at CBC Automotive Marketing. “Employers want employees who get things done and who take great joy and pride in what they do. Rather than a laundry list of your qualifications, your resume should reflect your accomplishments and enthusiasm for your career.”

You shouldn’t ignore your skills section either. Sade reminded job seekers to list any industry-relevant apps or programs they’re familiar with and to find ways to incorporate examples of their emotional intelligence (e.g., self-awareness, empathy) and soft skills (e.g., work ethic, reliability) into their job descriptions.

7. Use the right language to stand out.

Trite, lackluster descriptions of your job duties and accomplishments won’t do you any favors. Make sure you’re using strong action words, such as “achieved,” “designed,” “improved” and “established,” to describe your roles and projects, said Sade. This will make you sound confident while imparting vital information. But be cautious about depending on action verbs — include details about how you improved a process or achieved a goal .

“Words such as ‘professional,’ ‘results-driven’ and ‘detail-oriented’ provide very little helpful information,” Sade said. “It’s better to use actual job titles than these words.”

Obeid said that you should remove words like “go-getter,” “team player” and “go-to person” from your resume. These come off as fluff and take up precious space on your resume.

8. List your social media profiles.

Many hiring managers today screen candidates on social networks . Save them a step by providing your profile links on your resume. Seasoned applicants with a professional social presence would do well to include URLs for their LinkedIn profile, Twitter account and blog, if applicable.

“If, and only if, your social media accounts are filled with professional posts pertaining to your industry, listing them on your resume can be advantageous,” said Richie Frieman, author of REPLY ALL … and Other Ways to Tank Your Career . “They can show you have a strong network and are up to speed with modern-day marketing and communications practices. The hiring manager will see that you like to keep up with what’s happening and that you care about learning more.”

Your social profiles can be a powerful recruitment tool to supplement your experience and position as an expert in your field, but only if they are leveraged correctly.

Importance of a great resume

Your resume is the most important document you’ll submit in your job search. It’s your frontline fighter, so to speak, as it’s your first opportunity to present yourself to a potential employer. A professional resume will help you achieve the following:

• Increase your earning potential. According to the Zippia research, professionally written resumes are not only good for landing an interview, but they can also boost your earning potential by 7 percent to 32 percent. 
• Increase your chances of securing a new role. Zippia also found that 68 percent of job seekers who have worked with a professional resume writer landed a new job in under 90 days. If your resume lacks professionalism or relevance to the positions you’re applying to, you likely won’t receive as many opportunities.
• Quickly impress recruiters and hiring managers . Hiring managers and recruiters look at resumes for an average of only six to seven seconds each, so make every second count. A strong resume can help you stand out from the crowd, but a weak resume can remove you from the running.
• Decrease your number of rejections. According to Zippia, you need to send an average of 50 to 100 resumes before you get hired. However, the more impressive and professional your resume is, the lower this number will be — and the less you will have to wait to start a new job.

Make a great first impression

Your resume is a great way to showcase your experience and make a solid first impression. It doesn’t matter how talented, passionate or experienced you are — if a recruiter or hiring manager is unimpressed by your resume, you won’t get the chance to sell yourself. If you follow the tips above, you’ll increase your chances of moving on to the interview stage of the hiring process and landing the job of your dreams.

Ki ely Kuligowski and Skye Schooley contributed to this article. Source interviews were conducted for a previous version of this article.

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How to Write a Résumé That Stands Out

Share accomplishments, not responsibilities.

It can be hard to know how to make your resume stand out. Start by accepting that it’s going to take some time and effort. Don’t try to sit down and knock it out in an hour – you’re carefully crafting a marketing document. Open strong with a summary of your expertise. Use an accomplishments section after the opener to link your experience to the job requirements. You don’t want to waste space upfront on irrelevant job experience. It’s okay to be selective about what employment, achievements, and skills you include; after all, you should tailor your resume for each position. Give concrete examples of your expertise, quantifying your accomplishments with numbers where you can. Seek input from a mentor or friend who can review it and give you feedback. Lastly, create a personable LinkedIn profile to complement your resume.

The resume: there are so many conflicting recommendations out there. Should you keep it to one page? Do you put a summary up top? Do you include personal interests and volunteer gigs? And how do you make it stand out, especially when you know the hiring manager is receiving  tons of applications? This may be your best chance to make a good first impression, so you’ve got to get it right.

• Amy Gallo is a contributing editor at Harvard Business Review, cohost of the Women at Work podcast , and the author of two books: Getting Along: How to Work with Anyone (Even Difficult People) and the HBR Guide to Dealing with Conflict . She writes and speaks about workplace dynamics. Watch her TEDx talk on conflict and follow her on LinkedIn . amyegallo

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Resume Writing  - Resume Tips and Strategies

Resume writing  -, resume tips and strategies, resume writing resume tips and strategies.

Resume Writing: Resume Tips and Strategies

Lesson 3: resume tips and strategies.

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Resume tips and strategies

Regardless of which format you use or what information you choose to include or omit, there are certain things you can do to help your resume stand out above the crowd.

In this lesson, you will review tips and strategies for creating a winning resume and identify common mistakes to avoid in the process. You will also learn about considerations for including links to online profiles and personal webpages .

Watch the video below to learn about some common resume mistakes.

Tips for writing a great resume

In the next unit, we will be going into greater detail on how to write each section of your resume. Before we begin, it's a good idea to understand the general tips and strategies that can make your resume shine.

Consider using the following techniques as you approach writing your resume.

• Customize your resume for each position you are applying for . Use your summary or profile section to highlight your skills and expertise as they relate to the specific job. Better yet, carry this customization throughout the entire resume. It may be convenient to create several versions of your resume based on common positions you will be applying for so you can eliminate the amount of customization you will have to do for each job.
• Make sure the rest of your resume supports your summary, profile, or objective . If you include in your summary that you have been a consistent top seller for your region , you should include specific examples in the body of your resume to reinforce this statement.
• Include key words on your resume . Keep the job description close by when you are customizing your resume so you are including key words and phrases that fit the job, field, or occupation. Recruiters often scan a resume in under 15 seconds. They are looking for key words that show you have the skills and knowledge required for the position.
• Be concise . Because some recruiters look at as many as 500 resumes to fill one position, they want to see your accomplishments, skills, and experiences in as few words as possible. Bullet points and concise language can showcase your communication skills while highlighting your areas of expertise.
• List your past work accomplishments (not just your responsibilities) using some form of measures . Hiring managers want to compare your skills and abilities to the other candidates they are considering. For example, tell them what percentage you increased in sales, the number of staff you managed, or the specific scope of a project.

Review these articles for additional help with key words and customization: The Quintessential Guide to Words to Get Hired By and What it Really Means to 'Tailor Your Resume'

Tips for designing a great resume

You now have some strategies for how to write and phrase your text, but the way you design and format your resume for clarity and readability can be just as important.

Watch the video below to learn some tips for designing your resume.

Consider using the following techniques as you approach the design of your resume.

• Use white space and bullet points to help emphasize what you want the hiring manager to know about you . If the hiring manager is scanning to see if you meet the requirements but can't easily spot the information, you may get overlooked.
• Use bold and italics to emphasize key words or skills. Be careful to not overuse this technique, though. If there are too many elements in bold or italics, the emphasis is lost.
• Use a larger-point font for headings and subheadings. This can help direct attention to certain areas of your resume and also demonstrates a strong level of organization.
• Use a conservative font , like Times New Roman, Arial, or Tahoma. If the font is difficult to read, your resume may not get past the first look.
• Include adequate white space . This can be done around your headings, blocks of text, and with margins. Hiring managers can use this area to take notes before, during, or after an interview.

Along with formatting your presentation, be sure to carefully edit your text. Consider these tips.

• Use verb tense consistently . For your present job, you can use the present tense, such as design and oversee production of building additions . For previous employment, use the past tense ( designed and oversaw ).
• Vary your word choice . Even though you are trying to include key words, don't overdo it. If the key phrase you are trying to include is strategic planning , use a thesaurus to find alternative words, like defined program goals and measures .
• Spell check, spell check, spell check! Almost every recruiter and hiring manager has a story about the resume they threw out because of a misspelled word. Typos and misspelled words show that you are not detail oriented or conscientious about your work. However, do not rely on your spell-checking software alone. Some grammar and spelling mistakes can be easily missed.

Common resume mistakes to avoid

There are several reasons hiring managers consistently put resumes in the No pile. You want to avoid these common mistakes.

• Don't submit your resume for a position for which you are not qualified . This was cited as the No. 1 pet peeve among HR professionals on a recent LinkedIn discussion. Make sure you meet at least the basic requirements. Think creatively, though, because sometimes the work you have performed outside of the field may help you meet job requirements.
• Don't lie . Whether or not it's intentional, including false, inaccurate, or misleading information brings your ethics into question and can even be illegal. Keep in mind that hiring managers are much more likely to Google and/or conduct background checks on candidates to eliminate dishonest ones.
• Don't disregard references . While you do not need to post your reference information on your resume, you should at least have them listed in a separate document that can be easily supplied if requested. Make sure your references are willing and ready to discuss your skills and abilities with a potential employer.
• Don’t use more than two fonts . This can make a document difficult to read. The reader's eye needs familiar and easy-to-read fonts, like Times New Roman and Tahoma.
• Don’t use clip art on your resume . Clip art is not generally considered professional, and any style or formatting design should be minimal. However, if you are applying for a job in a creative industry, then showcasing your design abilities on your resume may be more acceptable and appealing.
• Don’t include pictures . Unless it is required for the position, your photo is not necessary.
• Don’t include personal or health-related information . This includes your birth date, height and weight, health or marital status, religion, or affiliations in clubs that are not related to your career. While it may be appropriate in other cultures and for certain jobs, personal information should generally not be included if you are submitting a resume for a job in the United States.
• Don’t include salary information unless you are specifically asked to do so.
• Don't misspell anything . Misspelling words, especially words about the position, make you appear careless and unreliable. Use a spell checker, and have at least two other people proofread your resume for typos and errors.

Linking to online profiles and personal websites

With the growth of social media, blogs , and personal webpages , it is now becoming more common to see these links on resumes. Webpage portfolios, LinkedIn profiles, and blogs have the capacity to showcase more about who you are and the type of work you have done. Some professionals believe links can enhance a resume by allowing a potential employer to go online and find out more about a candidate. However, there are some drawbacks to putting these links on your resume, especially if your webpage or profile is not polished and professional.

Here are a few things to consider.

• Webpage portfolios are great for showcasing your work, especially if you are in a technical or creative industry. They can be especially beneficial for college graduates and entry-level job hunters who may not have the work experience to prove their abilities.
• Blogs are another way to highlight your personality and expertise. They are a good alternative for those whose careers may not produce actual physical work samples to showcase. However, keep in mind that blogs are very opinion-oriented and can open you up to negative comments or feedback that potential employers can read.
• Online professional profiles , such as LinkedIn, offer the advantages of highlighting your expertise, posting related links, and offering recommendations from colleagues all conveniently located in one spot. However, you should once again consider that the social interactive nature of profiles makes it difficult to control all of the content on your page, which may make you vulnerable to content you would not like a potential employer to read.
• Online social media sites like Twitter and Facebook should only be linked if you use them for professional branding and networking rather than for personal social interaction. Also, if you do not have much of a following on these sites, it will not be advantageous to include them. Only a professional profile with a strong following will portray you as an expert in your field.
• Maintain an updated, professional, and polished site if you are going to use one of these links on your resume. Make sure all content is grammatically correct. Create design and formatting that is professional and appealing. Remove all content that may be considered personal and/or inappropriate in nature.
• Photos are commonly expected on profile sites and are a great advantage for potential employers; however, they may make you vulnerable to discrimination based on your physical appearance.

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6 Tips for Writing an Effective Resume

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Date Published:

Dec 29, 2010

Marilyn Borysek

Hiring managers and recruiters alike say they've seen more poorly written resumes cross their desks recently than ever before. Attract more interview offers and ensure your resume doesn't eliminate you from consideration by following these six key tips:

1. Format Your Resume Wisely "Do the Hiring Managers" Work for Them

No matter how well written, your resume won't get a thorough reading the first time through. Generally a resume gets scanned for 25 seconds. Scanning is more difficult if it is hard to read, poorly organized or exceeds two pages.

• Use a logical format and wide margins, clean type and clear headings
• Selectively apply bold and italic typeface that help guide the reader's eye
• Use bullets to call attention to important points (i.e. accomplishments)

2. Identify Accomplishments not Just Job Descriptions

Hiring managers, especially in technical fields like engineering, seek candidates that can help them solve a problem or satisfy a need within their company. Consequently, you can't be a solution to their problems without stating how you solved similar problems in other companies and situations.

• Focus on what you did in the job, NOT what your job was there's a difference
• Include a one or two top line job description first, then list your accomplishments
• For each point ask yourself, What was the benefit of having done what I did?
• Accomplishments should be unique to you, not just a list of what someone else did
• Avoid using the generic descriptions of the jobs you originally applied for or held

Editor's 2019 Top Pick: Young Engineer Takes Great Strides with Prosthetic Foot 3. Quantify Your Accomplishments

Q: What's the most common resume mistake? A: Making too many general claims and using too much industry jargon that does not market the candidate. A resume is a marketing document designed to sell your skills and strengths rather than just portray a bio of the candidate.

• Include and highlight specific achievements that present a comprehensive picture of your marketability
• Quantify your achievements to ensure greater confidence in the hiring manager and thereby generate interest percentages, dollars, number of employees, etc.
• Work backwards to quantify your accomplishments by asking, If I had not done X, what could have happened?

Learn About New Manufacturing and Industry 4.0: Pratt & WhitneyTakes Flight

4. Cater Your Resume for the Industry

Unlike advertising and design professionals who have greater creative license in designing their resume for those fields, the mechanical engineering industry won't be impressed and may be turned off by distinctive resume design.

• Err on the side of being conservative stylistically
• Your accomplishments, error-free writing, grammatically-correct, clean, crisp type and paper will make the impression for you

5 . Replace your Objective" with a "Career Summary"

A Career Summary is designed to give a brief overview of who you are and what you do. Most Objectives sound similar: Seeking a challenging, interesting position in X where I can use my skills of X, Y, and Z to contribute to the bottom line. Not telling at all.

• Grab a hiring manager's attention right from the beginning, remembering you have only 25 few seconds to make a good impression
• Spend time developing a summary that immediately gets their attention, and accurately and powerfully describes you as a solution to their problems

6. Network. Network. Network.

For unemployed candidates, handing out resumes should be a full-time job. The majority of mid- to senior-level positions are filled through networking, so contact absolutely everyone you know in addition to recruiters who are in a position to hire you or share insights. Networking can include

• Personal business contacts, people you've worked for or who worked for you
• Vendors and sales representatives you've dealt with in the past five years
• People listed in the alumni directory of your alma mater

With a solid resume in hand you'll greatly increase your odds of earning a closer look and getting that interview. Read More New Stories from ASME.org: Solving World Hunger with 3D-Printed Food Six Project Management Tips Every Engineer Needs Drone Deploys in Just Minutes but Flies for Hours

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