Killer Resume Formats - Which One is For You?

Your education, employment history, professional achievements and career objectives are all summarized in a short one to two page document called a resume.
There are two major styles of resumes, although they can be formatted various ways.

The Chronological Resume Format:

As you might suspect, a chronological resume lists your employment and education in chronological order, beginning with your current employment and most recent achievements.

Sometimes called a reverse chronological resume, many employers prefer this style because their assessment of your qualifications may hinge on what has happened in your life most recently. It works the same way for your education; prospective employers are more interested in your most recent academic achievements so they want to see them first.

A reverse chronological resume also displays your overall professional progress to prospective employers. In addition, this style of resume makes the length of your employment at each organization, as well as any gaps in your employment, more obvious to prospective employers (if any gaps do exist, address them in your cover letter so prospective employers don't think you're intentionally hiding something). You'll want to list your current job followed by two to four previous positions in a chronological resume.

Don't intentionally leave out any of your jobs; instead, address a lengthy employment history or any special qualifications you may have in your cover letter or professional profile.

This style of resume is the most frequently used, and it works well for people with at least some degree of professional experience.

The Functional Resume Format:

Rather than focusing on your professional time line, a functional resume places primary importance on your qualifications. Instead of highlighting where and when you acquired and used your skills, this style of resume draws attention to your skills themselves.

A functional resume should be divided into sections with captions for each of your skills. Examples of these sections might include customer relations, verbal and written communication, project management and so on. A functional resume is often recommended for people with no professional experience, students looking for their first jobs, people who have been out of the workforce for a while, and people looking to change careers.

Although a functional resume provides a good overview of your skills, a chronological or combination resume would be better for those with some professional experience.

The Combination Resume Format:

A hybrid of the chronological and functional resume styles has recently become popular. The combination resume permits you to draw attention to a specific qualification you have that is pertinent to the job being sought, but you are still able to provide details about your educational and employment history in reverse chronological order.

Be careful if you use one; avoid trying to include too much and using an excessive type and number of sections. It's better to limit the information to things that are relevant to the job you are seeking.

Some basic rules apply to any resume, no matter which style. Put your best foot forward, don't go over two pages, and tailor the information to the job being sought.

Remember, your resume is your first line of attack: your best attempt at getting your foot in the door!