The importance of a resume to a professional cannot be described to its complete potential.
Simply put, the resume of a person, if properly written down, is equal to the person himself.
A well documented and properly formatted resume reaching the recruiter is equal to you reaching the recruiter, and that too in your best attire and on your best day.
Along with the contents of the resume, the format of the resume plays a very important role too.
This article brings samples/examples on how to write the best resume format that is tailored to your needs.
Resume Format: Examples of Resume Formats
Depend on the impression you “want to deliver” to the reader, you may highlight (i.e. drive attention to) your academic qualification, your previous experience or your objectives.
For that reason, you can revise the paragraphs order based on the importance of each paragraph for you.
Take a look to the following 3 sample resume format before writing your resume.
Here is an example of a general resume and the paragraphs orders:
1st resume format example – General resume (the most common)
Cover Letter: a separate paper
Two paragraphs about the person’s intent to apply for the job.
Resume: a separate paper
1. Personal Details
2. Contact Details
3. Objective – your career summary + career objectives
4. Education
5. Experience – achievements
6. Coursework
7. Languages
8. References – upon request
Here is a resume format for fresher – first job resume:
2nd format example – good for entry levels
Cover Letter:
Resume:
1. Personal Details
2. Contact Details
3. Education – the main part of the resume
4. Coursework
5. Objective – career objective
6. Related Experience
7. Languages
8. References
Resume format for those who have many years of pro experience
3rd example of resume format- professional resume format
Cover Letter: as above
Resume: a separate paper
1. Personal Details
2. Contact Details
3. Education
4. Career summary
5. Experience – the main part of the resume (Achievements, rewards etc.)
6. Coursework
7. Languages
8. References
9. Career Objective
The best resume format is the one that is customized for your needs
Here are some tips to remember while preparing a proper resume format:
Cover letter
The cover letter for your resume should be short, concise and to the point. Though the cover letter can be only two paragraphs or so, it should be good enough to tell the recruiter the person’s intent and enthusiasm to work with the company.
The format itself should first contain the personal details of the individual, like the name, address and contact information.
Refer to the articles – how to write a resume cover letter and free sample of resume cover letters.
Resume objective
Refer to the two articles that provide details on how to write a resume objective –
Resume objectives examples and sample career objectives for resumes.
Email address
Pay attention to the email that you put into your contact details.
Make sure that the email address is suitable to be your calling card in the professional word. Try to use your first name, or better still, your first name and last name while making your professional email id.
Ambiguity in email names and the much touted ‘spunk’ can be added after you have made a name for yourself in the professional world. It is suggested that you have a different email address for your professional contacts and a different email address for your personal social contacts.
Education and coursework
The next information that you should share with the recruiter is your educational and other academic qualifications. Make sure that you write down the correct dates and institutes from which you got the education. This information is the most important information. Make sure that all the information you give about your information is correct. Your educational qualifications can also include information about any relevant professional courses that you have taken.
Professional experience
Forthermore, if you have a professional experience, make it a point to tabulate it and put it across in the resume. Your professional experience may have more weight than even your educational qualification. To put it simply, the education qualifications are the base of any resume, whereas the professional information is something that can be said to be the construction on that said base.
Your job experience should be written in a reverse order – the most recent job at the top. For each job history provide the name of the company, dates and your job title.
Then, add a brief description of the type of job that you did - your duties, responsibilies and achievements. You may also review the project’s budgets that you were responsible for.
In the previous experience, remember to write the date when you joined as well as left the job.
Once the past experience is clear, getting a job in the same profile becomes quite simple.
Languages
The last two categories would be the languages that you are conversant or an expert in. in the era of globalization, it is very important that a person knows and is fluent in at least three to two languages apart from their mother tongue and the language that they speak at home.
