If you are looking for a job, then you have to create your own resume to present yourself to the potential employer. This is a serious issue. When you have to write a CV, it's important to follow all instructions and choose a proper resume format. In this detailed guide, we will provide readers with useful tips on selecting a CV format, so you will format your document easily and fast. We suggest following our instructions accurately.
Your resume is a document to show to the employer all your skills, experience, abilities, and goals, so you should plan your time beforehand because it's important to format your CV after you have written it. There are several various formats you can use. In this guide, we will tell readers about resume formats and explain when it's better to use a certain format to create a perfect work.
How to select the best resume format for your paper?
There are three main formats jobseekers use to create their CV: functional, chronological, and combination. Discover all requirements before you started to format your paper to make sure you have chosen the best CV format.
Functional resume format.
The main aim of this format is to hide your imperfect experience. If you had periods of unemployment, this is the best resume format for you to select because it's possible to hide such things easily.
Structure of functional format
When you use this format for your document, it should have the next parts:
- Contacts. You need to provide a potential employer with your contact information such as name (type your name with at least 20pt font), e-mail address, and mobile number. If you have your own website, add this information here.
- Qualifications summary. This is a great way to make your resume if you had periods of unemployment you don't want to show directly. You just need to summarize your skills without pointing the specific dates of your professional work.
- Skills. For the functional CV format, skills are more important than your actual work history; we suggest mentioning 3-4 skills that are relevant to the job you want to apply.
- Professional experience. Even if you have periods of unemployment, they can be explained logically (you may be a student, a young parent, or you may be watching an ill relative).
- Education. If your educational experience is related to the job you want to apply, include the period of studying in your document. Mention the name of the university, degree, state, and the GPA.
Chronological resume format.
This is the most popular and traditional resume format used by job seekers; as it is easy to guess from the name, information in this format is given in a chronological order. Usually, HRs prefer to read this type of resume because it gives them a full picture of the candidate. Is your goal to demonstrate your vertical career growth? This is the best resume format to use! Needless to say, this format won't fit for those people who have periods of unemployment in their career or if you have changed jobs often.
Structure of chronological resume format
Keep in your mind this CV format contains the next parts:
- Contacts. Provide your full name, e-mail address, and mobile number. You can also add the link to your own professional website or LinkedIn account.
- Introduction to your resume. You can choose between 3 various introductions: professional profile, qualifications summary, or career objective.
- Professional experience. A chronological format requires making bullet points with stages of your experience and dates of working on the particular job. This part shows all your skills to the employer and in addition your ability to reach the goal.
- Education. This section shouldn't be very detailed unless you just graduated, so mention your university's name and state, your degree and the GPA.
- Additional skills for the job. In this section, you can add any skills you didn't list before; make sure you are writing only those skills that are relevant to the job you want to apply.
Combination resume format.
This is a combination of a chronological resume format and a functional resume format, so if you are searching for a job that requires a lot of technical skills, you should use this resume format for your paper. If you already have a solid work experience in a certain sphere, we suggest using the combination resume format. This format shows the candidate skills over the work experience, so even people that want to jump into the new sphere of work can use it. This resume format is concentrated on your job duties at the positions you worked on.
Structure of combination resume format
Use this structure to create your CV properly:
- Contacts. Provide such data as your name, mobile number, e-mail address; if you have any other personal professional information to add, don't hesitate to write.
- Start your resume with qualifications summary or a professional profile. Both these options demonstrate your abilities in various methods of delivery to the reader: a qualifications summary defines your previous achievements when a professional profile shows your skills.
- Additional skills. Organize this section by merging similar skills in groups; list only those skills you haven’t listed before.
- Professional experience. Here you need to list your experience in bullet points; we suggest concentrating on the certain job you want to apply and making this list according to the job's requirements.
- Education. Remember that the goal of the combination resume format is to focus on the career and work experience; this section should be concise and short. Needless to say, if you have done some projects related to the job you are applying for, add this information to this section.
Sample resume format: How to Make a Perfect Paper and Get the Job
We already have provided you with three resume formats. But it still may be difficult for you to create your own resume. Sometimes, reading a good sample resume format can help you in writing; that's why we decided to share an example of a combination style resume of a delivery driver. Read this document and create your own paper easily!
max austin
243 Farmington str., California, CA20435; 567-76-21; [email protected]
PROFESSIONAL PROFILE
- Delivery driver with 5 years of experience driving trucks and commercial vans with loads up to 30,000 lbs.
- Proven Communicator: Foster relations with clients that ensure retention, referrals, and consequently additional revenue.
- Safety-oriented: Possess a clean driving record through my strict adherence to safety guidelines.
SKILLS
- Valid Class B CDL (HAZMAT)
- Able to lift at least 70 lbs.
- Proficient in making basic vehicle repairs.
- Familiar with CRM systems
RELEVANT WORK EXPERIENCE
Pro Courier, Inc.
Delivery Driver (California CA) 2012 – present
- Drove trucks or vans holding up to 20,000 lbs. Performing up to 150 deliveries per day.
- Received an award for not having a single accident for 5 consecutive years.
- Saved $7K worth of gas costs per month by planning more efficient routes, requested by upper management to improve on all existing routes.
- Received 95% in positive feedback from customers, receiving company bonus of appreciation.
- Performed safety and maintenance checks of vehicles, ensuring passing grade during inspections, and saving $20K in potential vehicle repair costs.
Premium Water, Inc.
Delivery Driver (California CA) 2010 – 2012.
- Ran an average of 15 routes per day to residential and business areas, providing exceptional service to clients and maintaining 92% in account retention.
- Generated $40K in new business through referrals of existing customers. Upselling products, services and informing clients regarding promotional campaigns.
- Rearranged routes so that is maximized deliveries in most efficient time, saving over 15 monthly hours compared to previous routes.
- Provided immediate responses and on-site visits in order to install and troubleshoot equipment.
EDUCATION
Danbury High School, California CA
Diploma: May 2010
- Varsity Football
When you will start to format your own resume, make sure you have chosen a proper format for your own case. Keep in mind you can use chronological style for any experience and job you want to apply. This is a universal format! If you are a specialist of middle level or you are an executive assistant, then you can select a combination style. And, the functional resume format is suitable for only professional specialists that have got a solid experience and made a career in a particular field.
We hope that our guide was useful. Wish you good luck in creating a successful CV and getting a position you always dreamt about! Of course, formatting a resume can seem difficult to those people who never did it before, but when you have a detailed instruction right in your hands, everything is possible!