Resume Formats
There are two basic resume formats: chronological and functional. A chronological resume lists your experience in reverse chronological order (i.e., your most current job first). A functional resume is organized according to your skills. Each format has unique advantages—the chronological resume is most commonly used and widely accepted; the functional style offers more flexibility.
Reverse Chronological Resume
You may want to use a chronological style when:
♦ You want to emphasize advancement to progressive levels of responsibility (e.g., customer services representative…department manager…district manager…regional manager…).
♦ You want to illustrate a stable work history.
♦ Your current job is in the same field as the position for which you are applying.
♦ You are applying for a job in a conservative field or industry (i.e., healthcare, HR).
♦ A potential employer is likely to prefer a more traditional looking resume.
Functional Resume
You may want to use a functional format when:
♦ Your recent work experience is unrelated to your current job objective.
♦ You want to illustrate skills and accomplishments related to volunteer work, student activities, or academic experiences.
♦ Your job titles don’t reflect your true level of responsibility or accomplishments.
♦ Your work history is complicated or includes stretches of unemployment (other than when you were a full-time student).
♦ You want to emphasize specific skills that are closely related to your objective.
♦ You are making a career change and you want to illustrate how skills acquired in one setting can be transferred to a new field.
A functional resume can be organized according to:
Specific Skills
Planning and Coordinating
Financial Analysis
Research and Writing
Sales and Marketing
Broad Functional Areas
Work with Children
Office Administration
Customer Service
Real Estate Experience
The skills or functional areas you choose to include will be determined by your job objective and the aspects of your experience that you want to highlight.
PDF: ResumeFormats PDF
Resume Content
Resume content varies from one person to the next however there are several categories that many resumes always or nearly always cover!
Check out this PDF for more information on what to include!
PDF: ResumeContent_PDF
This information is courtesy of Megan Sykes of the Health Sciences, Education, & Wellness Institute @ Bellevue College!
Last Updated November 30, 2017