How to Write a Resume (Examples & Guide)

Approximately 40% of hiring managers spend less than a minute reviewing a resume.

To make a lasting impression, you’ll need an eye-catching document that effectively showcases your skills and qualifications.

In this guide, we’ll cover everything you need to know about how to make a resume for a job, including:

What are the basic steps to writing a resume?

Here’s a sample of how to write a resume in a few simple steps:

• Prepare by gathering your information.
• Choose a format and a resume template.
• Add your contact information to the resume header.
• Write a resume summary or objective statement.
• Make a resume work experience section.
• Create a resume skills section.
• Add your education credentials.
• Include certifications, licenses and training if applicable.
• Add optional resume sections if you have any.
• Proofread, save and send in your application!

Also Read:- How to Make Resume for Job Search

How to write a resume for a job

Chances are, if you write a compelling resume, you’ll be booked for interviews for every job you apply for. But what makes a good resume?

Keep reading! We’ve broken down the instructions for how to create a resume, step-by-step.

Gather your professional information

1. Add your contact information.
2. Include a professional summary.
3. Add your work experience.
4. Include your education.
5. List relevant skills.
6. Explain your achievements and awards.
7. Use a business format.
8. Include keywords.

Also Read:- How to Ask Your Manager for a Salary Hike

Step-by-Step Guide to Writing a Resume

1. Choose the Right Format:

1. Chronological
2. Functional
3. Combination (Hybrid)

2. Add Contact Information:

1. Full Name
2. Phone Number
3. Professional Email Address
4. LinkedIn Profile (optional)
5. Personal Website or Portfolio (if applicable)

3. Write a Compelling Summary or Objective:

1. Summary
2. Objective

Example Summary: “Experienced marketing professional with over 8 years in digital advertising. Skilled in developing and executing multi-channel campaigns that drive brand awareness and sales. Adept at analyzing market trends and customer needs to develop innovative strategies.”

Example Objective: “Recent graduate with a degree in computer science seeking a software development position where I can apply my coding skills and contribute to innovative projects.”

4. Detail Your Work Experience:

1. Job Title
2. Company Name
3. Location
4. Dates of Employment (Month/Year to Month/Year)
5. Key Responsibilities and Achievements: Use bullet points, starting with action verbs, to describe your tasks and accomplishments. Quantify achievements with numbers where possible.

Examples:

Marketing Manager XYZ Corporation, New York, NY June 2015 – Present

• Led a team of 5 in executing comprehensive digital marketing campaigns, resulting in a 25% increase in website traffic.
• Managed a $500,000 annual budget, optimizing ad spend to achieve a 20% reduction in cost per acquisition.
• Collaborated with cross-functional teams to launch 3 new product lines, contributing to a 30% increase in annual revenue.

5. Highlight Your Education:

1. Degree
2. Major
3. University Name
4. Graduation Date
5. Honors/Awards (if applicable)

Examples:

Bachelor of Science in Computer Science University of ABC, May 2020

• Graduated with Honors

6. List Relevant Skills:

• Tailor this section to match the job description. Include both hard and soft skills.

Examples:

• Proficient in Python, Java, and SQL
• Strong project management and organizational skills
• Excellent written and verbal communication
• Experienced in Agile methodologies

7. Include Certifications and Training:

• List any relevant certifications or training courses you have completed.

Example:

• Certified Project Management Professional (PMP), 2021
• Google Analytics Certified, 2020

8. Add Additional Sections (if applicable):

1. Volunteer Experience
2. Languages
3. Projects
4. Awards and Honors
5. Professional Affiliations

9. Format Your Resume:

1. Use a clean, professional layout.
2. Keep it concise, ideally one page for less experienced professionals or two pages for more extensive experience.
3. Use consistent font and heading styles.
4. Ensure there is plenty of white space for readability.

10. Proofread and Edit:

• Check for spelling and grammar errors.
• Ensure all information is accurate and up-to-date.
• Ask a friend or mentor to review your resume for feedback.

Example Resume Template

[Your Full Name] [Phone Number] | [Email Address] | [LinkedIn Profile] | [Website]

Professional Summary [Brief summary of your experience, skills, and what you bring to the role.]

Work Experience

[Job Title] [Company Name], [Location] [Dates of Employment]

• [Key responsibility or achievement]
• [Key responsibility or achievement]
• [Key responsibility or achievement]

[Previous Job Title] [Company Name], [Location] [Dates of Employment]

• [Key responsibility or achievement]
• [Key responsibility or achievement]

Education

[Degree] [University Name], [Graduation Date]

• [Relevant coursework or honors]

Skills

• [Relevant Skill]
• [Relevant Skill]
• [Relevant Skill]

Certifications

• [Certification Name], [Year Obtained]

Additional Sections (optional)

• Volunteer Experience
• Languages
• Projects
• Awards and Honors
• Professional Affiliations

How to Write a Resume

First step to writing a resume: collect all professional information – this includes work history, education history and any volunteerism or awards you have earned. Arrange this data so it makes sense for a hiring manager or recruiter reading it.

Format of Your Resume makes a Significant Impact when It Comes To Reception There are various resume formats, but reverse chronological is usually chosen because it displays your career progression while simultaneously emphasizing key skills and experience.

Format your resume in an appealing, professional style to give it an eye-catching appearance and make it easier for hiring managers to read. Sticking with standard font style and size may also prove useful; avoid eccentric fonts which are hard for readers to comprehend.

When listing your work experience, emphasize your accomplishments rather than duties and responsibilities. Focus on specific achievements that demonstrate your ability to meet or surpass goals in previous roles; whenever possible quantify these achievements by listing how many people you supervised or by what percentage sales grew compared to prior jobs; this gives potential employers a concrete idea of the value you bring.

Pick the best resume format for your needs

Here are a few quick tips:

1. Tailor your resume to the job.
2. Use strong action verbs.
3. Quantify achievements.
4. Keep it concise.
5. Include relevant keywords.
6. Highlight your unique value.
7. Use a professional format.

Resumes can open the doors to new opportunities when job hunting. The key is making yours stand out from the crowd by selecting the appropriate format, writing an engaging summary statement and using effective formatting such as clear fonts, ample white space and bold section headers.

The ideal format will depend on your industry and career stage, as well as what information you wish to include. Reverse-chronological is typically preferred, as this allows for quick highlighting of work experience, education, and qualifications. A skills section can also help highlight certain talents to hiring managers. A personal website or online portfolio could be another choice, provided they’re relevant for your field.

Your contact details should appear prominently at the top of your resume. These should include your name and professional title, phone number, and email address (along with any pertinent LinkedIn profiles if relevant).

Next comes your career summary or objective, which should consist of 2-4 sentences that clearly state why you want the position in question. Use this opportunity to engage hiring managers by keeping it succinct. Keep it short and precise.

Once your resume is perfect, the next step should be sending it out. Don’t be discouraged if you don’t hear anything back immediately; recruiters may take some time processing applications in times of high volume; just be persistent — your efforts will eventually pay off!

Add your contact information

1. Provide a name;
2. Give your contact details – city and state, phone number, email;
3. Link to a personal profile or portfolio;
4. Set the tone of your resume.

When writing a resume, the best way to make yourself stand out is to highlight your name and contact information as the focal points. In addition, include a summary or objective as well as sections highlighting both hard and soft skills relevant to the position being sought after. Using these tips can help you craft an impressive federal resume and land your ideal job!

Bold and large font are effective ways of drawing the eye’s attention towards your name, and should be set apart from other text so it’s easily read. Inclusion of an email address and phone number makes it easier for the hiring manager to contact you for an interview; especially important if the job requires travel outside the US.

Always provide a professional title under your name when applying for positions, and this should reflect what position is being applied for. Listing something different could cause recruiters to misplace your resume.

List your responsibilities and accomplishments for each past position using bullets, using action words rather than cliched terms such as “responsible for,” “oversaw,” and “initiated.” Emphasize how your work helped improve processes, products or sales with quantifiable metrics.

Write a compelling resume summary

Your professional summary should be the first thing a hiring manager sees when opening your resume, and should draw their interest and convince them to continue reading. Focusing on skills and experiences most relevant to the position being applied for will do just that – specifically by using strong adjectives to describe past work experience while emphasizing tangible achievements such as percentage increases or project completion times are effective methods.

Your work experience section can go from unimpressive to outstanding by tailoring it specifically to each job ad, adding power words, making accomplishments tangible, and providing context about challenges you faced and overcame in previous jobs. This can also provide a great opportunity to demonstrate transferable skills that may prove helpful when switching careers.

When writing a resume, it’s best to organize your work history section in reverse chronological order so hiring managers see your most recent positions first. In addition to listing past employers, start by outlining overall responsibilities before providing details about top three or four accomplishments.

If you have extensive work experience, it is acceptable to list multiple roles with the same company. Please include details on your job title, years of experience and type of work performed within each role as well as an indication of the industry you specialize in and any notable projects completed by each employer.

An effective resume may help secure an interview, but it doesn’t guarantee employment. Competitors with similar qualifications vie for the same position; an inferior application could put you at an unfair advantage over more qualified individuals.

Make a resume work history section

1. Make a list of your past employers, job titles and responsibilities.
2. Focus on your last one to 10 years of employment.
3. Make note of what you achieved for each job.
4. Consider what you’re most proud of from your past job experiences.

Your resume is your chance to make a great first impression with any hiring manager, and how it is formatted, written, and presented can have an enormous influence over whether or not you land an interview. There are various aspects of formatting to take into account such as one page format, front summary text placement, including personal interests or volunteer experiences etc. – finding answers can make all the difference when applying.

Your work history should be the centerpiece of your resume, as hiring managers give it great consideration during screening processes. Be concise while still providing detail about your career – reverse chronological order can ensure that recruiters read about all your previous jobs first.

Your resume should feature sections for each job you held, listing your name, job title, employer and the dates on which each role began and ended. Under each position include a brief paragraph or bulleted list outlining its main duties and responsibilities; try to emphasize those which most align with the role for which you’re applying; use powerful action verbs as appropriate and make sure that these qualities stand out against what would otherwise be obvious from its job title.

As part of your work experience section, it is a good idea to include details regarding each role that you held as well as any notable accomplishments during that time. Also include an industry description; be brief but succinct here so that the focus remains on your work experience section of the resume.