how to make a resume in 2022 beginners guide

Protect your data

This site uses cookies and related technologies for site operation, and analytics as described in our Privacy Policy . You may choose to consent to our use of these technologies, reject non-essential technologies, or further manage your preferences.

• Resume and Cover Letter
• How to Make a Resume:...

How to Make a Resume: Beginner's Writing Guide with Examples

30 min read · Updated on March 22, 2024

Your dream job is one resume away!

Your resume is arguably the most important financial document you'll ever own. And before you think, “Yeah – right” let's consider for a moment. Without a resume, you don't get the job, so you can't pay bills, support a family, go to the big game, have that weekend trip, or plan for retirement. Your resume is the doorway to your future, so let's make sure it's perfect. 

Part of making it perfect is remembering that it's a targeted career marketing document – not a chronicle of your life. So, how do you write a resume? In this beginner's writing guide, we'll show you how to make a resume and provide examples of what each section should look like. 

Grab a cup of coffee and strap in, because you're about to learn everything you need to know about how to make a new resume!

Table of contents:

The purpose of a resume

Avoid rejection by the ATS

What is your career target?

Build your personal brand, what should your resume look like, how to make a resume – the layout.

How long does it take to put together a resume?

A major resume no-no: typos

How to make your resume more professional

Theory in practice – resume examples

The most basic purpose of a resume is to sell your skills , achievements , and qualifications to prospective employers. This one document can financially make or break you. Let's take a quick look at what being unemployed costs you per day (assuming a five-day workweek):

If you make $40,000 per year, you lose about $155 every day that you're out of work

If you make $50,000 per year, you lose about $190 every day that you're out of work

If you make $75,000 per year, you lose about $288 every day that you're out of work

If you make $100,000 per year, you lose about $385 every day that you're out of work

Clearly, finding out how to make a resume for a job is critical so that you can properly sell your skills, qualifications, experiences, and achievements to prospective employers. 

The job market is tough and highly competitive; you have to stand out in a sea of qualified candidates by creating a compelling narrative that tells a story of value, keeping in mind that your resume is supposed to do a few things for you:

Introduce you to a new company

Underscore how your experiences and education are relevant

Showcase how your skills and competencies will benefit the new company's team

Win interviews

Avoid rejection by the ATS 

What do you know about applicant tracking systems? Job seeking can be compared to throwing your resume into a black hole. You can go through 100 listings on any job search website and complete the online application with zero results. 

Ever had that happen? It's okay, it happens to everyone at some point or another! 

The problem is that you're probably not putting the correct keywords into your resume. When you hit “Submit” on an online application, it isn't magically emailed to the hiring manager. 

Oh, no! 

It goes through a computer system that scans your resume for specific keywords that can be found in the job description posted by the company. And, just so you know, approximately 90% of companies use ATS scans , including everything from mom-and-pop shops to Fortune 500 companies. 

The companies use these programs because they just don't have time for a human to go through all the resumes they receive. Depending on the job opening, a company can get between  250 and 500 applicants . Can you imagine being the person who has to sift through all those resumes? 

Here is where the ATS steps in. It's designed to weed through candidates to narrow the applicant pool, so that the human hiring manager has a more reasonable resume load to go through. It ranks the remaining candidates in order based on how much of a match they are for the position that's open. 

Being overlooked by the ATS is one of the number one reasons job seekers get ghosted by companies.

Once your resume makes it through the ATS and gets into the hands of a hiring manager, don't think they're going to sit down and read each one. Who has that kind of time? You should expect that the first round of resume sorting will consist of them flipping through the stack to pick the ones that stand out within about 6 seconds of glancing at them. 

PRO TIP: Put your resume on a table, stand up, and look at it from a little distance. Is it eye-catching? Can you tell the position you're seeking just by glancing at it? Set a timer if you have to, but no more than 10 seconds.

Speaking of eye-catching, don't make the same mistake as a lot of your rival job seekers by being too generic with your resume. It's easy to fall into the trap of thinking that being non-specific will open doors to more opportunities. The problem is that the hiring manager won't be able to tell exactly where you'll fit within their organization. 

The first step in winning an interview is being sure that your resume actually makes it into the hands of a human being at the company you apply to. Start by defining what you want to do.

So the first, and most important, step in crafting the perfect resume is to narrow down your target career path. The more specific you are with this first step, the more response you'll receive from hiring managers because they'll be able to tell exactly how you fit within their organization. There are four areas to focus on as you begin to chart your career path:

Industry: Do you want to work in private sector, nonprofit, government, or public roles?

Geography: This one is more in-depth than choosing rural vs urban. It also includes whether you want to work in a dynamic or static environment.

Company size: You may not think it, but having an idea about whether you want to work in a small company or one with thousands of employees is important. 

Role: Saving the best for last, you have to know what position you want.

On the surface, it may seem like these things are only important for the job search aspect of landing a new position, but you have to know what voice to write your resume in, too. Part of that is knowing your audience. When you understand your audience, you can build a personal brand that resonates with what they're looking for in a new staff member.

Now that you've gotten your target career path nailed down, the next step is to brand you. Think of yourself as a product and your resume is the packaging. Companies spend a lot of time on their branding and packaging - you have to do the same thing.

The best place to start is with a  career assessment . Taking one of these tests can help you to identify your strengths, what sets you apart from others, and key themes of your professional identity. Just like Nike and Coca-Cola have timeless taglines and catchphrases that succinctly define what they have to offer to consumers, your personal brand has to tell a concise, yet compelling, story. This is where your resume comes in.

Your resume isn't just a piece of paper you give to a hiring manager or upload to a website that says, “I'm interested in this job.” Your resume is a personal marketing tool. You shape that tool with words that describe your experiences and achievements, to impress and grab the attention of the hiring manager. 

Unlike Nike's “Just Do It” phrase, your personal brand isn't something you build and forget. It is fluid and should be revisited and refined as you gain new skills, experiences, and achievements. Weave the elements of your brand into every section of your resume.

There is a common misconception that entry-level resumes look different than executive resumes. The reality is that the only difference is how much content is available to write about. 

Obviously, someone who has little to no experience will have a  short resume  – generally one page. 

When you start to get up to 10 years of experience, then you've earned the second page, so go ahead and use it. 

It's not incremental though

Just because you have 20 years of experience doesn't mean you can have a three-page resume. As you work through how to make a resume, remember that a three-page resume should be avoided, unless you have a lot of career extras like publications, research, patents, publications, or public speaking engagements to talk about. 

Other than the number of pages, your resume should use the same format and layout no matter if you're applying to a job as someone fresh out of college or seeking to be the CEO of a company. 

Chronological resume 

The  reverse-chronological  is the most popular, traditional, and well-known resume format. Its focus is placed on achievements from your career history and is defined by listing your work history starting with your current or most recent job and working backward 10-15 years. 

Employers like this type of resume because it tells them what, when, and where you worked. It's best to use this if your work history is steady and shows growth and development. If you're looking to make a career change, have had frequent job changes, or if you're seeking your first job, this may not be the best format to use.

Pro Tip: You could also get lost in the ATS if your  resume is over-designed . Many resume writers will tell you that you need to stand out in the sea of sameness by adding some personality to your resume through design. While that's true, you need to avoid heavily formatted resumes which are often rejected by computer scanners as being illegible.

Functional resume 

This resume type focuses more on skills and experiences rather than on your work history. It's more of a “what you know and how you apply that knowledge” than a simple list of where you got the knowledge. It plays down gaps in work history and makes frequent job changes less noticeable. If it isn't done properly, though, it can be confusing for the hiring manager to read and understand. There's also a bit of a stigma behind it, because employers know that job seekers use this style to downplay job-hopping. So, the first thing they do when they get a functional resume is check employment dates. If you can avoid using this style, it's best to do so.

Combination resume 

There is another resume format that focuses on skills first and then experience last. It's the combination resume, which is sometimes called a hybrid resume. This is the most complex resume type and the best resume for mid-career professionals who are transitioning into another career or for people who have special skills and a strong track record of accomplishments. These types of resumes do take a long time to read and some hiring managers won't take the time unless they're looking to fill a hard-to-fill position.

Curriculum Vitae

Curriculum Vitae (CV) is Latin and means “course of life.” It's a little different from a resume, but some positions require a CV over a resume. The first thing you would notice is that a CV is significantly longer than a resume.  A resume is a self-branding document meant to portray your experience and achievements in a concise and easy-to-read format. A CV goes much further into the depth of your education and accomplishments (think publications, awards, and honors) and even has a section for you to include "Areas of Interest."

The best way to describe a CV is that it's a career biography. The biggest significant difference is that a CV is arranged chronologically in a way that gives a complete overview of your full working career. It also doesn't change based on the career or position for which you're applying.

Layout 

To make things easier for the hiring manager to digest the content of your resume, it should be laid out in a specific way to ensure that the right information is in the right place. 

Hiring managers don't  READ  resumes. They skim through until they find something that piques their interest and then they stop to read

Contact information

Title 

Professional summary , core competencies, experience , education and credentials , awards, certificates, and volunteer work .

Since the reverse-chronological resume is the one that the majority of people will use to apply for jobs, and because it's the format that hiring managers want to see, we'll focus this article on showing you how to make a resume using that style. 

Current contact information 

Location | Phone | Email | LinkedIn | Portfolio (if applicable)

You can be creative and use bold font in your  contact information  and even put a border under it to separate it from the body of your resume. 

• Name: Be sure to list your name the same across all professional documents (e.g., resume, cover letter, thank you note, LinkedIn profile). Don't get hung up with whether to use your legal name (i.e. the name on your birth certificate or driver's license). Write your name in the manner you want people to address you. Also, if you use any abbreviated credentials after your name (e.g. Jane Smith, MD), remember to include them on all professional documents.  You can also include any shortened versions of your name in quotations (e.g. Christopher "Chris" Smith). Just make sure to list it the same way everywhere you put your name.
• Address: It is no longer customary to include your full address on your resume. There have been instances of discrimination against job seekers based on their address. As far as your address is concerned, all you need is the City, State, and Zip Code. A lot of people leave off the Zip Code; however, hiring managers can query the ATS for all resumes within a radius of a Zip Code. If you exclude the Zip Code or put something like, "Greater New York Metro Area," your resume won't be included in the query.
• Phone and email: Put the telephone number and email address where you can easily be reached. Also, be sure that your email address is professional. Using something like [email protected] just won't cut it. The best idea is to use some form of your name. If you're paranoid about having your name in your email address, then you can use some form of the type of position you seek, like [email protected].
• LinkedIn URL: You don't have to spell out the entire URL on the contact line. You can put the words “LinkedIn URL” and hyperlink those words. Before you include your LinkedIn URL, be sure that your LinkedIn profile is optimized for the career you want - because you can bet if they have access to it, the hiring manager will look at it. 
• Portfolio: If you're applying for a position like Graphic Designer or Software Designer, you may have a portfolio of work that you want to make available to someone reviewing your application for employment. Include a hyperlink to the portfolio in your contact information. 
• Headshot / photo: There is no reason to include a  headshot on your resume . Actually, it's seen as taboo and could be the thing that gets your resume rejected, because the hiring manager might assume you think you can get the job based on your looks. However, there are some exceptions, like if you're applying to be a model or actor. 

Do you want a hiring manager to be able to tell immediately what type of candidate you are? Put a title at the top of your resume. Center the text on the line, put it in bold font, and put a blank space above and below. The white space and the small amount of words will help it to jump off the page and immediately be noticed. It will also be the first step in helping you stand out in the sea of sameness.

Also, be sure the title on your resume mirrors the title on the job description that you're applying to, but add a bit of panache to it so that it's not too boring. For example, instead of writing “Financial Services Associate,” write “Client-Centric Financial Services Associate Dedicated to Customer Engagement and Revenue Growth.” Just remember to keep it on one line. 

The very next thing on the page should always be your Professional Summary. But how do you write a summary for a resume?

It's a three to five-sentence statement about you. Where you've been in your career, where you're going, and how you'll use your experience to get there. 

While the professional summary is sometimes referred to as the resume objective , you must remember that the days of writing a  resume objective are dead . Never, ever include an objective on your resume. They are a waste of space and don't relay any information that markets you as the best candidate for an open position. 

Let's take a look at an example of each:

Sales Representative seeking a challenging position that will use my skills and provide opportunities for growth in a dynamic and rewarding company. 

As you can see, the objective is very inward-facing and only talks about what you want out of your career. It provides no value to the hiring manager and eliminates any possibility for them to be able to tell what you bring to the table for them. 

Professional Summary:

Ambitious sales professional offering 10+ years' experience in customer retention and aggressive revenue growth. Conquers goals and quotas through a keen awareness of the human buying motive that allows for quickly overcoming objections. Used historical data and consumer trends to reach new customers and grow territory by 24%. Innate ability to work independently or as a member of a cross-functional team.

The best use of resume space is to write a summary of your career. The effectiveness of this summary comes from the fusing of three things:

Relevant keywords – customer retention, revenue growth, and quotas 

Hard and soft skills – overcoming objections and working independently

An achievement – 24% territory growth

With this professional summary, the hiring manager will be able to tell in an instant what you have to offer their team. 

Even though the skills section of your resume is small, it packs a powerful punch! The skills you list in this section highlight your key abilities and show potential employers what you bring to the table. 

It should contain approximately 12 ATS-friendly keywords and phrases that align with the keywords in the job description. Meaning, this is a fluid section that will need to be  tailored to every job  that you apply to. Technically speaking, your entire resume should be customized to align with each job description. That's one thing that will help you get past the ATS. 

Be sure to include a good mix of  hard and soft skills  because prospective employers not only want to know that you can perform the tasks related to your job (hard skills), but they also want to gain a clear understanding of how you'll fit within the culture of the company (soft skills). 

Tips for building your Core Competencies section:

Include skills that are relevant to the job that you're applying to

Avoid creating a laundry list of everything you know how to do – be selective so that the section is more impactful

Group similar competencies together using categories – technical skills, soft skills, and languages

Prioritize your top skills based on their relevance to the job you want

Update frequently

Be consistent with the formatting

Here is a sample Core Competencies list that contains both hard and soft skills:

Core Competencies

Project Management | Data Analysis | Cross-Functional Collaboration | Digital Marketing Strategy | Python Programming | Customer Relationship Management (CRM) | Negotiation | Team Leadership | Business Development | Financial Modeling | Articulate Communication

This section is meant to show how your career history lends itself to the skills you have that make you the perfect candidate for a given job. There are some general rules of thumb on how to make a resume with a great professional experience section:

Don't go further back than 10 to 15 years

Use no more than 3 to 5 bullets per work listing

Incorporate at least 5 measurable achievements per 10 years of experience (the more the better)

Use stacking for companies where you held more than one role

10-15 Years

The 10-15 years of experience is the most relevant – you can list more than that, but avoid using bullet points for roles over 10 years old. Begin by listing your most recent position first and work your way backward to your oldest position, within that 10-15-year range. If you have 30 years of experience, you can use achievements or skills you learned during that time as talking points during the interview. Listing those older experiences on your resume will only dilute the content.

As you write out your bullet points, keep two words in mind: “so what?” The hiring manager is going to be thinking it, you might as well be thinking it, too. Every time you write something on your resume, think, “So what? Why am I writing this? What value will it bring to my new employer? Will this be THE THING that lands me an interview?"

Achievements

Remove “Responsible for…” from your resume-writing vocabulary. That's because it's crucial that you talk about what you achieved, instead of just what your responsibilities were. Let's face it, there are a lot of things that people are “responsible for” that never get done. So, be sure to talk about things you actually accomplished, as that will be the proof the hiring manager needs to take the next step and call you for an interview.

1. Use numbers whenever possible

The best way to call attention to your career accomplishments is to use numbers. Numbers add credibility to your claims and provide a clear picture of what you bring to the table. 

Don't write this:

• Conducted cold calls to expand client base

Write this instead:

• Increased sales by 15% by making approximately 20 cold calls per day to expand the client base

The latter makes an unmistakable assertion that you had a positive impact, not only in your role but on the company as a whole. You can take it a step further and talk about things like problem-solving skills and how you addressed challenges to lead to team success. These types of  soft skills are highly valued by employers  and could be the thing that lands you an interview.

PRO TIP: Use the  CAR method  for building achievement statements into your resume.

2. Use action words to convey accomplishment

A lot of people make the mistake of copying bullet points from the job descriptions of the roles they've held. This practice makes you sound detached from achievements and focuses more on responsibilities. Using passive language is too generic and doesn't allow a hiring manager to see what you'll be able to accomplish in the new role. 

It's better to use action language to show that you're an achiever rather than a doer. Here are some examples of action words you can use on your resume: 

Worked with others: Advised, Aided, Assisted, Chaired, Coached, Collaborated with, Consulted with, Helped, Instructed, Interacted with, Mentored, Motivated, Supported

Communicated: Addressed, Advertised, Answered, Briefed, Corresponded with, Debated, Explained, Facilitated, Informed, Interpreted, Interviewed, Persuaded, Responded to

Analyzed data: Assessed, Appraised, Audited, Calculated, Computed, Estimated, Evaluated, Forecast, Inspected, Measured, Researched, Surveyed, Tested

Operated equipment: Installed, Maintained, Programmed, Ran, Serviced, Used

Worked with money or contracts: Administered, Appropriated, Authorized, Balanced, Controlled, Directed, Enforced, Financed, Funded, Governed, Invested, Monitored, Oversaw, Purchased

Organized something: Arranged, Assembled, Catalogued, Compiled, Coordinated, Itemized, Routed, Scheduled, Stocked, Tracked

Created: Composed, Customized, Designed, Directed, Established, Founded, Illustrated, Originated, Shaped

Researched: Analyzed, Collected, Criticized, Detected, Diagnosed, Evaluated, Tested

How to make your professional experience section: The formula

There's a formula for writing your professional experience section in a way that focuses on achievements. You'll start by asking yourself these questions about every job you've had:

What was the name of the company?

What was the title of your role?

What dates were you employed? (*Hint: use the MM/YYYY format for your dates)

What did you do every day? (*Example: Leveraged management skills to direct operations of 5 separate but concurrent projects by delegating tasks to staff based on employee acumen and monitoring / controlling budgets)

What is one thing you did at the company that you're really proud of?

What is another thing you're really proud of?

What is one more thing you did that you're really proud of?

When you put all of that together, it should look like this:

Company Name | MM/YYYY to Present

Position Title

Balanced competing priorities on multiple and concurrent projects and program management initiatives using data-driven strategies in Agile environments. Managed key accounts, onboarded new accounts, and oversaw organizational process adoption for nursing facilities, emergency departments, and pharmacies.

Developed $2M Provider Incentive Program that increased community provider partnerships

Saved $800K by using Six Sigma skills to implement DMAIC approach

Coached and mentored 2 direct reports, creating an open environment of communication that facilitated future-facing decision-making

Many people will create separate sections for education history and certifications. That's not necessary. You can include all of it in one section. You can also include extras like  relevant coursework , projects, and achievements. These extras can be truly beneficial for your application if you have little to no work experience. 

There are some general rules of thumb for the education section: 

Spell out acronyms (BS, MS, PhD) and school abbreviations

It is no longer customary to include graduation dates unless you're still in school or graduated within the last year

Never include high school, unless you're still in high school - listing high school doesn't say “ I finished high school, ” it says, “ I didn't go to college .” 

List your degree first and then your school, unless you've obtained multiple degrees at the same institution. 

Here's what a regular education section looks like:

EDUCATION AND CREDENTIALS

Master of Business Administration (MBA) | ABC University

Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) | XYZ University

Six Sigma Black Belt | Council for Six Sigma Certification

If you don't have a lot of experience and need to include some relevant coursework or major projects to inject relevant keywords into your resume, then this is what that would look like:

Relevant coursework:  Marketing, Operations Management, Accounting, Corporate Finance

Capstone project:  Let a team of 4 to execute a market analysis project to expand the Brooms and Handles company into new regions. Used market and consumer analysis data to identify gaps and achieve a 15% projected revenue increase and a 20% increase in customer satisfaction within the pilot program. 

You can include educational information about a degree program even if it's still in progress. Here's what that would look like:

Expected completion:  05/2024

Capstone project:  Let a team of 4 to execute a market analysis project to expand the Brooms and Handles company into new regions. Used market and consumer analysis data to identify gaps and achieve a 15% projected revenue increase and a 20% increase in customer satisfaction within the pilot program.

It is important to list what you do outside of work and school. It helps to demonstrate that you're a well-rounded person. 

Were you the president of a fraternity or sorority? 

Did you get involved with showing new students around campus? 

Have you headed a sales team that produced top awards? 

Were you an employee of the month? 

Do you speak multiple languages?

Did you volunteer for an organization?

Did you perform some major research that ended up being published?

All of these extras allow prospective employers a sneak peek into your life outside of work. They can also go a long way to breaking the ice during an interview, especially if something you do outside work is important or interesting to the hiring manager. 

Keep in mind to list only those volunteer positions, projects, or affiliations that are related to your career goals. 

How long does it take to make a resume?

If you're going to use the resume wizard that MS Word has, you can slap your information together in a day or two. It will get to employers. The bad thing is that it probably won't get a whole lot of attention. 

The "just right resume" can take weeks, because of how much background work goes into it. You'll write it, rewrite it, and write it again, and may even have multiple versions. Ultimately, the exact amount of time that goes into putting your resume together depends on your level of experience, how complex your history is, and the specificity of the job you're applying to. 

Entry-level resumes take the least amount of time, simply because there's less information to include

Mid-level resumes take a few days because of the amount of detail in your work history

Executive resumes, or those for specialized positions, can take weeks - especially if you have to do some digging to come up with accomplishments from your previous positions

Updating an existing resume that's well-maintained can be done in just a few hours

While the time spent can seem like a lot, if you're truly marketing yourself for that “just right” position, do you want your resume to say “This was thrown together in a couple of hours using a template” OR do you want it to say “I know this document is important and a significant amount of time was spent on it to make it perfect?”

The first and foremost thing that will get your resume tossed in the garbage can are typos. The number of resumes with errors that are turned in every day to employers across the globe is so astounding that it bears discussing. 

You must proofread your resume!

The major problem with typos and grammatical boo-boos is that your eyes will read what you intended to type. So, after you've read through your resume a few times and think it's perfect, get a friend to read it. Make sure the friend is one of those brutally honest types. It's better to get it back marked all over with bright red ink so you can fix it before you send it out, than to send it out and then realize there's a mistake in it.

How to make your resume seem more professional

Lazy words: Do you see words like "etc" or “other duties as required” on your resume? Delete them immediately. If you take shortcuts in the language of your resume, hiring managers will wonder if you'll be taking shortcuts at work. 

Cookie cutter resumes: Your resume has to stand out. Because of that, you should avoid throwing something together that you find a sample of online. Make it yours, make it represent you. Many people rely on the resume wizard that comes loaded with MS Word and, while that is a good tool to use to help you remember the sections to include, it shouldn't be the end-all-and-be-all of your resume design. 

Specificity: You've had three jobs in the last 10 years and you've listed every detail of everything you've done during your tenure at those jobs. That makes you a Jack (or Jackie) of all trades, but a master of nothing. You have to be specific to the job for which you're applying. What value do you bring to that employer for that job? What achievements can you highlight?

Tailoring: Considering the rampant use of ATS by companies big and small, you have to take the time to customize your resume so that it gets past those scanners. Remember to use relevant keywords from the job descriptions throughout your resume. 

PRO TIP: You can check to see how to make your resume better! Have it checked against an ATS and get a free, personalized, and  professional resume review . 

Theory in practice – 10 resume examples

It's one thing to have someone tell you how to make a resume, it's another thing to see an example – proof that all of this information can come together in a practical way that makes sense. 

1. Software Engineer resume example

Click here for an example of a Software Engineer resume.

2. Data Scientist resume example

Click here for an example of a Data Scientist resume.

3. Cybersecurity resume example

Click here for an example of a cybersecurity resume.

4. Digital Marketing Manager resume example

Click here for an example of a Digital Marketing Manager resume.

5. Nurse Practitioner resume example

Click here for an example of a Nurse Practitioner resume. 

6. Finance Director resume example

Click here for an example of a Finance Director resume. 

7. Attorney resume example

Click here for an example of a Attorney resume.

8. Administrative Office Assistant resume example

Click here for an example of an Administrative Office Assistant resume. 

9. Information Technology Expert resume example

Click here for an example of an Information Technology Expert resume. 

10. Chief Executive Officer resume example

Click here for an example of a CEO resume. 

Now you know how to make a resume for your next job!

It may seem like it takes a lot of work to make a good resume, but if you've followed along this far there are a few things that should be ingrained in you that will help you write a professional resume:

Know what you want to do – be specific

Make your resume with the right format 

Use a standard layout, whether you are writing your first resume or 50th

Use action words to make your resume stand out

Quantify your achievements to prove that you have what it takes to succeed in a new role

Tailor your new resume to each job

Double and triple-check for errors, typos, and grammar mistakes

If you're still unsure how to make a perfect resume, TopResume has you covered. Our team of  professional resume writers  has the know-how and experience to write a resume for you that will win interviews.

Recommended reading: 

Resume Tricks That Don't Work

What Does Your Resume Really Say About You?

Bad Resume Advice You Should Completely Ignore

Related Articles:

Do Hiring Managers Actually Read Cover Letters?

How to Create a Resume With No Education

Why You Lose When You Lie on Your Resume: Learning From Mina Chang

See how your resume stacks up.

Career Advice Newsletter

Our experts gather the best career & resume tips weekly. Delivered weekly, always free.

Thanks! Career advice is on its way.

Share this article:

Let's stay in touch.

Subscribe today to get job tips and career advice that will come in handy.

Your information is secure. Please read our privacy policy for more information.

• Employer Branding
• Philippines

Related items based on your search keywords will be listed here.

How to Writing a Resume in 2022: Beginner Complete Guide

Writing a resume is indeed quite a challenge, especially in times like today. The level of competition to get a job that matches our interests, so big, while some of us might not having a best qualification compared to others. This is also has been a frustration for fresh grads, for the longest time. And even if you feel like you’re qualified for the job, your resume will still be the first thing that introduces you to your potential employers before they call for an interview.

What is the importance of writing a good resume?

A good resume, of course, will attract the recruiter. But being good, sometimes will not get the attentions while your Resume on screening process. A great Resume, at least will grabs the attention of employers and recruiters when do the screening. So before you submit it to HR, click send, or upload it to job portals like us, make sure it’s strong enough to impress the recruiters, when they open it. To make you easy, find these simple tips to empower your Resume.

4 Simple resume writing tips, to make your applications, stand out from others

1. keep it short, and direct to the point.

It always nice to have resume that direct to the point. Try to mention the important think that recruiter need to know at first glance, related to your applications or your latest work.

2. Pick The Right Format, if possible, Original

Undeniable we can find lot of free resume template that can be download and customize. Try to use something that more personal and represent anything you would like to tell. It would be better if you create an original resume template, and pop-out from others.

3. Demonstrate with number or metrics that can be understand by everyone

People always understand numbers, so why not use it while you mention about your ability, skills, or expertise you have. So it more easier to assessing you, when it come the question “how good you are in this fields” and “how relevant your expertise with the requirements”.

4. Use the right sentence or language, to be stand out

Impress the HR and Recruiter regarding how good you communicate about yourself through the text on the resume. Use the right sentence if you try to impress them using language other than your native language. Make yourself stand out from it, and catch the chances.

Writing A Resume For Fresh Graduate With No Experience

1. name and contact information.

Of course, your resume should have your name, location, and contact information (landline/mobile number, email address) at the top of the document. Also, if you have a online portfolio or a professional profile, you could include the link to that website in this portion.

2. Career Objective

As a fresh graduate with very little experience, your objective is an important section of the resume. Its main purpose is to get the immediate attention of the recruiter. However, this part should be short and concise and should emphasize what skills, knowledge, and abilities you have that will help the company achieve its goals. Remember, every company has different goals, so your objective should be tailored fit for every job application you’re applying for. Divide your paragraph in three short sentences:

• Mention your degree and years of work experience (if you have any)
• Describe your strongest provable traits
• Emphasize your abilities that will help in achieving company goals

Read About 10 Free Resume Template You Can Try!

3. education.

While most professional resumes continue with work experience, a college graduate’s resume should begin with your highest educational attainment. Recruiters first check if a candidate meets the certain job requirements, and such requirements may often be your degree. Begin with the most recent academic qualification coming first, and earliest ones last. Mention your GPA to strengthen the chances of getting noticed. Include only your relevant educational attainment (college degree, masters, and/or short-courses).

4. If possible, Work Experience during your study

You might be wondering why this section exists in an article that clearly states to having no work experience. Well, your internships, part-time jobs, or volunteer experiences are already work experiences and have been crucial to you as you’ve developed professionally. This is where you place them. Write down the most recent job on your list down to the earliest. Mention the company, your position, how long you rendered in that job. The important key here is mentioning the details, so highlight your responsibilities, and what you’ve achieved during your stay there.

Related : Use Sure Fire Formula, To Make Work History Shine in Your CV

There you go, all the thing you can use to smack your CV more valuable as Fresh Graduate, event though you don’t have experience.

About The Writer

Hello, my name is Karina and I work as a freelance contributor at Kalibrr. I enjoy reading self-improvement books and working out. More about Karina

Related Content

Hybrid skill, skill dengan demand tinggi di tahun 2021 & 2022. sudah siap.

Soft Skills yang Dibutuhkan di Tempat Kerja

Manfaat Tunjangan Kerja untuk Perusahaan

Kenneth Hendrawan: Accenture Indonesia Turned My Software Engineering Dreams into Reality

Ternyata, BCA Punya Nilai Kerja yang Seru Untuk Menghadapi Persaingan di Era Digital! Seperti Apa Yah?

No comment available yet!

• For Job Seekers
• For Employers
• Product Releases

© 2022 Kalibrr, Inc.

• Privacy Policy
• Terms of Use

I want to visit the page for

I am viewing from

My preferred language is

• Start Hiring

• Resume Tips

Beginner's Guide to How to Write a Resume

21 min read

For job seekers, few things are more important than making a great first impression on employers. Of course, it’s difficult to accomplish that goal without a compelling resume. 

But what can you do if you’ve never had the opportunity to craft a personalized resume? 

What do you need to know to write a truly convincing resume that can capture an employer’s interest?

In this beginner’s guide, we will provide you with all the information you need to know to learn how to make a resume that can increase your odds of landing an interview. We’ll explain why it’s so important to know how to make a resume and then walk you through the resume creation process step-by-step.

What is a resume?

Before we explain how to make a resume, let’s make sure that we properly define this vital job search tool. A resume is a brief one to two-page document that highlights your most relevant skills, work experience, achievements, and educational qualifications. If you’ve ever filled out a formulaic job application, then you already have some idea about the type of information you’ll need to include in your resume.

But make no mistake; resumes are not just job applications. 

Instead, they are marketing documents designed to highlight your qualifications and potential value as a new hire. Well-crafted resumes should offer more than just a dull recitation of your skills and experiences. A great resume delivers a powerful and compelling narrative that enables prospective employers to envision all the many ways that you might benefit their company.

Why do you need to know how to make a resume?

To understand why it’s so important to know how to make a resume, consider the following job search challenges:

Today’s job market is more competitive than ever before, and you need a way to stand out from the competition.

Most companies expect candidates to provide a resume when they apply for a job. Without a compelling resume, you may have no way to introduce yourself and compete for the role.

You need to be able to convince employers that your experience and skills offer real value to their operations.

Without a resume, you’ll struggle to get the attention you need to earn interview opportunities – interviews that can help you make your best case as a candidate.

The good news is that you can overcome all these challenges by learning how to make a resume that helps you capture employers’ interest. With the right approach and execution, you can craft a resume narrative that not only highlights your qualifications for a job but also demonstrates that you know how to provide value for your employers.

How to make a resume, step-by-step

Now that we’ve explained why it’s so important to have a great resume, it’s time to learn how to make a resume for a job. To simplify this process, we’ve broken everything down into distinct steps that you can follow as you craft your resume document. Just follow along with the steps outlined below, and you’ll quickly learn how to make a great resume that can capture an employer’s attention.

1.     Know your goals

First, you’ll need to figure out your career goals so that you can make a resume that is targeted toward jobs in that industry. Have you given any thought to your career path? 

Some of the key things you’ll want to consider include:

What industry interests you? If you already know which type of job you want, then chances are that you’ve already answered this question. If not, give it some thought.

Which city or state do you want to live in as you pursue your career? Do some research on industries and jobs in that area to make sure that your goal is reasonable.

What position are you seeking? Until you figure out what type of job you want, there’s no reason to create a resume.

What long-term goals do you have for your career? The answer to this question can help you identify short-term job goals as you figure out which career steps you need to take to reach those broader objectives.

Once you’ve answered these questions and formed the broad outline of a career plan, you’ll have a better idea of how to make your resume in a way that speaks to that audience. 

As you craft your resume and continually revise it for each new job throughout your career, knowing your audience can help you focus on creating a professional brand that speaks directly to their hiring needs.

2.     Gather your resume information

The next step in your resume creation process involves preparation – which means getting organized so that all the information you need is readily available before you even begin. This initial preparation can ensure that you don’t waste time looking for key details later and can instead just focus on writing the best resume possible.

Below is a summary of the information you should gather:

A list of your marketable skills. Make sure that you focus on hard and soft skills, including technical abilities, industry-specific knowledge, and key interpersonal skills.

An outline of your employment history. Create a list that includes each job title, the name of the company you worked for, their locations, and your employment dates.

A list of three to five quantifiable achievements for each of those jobs.

Your educational qualifications. Here, we’re talking about any degrees that you’ve earned, the schools you attended, the date you graduated, and relevant coursework or certifications.

You can also gather details about any volunteer work you’ve engaged in – identifying any key skills that you might have learned or used during that experience.

Depending on the job you’re seeking, you may also want to gather information about any accolades you’ve earned – but only if they reinforce your qualifications and past performance.

3.     Choose your format

After gathering your information, you’ll be ready to make your first big resume decision – which format to use. There are three options here, each of which offers a different way to organize and present your information. The choice you make will largely depend on where you are in your career and what you’re trying to achieve. Those three formats include:

The reverse chronological resume format

This format choice is preferred by most hiring managers and job seekers. Its structure and format provide an ideal way to present your work history in a clear and convincing manner by listing your previous jobs in reverse chronological order. That allows employers to focus on your most recent achievements at work while also being able to review your overall career progression.

The functional resume format

The functional resume takes a different approach to organizing your employment information. Instead of focusing on that work history, the functional format emphasizes your skills and education to demonstrate your qualifications for the role. Because it is often used by those with little experience or major gaps in their work history, many employers view this resume format with some degree of skepticism.

The hybrid, or combination, resume format

If you’re looking for a resume format that seeks a happy middle ground between functional and reverse chronological resumes, then the combination option might be ideal. This resume format is often used by people who are changing their careers or who have a great deal of experience that they want to highlight. It is designed to emphasize both skills and relevant experience.

While you are free to choose whichever option you think will work best, we typically recommend the reverse chronological format for most job seekers with any level of experience. 

If you have no work experience, you may be better off relying on the hybrid option. 

Throughout the rest of this post, however, we will focus on helping you learn how to make a resume that uses the most popular formatting option – the reverse chronological format.

4.     Use a solid structure to outline your resume

Fortunately, the reverse chronological resume offers a simple way to organize your resume information to create a solid structure that is easy to follow and scan. That last part is important because very few employers will ever read through your entire resume when it first crosses their desk. Instead, they will scan it, searching for key bits of information that they’re prioritizing for their hiring process.

Knowing that, it’s important to create an outline that provides that scannable structure. To do so, you need to separate different types of resume information into distinct sections. 

Your resume outline should include the following sections:

Contact information

Resume headline

Resume summary

Core competencies or skills

Work experience/Professional experience

Optional sections

We’ll examine each of these important sections as we proceed through the guide, providing examples to help you better understand how to present these details to employers.

5.     List your contact information

Your contact information needs to be placed at the top of your resume. That helps ensure that hiring managers and others can easily find the details they need to know if they want to contact you for an interview or a job offer. 

Include the following information:

Your name . Make sure that it matches the name you use in your cover letter and LinkedIn profile. Also, use both your first and last name, and adjust the font size to a larger font to help it stand out from the rest of your contact information.

Your location . While there is some debate about this, it is still common for job seekers to include their city, state, and zip code in their contact details. Do not list your home address , though.

Phone number . Make sure you include a working phone number that employers can use to reach you. Include all ten digits of the number to ensure that there is no confusion.

Email address . For your email address, try to utilize a professional email rather than a vanity address. For example, you would not want to use an address like [email protected]. Instead, use an address that contains your name and no silly or controversial details. Something like [email protected] would be a far better option.

LinkedIn URL . If you have a LinkedIn account that you use for your professional career, include that URL too. Just make sure you’ve cleaned up your profile and updated it to align with your resume and current career goals.

Website/Portfolio URL . This is an optional contact detail that you may need to include if you have a professional body of work you need employers to see. Website designers, graphic artists, and architects are examples of the type of professionals who often need to rely on their portfolios to demonstrate their skills.

Putting all of that together, your resume contact information section might look something like this:

Tom Thompson

Anytown, Anystate 99999 ∙ 555-555-5555

your email address ∙ Your LinkedIn URL ∙ Portfolio address

6.     Create a dynamic resume headline

If you’re confused about resume headlines, relax – they’re easy to understand. Basically, they’re just a job title with some descriptive language that helps to capture hiring managers’ attention. The headline goes right below your contact details, with the text bolded and centered to give it more prominence on the page.

To create a headline, start with the job title. For example: Marketing Manager. Now add some descriptive language that makes that title more compelling. For example:

Senior Marketing Manager With 10+ Years of Experience in Brand Enhancement

Dynamic Marketing Manager and Digital Marketing Innovator

Strategic Marketing Manager, Focused on Data-Driven Analysis

As you can see, these examples offer more than just a bland recitation of the job title you’re seeking. They provide a more compelling argument for your candidacy while helping solidify your unique professional brand. This can help ensure that you develop a reputation that can contribute to career success and advancement as you provide real results for your employers.

7.     Craft a compelling resume summary

You’ll also need to know how to create a convincing resume summary to serve as your resume’s elevator sales pitch. 

Remember how we mentioned that hiring managers only scan your resume? Well, it’s true. 

And because they don’t read the entire document, you’ll need to work extra hard to make sure that you capture their attention as quickly as possible.

Enter the resume summary. 

This short, three to five-sentence paragraph sits right below your resume headline and acts as a quick introduction to the reader. You’ll want to include a brief description of yourself that emphasizes your experience and most relevant skills, as well as language that shows how you’ve used those skills and character traits to produce measurable results for your previous employers.

You should also include a few keywords from the job description to help guarantee that your resume gets past applicant tracking systems, of course. Just scan the job posting to locate relevant skills, character traits, and other qualifications that the employer is looking for. Those are likely to be ATS keywords you’ll need to have in your resume.

Since this paragraph is designed to serve as a summary of your resume and career, it is usually best to write it after you’ve completed the rest of the document. That can help you to identify key points that you can use in your summary. Regardless of when you write it, though, it always needs to have a prominent place in the top third of your resume.

Here’s an example of what a Marketing Manager resume summary might look like:

Data-driven Marketing Manager with 8+ years of experience crafting and leading high-impact campaigns for more than 200 client companies. Consistently leverage digital campaign expertise to increase client website traffic by an average of 45%, with an 80% boost to customer engagement and 23% average increase in sales funnel activity.  A proven leader focused on creating motivated teams that exceed every expectation.

8.     Highlight your core competencies

Since you’ve already created a list of your core skills, crafting the core competencies or skill section of your resume should be relatively easy. While this is typically one of the smallest sections in any resume, it can also be one of the most effective. After all, this is the one section in which you can include every relevant skill you’ll need to demonstrate your qualifications.

So, let’s start with that list of skills you created. 

You’ll need a total of between 9 and 12 skills for this section, including both hard and soft skills . 

Try to include a balanced mix of each to ensure that employers can see that you not only have the job-related skills needed to fulfill your duties but also possess the key interpersonal skills you’ll need to fit within the company culture.

Hard skills include technical abilities that you’ve learned in school or other formal training venues, while soft skills tend to include traits and abilities that are more difficult to measure. 

For example, consider your ability to analyze data. That is a quantifiable skill that can be easily measured in terms of results. On the other hand, communication or negotiation skills are less tangible and more difficult to measure. Data analysis is thus a hard skill while communication and negotiation abilities are considered soft skills.

As you create your core competencies section, start by reviewing the job description to identify all the skills the employer listed as core qualifications. Then, compare the skills you cull from the job description with the personal skills list you created as you gathered your resume information. 

Fuse the two lists and fine-tune it using language from the job description to create your core competencies list and get past the ATS.

A few things to note here:

This is the first section in your resume that requires a section label. You can label this section Core Competencies or Relevant Skills – or just Skills. It’s up to you.

You’ll want each skill to be listed as a bullet point to help keep them from looking like they’re squished together on the page.

It’s typical to format this section into two or three columns, to help save resume space and create a more appealing presentation.

Make sure that you list the most important skills first and try to group them according to type. For example, if you’re applying for a technical job, list technical skills first, and then your soft interpersonal abilities.

Omit any unnecessary skills that might distract from your more relevant abilities. The goal is to create a compelling list, so quantity is less important than quality.

Here’s an example of what that skill list might look like for our hypothetical Marketing Manager:

CORE COMPETENCIES

Digital Marketing

Strategic Planning

Campaign Budgeting

Project Management

Data Analysis

Brand Management And Enhancement

Team Building

Creative Thinking

Problem Solving

Excellent Communication

Negotiation

Content Management

9.     Document your work experience

If you’ve ever filled out a standard job application, then you already understand the importance of documenting your work experience for a prospective employer. 

Here, you will need to refer to your list of previous jobs and start with your current or most recent position. To begin, start listing every job that you’ve held for the last 10 to 15 years, in reverse order. 

For each of those positions, you should include the following details:

Company name

Company location

Employment dates

Four or five bullet point examples of your most notable and quantifiable achievements

Before we get to examples that show how this section might look on your resume, let’s talk about those bullet point examples for a few minutes. 

While there was a time when job seekers would just list their job duties for every position, that approach rarely works in today’s competitive job market. The reason for that is simple: every employee has duties, regardless of their position. 

Employers are not impressed by a list of your responsibilities; they want to know how you made a positive impact in that role.

By listing measurable achievements that use real numbers to quantify your results, you can demonstrate how you provide value as an employee. That’s one of the easiest ways to prove your capabilities and help any prospective employer quickly understand the type of benefits they can expect if they choose you over rival candidates.

Below is an example of the employment experience section for your imaginary Marketing Manager:

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE ABC Marketing – Anytown, Anystate – 2019–Present

Marketing Manager

Successfully created and executed marketing campaigns for 60+ clients, including rebranding strategies, market expansions, and digital engagement, with an average client revenue increase of 22%.

Recruited and trained 3 dozen marketing personnel, boosting company client acquisition by 32% over a 3-year period, with a 95% employee retention rate.

Led negotiations for new vendor contracts, reducing departmental costs by $75,000 per year.

Oversaw digital marketing campaigns that provided $2 million in revenue in 2023.

As you can see, each of these achievement examples highlights the candidate’s various skills, including negotiation, digital marketing, team building, and project management, as well as core leadership abilities that all managers need to possess. Even better, the candidate uses real numbers to demonstrate how those skills helped to add value for his employer.

Adopt this approach to your work experience section by following that same strategy for each of your job role listings. Whenever possible, try to include several skill-based keywords from the job posting in these achievement listings too.

Finally, make sure that you utilize action verbs that demonstrate that you’ve done more than just fulfill your duties in each role. You want employers to see you as a person of action who’s focused on getting results rather than just meeting your responsibilities. 

Avoid boring, meaningless words like “responsible for” or “duties included” and opt instead for action-oriented language like:

Facilitated

Reorganized

Revitalized

Coordinated

Related post : For other great ideas about these types of action words, check out our great post, 101 Power Verbs for Your Resume .

10.   Create an education section

The last required section in your resume is the Education section. This is where you’ll list the degrees you’ve earned that demonstrate you meet the employer’s education requirements for the position. 

Again, refer to the job posting to ensure that you understand what the employer is looking for and make sure that the credentials you list meet those expectations.

This section should include the name of the school you attended and its location, the date you graduated, and your degree. 

Education in progress

You can also include relevant coursework that can help highlight your knowledge base. If you have not yet completed your degree, you can include the anticipated date for graduation. 

The question of whether to include your GPA is a matter of some debate. As a rule, it’s wise to never include it unless you’ve recently finished school – and that GPA is at least 3.5. Of course, some employers may require that information, in which case you’ll need to add it to your resume. In most instances, however, you’ll want to omit it.

Educational awards/honors

Finally, you can include relevant awards or honors if you’re lacking in work experience. If you go that route, make sure that you list the formal award name and include the date that you received it.

So, what does that all look like when you put it together to create a resume section? Let’s return to our Marketing Manager example and see how that resume’s Education section might look:

EDUCATION Bachelor of Science in Marketing Anytown College – Anytown, Anystate – May 2008

Relevant coursework: Advanced Marketing Strategies, Digital Marketing Intelligence, Project Management Insights

11.   Add certifications, training, or license credentials when appropriate

Depending on your chosen career path, you may have certain certifications or licensing requirements for any job you’re seeking. Or perhaps you’ve made a point of continuing to advance your career with continuing education that earned certain certifications. 

If you possess those additional qualifications, and they’re relevant to the position you’re seeking, you may want to include them on your resume.

CERTIFICATIONS / LICENSES Google Analytics Certification – Google, June 2023 (Expires June 2024)

As you can see, you’ll want to include the name of the certification and the organization or entity that provided it. Add in the date you earned the certification. In addition, you should include any relevant expiration date. You’ll also notice that we added a title for this optional section, to help keep it separate from the other sections in your resume.

12.   Volunteer work

Volunteer work is an optional section that you may want to include – but only if the skills you used are relevant for the position you’re seeking. If so, then you can add a separate labeled section for this part of the resume. Include the type of work you did, the organization that you worked for, and any measurable achievements. 

For example:

VOLUNTEER WORK Anytown Food Drive – Budget Manager – 2022

Developed a budget plan for a local food drive, creating a donor campaign that yielded $13,000 in donations in 2022.

Managed team of 9 volunteers who executed donor drive campaign.

Developed offline and online marketing strategies to maximize community outreach, achieving 11% success rate for actionable donor contacts.

Alternatively, you can simply list volunteer work in your work experience section. This option is especially useful if your resume has noticeable gaps in your employment and you spent some of that off-time doing volunteer work. It’s a great way to demonstrate that you were still actively sharpening your skills during a period of unemployment.

If you opt to add volunteer work to your professional experience list, be sure to change the title of that section of your resume from “Professional Experience” to “Professional and Volunteer Experience” so that employers understand you’re mixing the two together.

Once your base resume is complete

Once your resume includes all the core sections and any relevant optional sections, you’ll have a base resume that you can use as your template for any resume submissions. 

But your work isn’t done! 

In fact, there are still some steps that you’ll need to complete before you can confidently send your document off to employers. Let’s examine those additional steps now.

Edit and proofread your resume for content, spelling, and grammar

Obviously, you don’t want to send out a resume that’s filled with misspellings, typos, or inaccurate information. To avoid that, you will need to spend some time editing the document for both content and quality. 

Remember this: employers who spot mistakes in resumes are more likely to toss those documents in the trash than spend any real time reading them.

Here’s the problem, though: it’s difficult to proofread your own writing – especially if you try to do it right after you’re done with your initial draft. 

You see, your brain will remember what it wrote, which means that your eyes will likely miss even obvious mistakes since your brain will interpret what you meant to write vs what’s actually there. To avoid that challenge, try to set the document aside for a few days before you begin your edits. You may need to review it several times after that to get it right.

Even then, though, you shouldn’t rely on your own eyes to serve as the final word on proofreading. Instead, have a friend or family member who’s good with words review it too. Print it out and ask them to look for any confusing language, spelling errors, punctuation mistakes, or formatting lapses.

Tailor your resume to each job you seek

Our final step to making a great resume is an ongoing one that you’ll need to revisit with each new job you seek. It involves tailoring your resume to target a specific job role at a specific company. To complete this step, you need to take your base resume and make modifications that specifically target the role you want. 

The following tips can help.

Begin by making a copy of your base resume on the computer. Give it a different name that identifies it for use in a specific job application.

Go through your resume and compare the different sections to the job posting for the position you’re seeking. As you read through the job posting, identify those skill and qualification requirements that we talked about earlier in this guide. Write down those exact terms on a sheet of paper. Those will be keywords that you need to add to your resume.

Review each section of your resume to ensure that your headline, summary, core competencies, work experience, and education section all align with the core qualifications for the position you want.

Remove any irrelevant skills and replace them with those required for the new job.

Make changes to your work experience achievements as needed to ensure that your accomplishments highlight the right skills for the job.

Once you’re done tailoring the resume, go through your proofreading and editing process again to ensure that it’s as perfect as possible.

With a little effort, you can learn how to make a resume that’s sure to impress!

Learning how to make a resume may seem like a tall mountain to climb, but the challenge can be overcome if you know which steps to take. With the right goals, preparation, and attention to detail, you can quickly learn how to make a professional resume that will capture the attention of any prospective employer.

Good luck in your job search!

Wondering whether your resume has what it takes to land you the interviews you need? Get your free resume review from our resume experts today!

 Recommended reading:

30 Resume Summary Examples that Work in 2024

Communication Skills on a Resume (Examples + Tips)

150 Resume Buzzwords to Use and Clichés to Avoid in 2024

Ken Chase, Freelance Writer

During Ken's two decades as a freelance writer, he has covered everything from banking and fintech to business management and the entertainment industry. His true passion, however, has always been focused on helping others achieve their career goals with timely job search and interview advice or the occasional resume consultation. When he's not working, Ken can usually be found adventuring with family and friends or playing fetch with his demanding German Shepherd. Read more resume advice from Ken on  ZipJob’s blog .

Our resume services get results.

We’ve helped change over 30,000 careers.

Get a free resume review today

Our experts will review your resume’s grammar, layout, and ability to pass ATS — all free and delivered straight to your inbox.

PROTECT YOUR DATA

This site uses cookies and related technologies for site operation, and analytics as described in our   Privacy Policy. You may choose to consent to our use of these technologies, reject non-essential technologies, or further manage your preferences.

• Trending Now
• Foundational Courses
• Data Science
• Practice Problem
• Machine Learning
• System Design
• DevOps Tutorial
• How To Go Incognito in Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and Safari
• What is Artificial Intelligence Bias and How to Remove it?
• Constructive Feedback - Meaning, Types, Examples
• How to Start Blog Writing in 2024 [Updated]
• List of Useful Git Commands
• 7 Best Smartsheet Alternatives (Free & Paid)
• How to Prepare for FAANG Interviews? - FAANG Interview Prep Plan
• How to Completely Prepare For Tech Interviews?
• Edge Computing – A Building Block for Smart Applications of the Future
• 10 Best Affiliate Programs for Beginners [2023]
• The Evolution of DevOps - 3 Major Trends for Future
• 10 Most Useful Development Tools for Software Developers
• Understanding Augmented Reality
• Grid System in UI Design [Beginner's Guide]
• How Hotstar and JioCinema Manages Millions of Live Users?
• 5 Tips to Prepare for Microsoft Azure Cloud Certification Exam
• 10 Ways to Acquire New Skills Without Going Back to School
• Problems in Facial Recognition
• How to Become a Software Architect in 2024

How to Write a Powerful Resume 2022 (Beginner’s Guide with Examples)

If you think writing a resume on a pink scented paper can get you an internship with a big law firm, well you’re neither Elle Woods of Legally Blonde nor you’re living in a fictional world. Long gone are the days when writing a resume on a piece of paper with basic information bagged you a decent job in a decent company. Nowadays, knowing how to write a resume that is not only simple and neat but also ATS-friendly is a skill everyone should learn. 

In today’s competitive world, 40% of recruiters and hiring managers don’t waste more than a minute reviewing resumes and when you submit a not-so-attractive and boring resume that doesn’t detail your work qualifications and achievements, you’re basically up for failure. 

Before, moving on to how to write a resume even if you’re a fresher and have no experience, let us understand what a resume is and why it is important.

Why a Resume is Important?

If you want paychecks, you’ve to sell yourself first and a resume is that one tool or document that lists out your features and USPs that will help you to sell yourself in the job market. Within one or two pages, a resume convinces recruiters if they want to call you for a job interview or not. (That much power your resume holds)

So, if you want to bag your first interview or want to interview at your dream company or for a dream job role, it’s very important for you to write a strong and power-packed resume with correct keywords and relevant skills that will persuade recruiters to hit “I want to interview you” button. 

Now that you know why you need a resume, it’s time to know how to write a resume. Board the rocketship because we’re going step-by-step with this resume writing guide. Make sure you’re taking notes because you’re going to need them to write that stand-out resume.

How to Make a Resume (Step-By-Step Guide for Beginners)

1. choose your desired resume format.

• Reverse chronological resume format
• Functional or Skilled Focused resume format
• Hybrid Format
• Dos and Don’ts of Resume Layout 
• What resume format is best for ATS

Most people have two options when it comes to getting an interview call – A++ top-tier level resume or an “I know someone here” referral. No matter which group you belong to, it’s important to up your resume game and understands the strategies that are used to land an interview from your dream company within a week, if not days. Before you dive into the resume-building process, you have to decide on the right resume format that will take you up the ladder. If you’ve already decided to write your resume on a text editor like MS Word, it’s highly recommended you should keep your HANDS OFF from them. 

Formatting your resume on a basic text editor will not waste your time but also your effort. We recommend that you should use a resume builder tool like GeeksforGeeks Online Resume Builde r – Free . Our resume builder is fast, simple, and free to use. Moving onto resume formats that you can use to format your resume. 

There are three types of resume formats: reverse chronological, functional or skills-based, and hybrid. You should choose the format that suits the type of job you are applying for and your level of experience.

The 3 resume formats are:

1) Reverse chronological Resume Format – This highlights your career advancement and emphasizes the relevant job experience. It’s an absolute fan favorite of recruiters. However, it doesn’t show your skills much so if you’re someone with highly relevant job experience, you can opt for this resume format.

2) Functional/skills-based Resume Format – Are you a fresher with no job experience? Opt for a functional or skill-based resume format if you have skills to brag about but no relevant work experience. 

3) Hybrid Resume Format – Now, this resume format is preferred by most recruiters and loved by job seekers with diverse skillsets and job experience. It combines the best elements of both reverse chronological and functional resume format and provides space for the right keyword. 

If you’re wondering which resume format is best for ATS, go for the reverse chronological resume format. When it comes to resume layout, you need to mind these tips while formatting your resumes:

• Page Count: Keep your resume to one page. Max 2 if you’ve 7+ of experience and it’s relevant to your job role. Recruiters get 1000+ resumes every day and it gets tough to go through resumes with more than 2 pages. 
• Heading Tag: If you’re choosing an H1 tag or an H2 tag to write your headlines in your resume, then ensure that all headlines have the same tag.
• White space: Keep enough white space in your resume. Negative space is needed to make your resume look professional.
• PDF or Word: Download your resume as a PDF document as it can be read by most ATS. If the job description mentions that you need to send the doc file as a .doc, then send your resume like that as old ATS can’t read PDF files.

2. Fill Up Your Name and Personal Information

• First Name / Last Name. 
• Phone Number. 
• Email Address. 
• Dos and Don’ts of Contact Information

The most important and overlooked section of your resume is the contact information section which is right under your name. Even if you write everything correctly but haven’t provided your contact details, HRs can’t reach out to you even if they want to contact you. Ensure that everything on your contact information is up to date and triple-check the details if needed. 

Things that you should include are: 

• First Name / Last Name – Mention the name that is provided on your social security card or if you’re in India, it should match the name that’s provided on your PAN card or Aadhaar card.
• Phone Number – Only provide the phone number that is reachable.
• Email Address – Don’t provide an unprotected email address. Your email address should be like this: “[email protected]”. Avoid providing email addresses like [email protected], [email protected]
• Location – Your residential address should be the same as the one where you stay or relocated.
• Social Media URLs – If you’re a software developer, mention your Github profile. If you’re a designer, then Behance profile and if you’re a writer, provide your personal blog that showcases your abilities. Don’t forget to include your LinkedIn account as most recruiters go through LinkedIn to see your online presence. 

3. Write a Resume Headline that Can Stand You Out From the Crowd

• Why do you require a resume headline and how it can help you to land an interview?
• Dos and Don’ts of resume headline

A resume headline is a short, one-line statement that conveys who you are as a candidate. It is important to write a headline that grabs the recruiter’s attention and encourages them to read your qualifications in more depth. Your resume headline is often the first thing recruiters read so impress them within seconds by writing a short and concise headline. Keep it relevant to your job skills and make sure that you put the right keywords that are relevant to the job posting. If you want to stand out from the crowd, keep the cliche out of your resume. Recruiters get 1000+ resumes and are familiar with cliche phrases like “hard worker” and “good communication skills”. 

Some resume headlines examples for you to check out:

• Goal-Oriented Senior Accountant with 6+ Years of Accounting Experience in XYZ Company.
• Successful Manager of Dozens of Online Marketing Campaigns
• Award-Winning Video Editor Skilled in Web Design and Video Editing
• Detail-Oriented History Student with Curatorial Experience

4. Resume Summary and Objective to Use or Not?

• What are a resume summary and resume objectives?
• When to use them?
• Examples of Objective 

The first impression is your last impression. This phrase stands true to date. An effective resume introduction can make or break you no matter what type of job you’re applying for. Your summary or objective can give the opportunity to impress the recruiter so carefully write your resume summary/objective. Don’t know where to write a resume summary or objective? We got you covered.

A resume summary is a 2-3 sentence summary of your working experience. Unless you’re a recent college grad or changing careers, you should use a resume summary in almost any scenario.

You must include the following information in your resume summary:

• Your position as well as your years of experience. For example –  a customer service representative with 5+ years of experience in the IT industry.
• 1 or 2 outstanding accomplishments. For example – specialized in technical support, customer service, and user retention.
• Expected outcome (generally, passion for working at a specific company). For example – Looking for new opportunities as a support lead for a SaaS company.

On the other hand, a resume objective implies the goal of your resume. It conveys why you want to work in that particular field and the motivation behind it. When writing a resume summary, include an objective of 2-3 lines. If you’re changing your career or have no significant work experience, make sure to write a resume objective.

Examples of Resume Objective for both fresher and for someone who is going through career change:

1) If you’re a student, write your resume objective like this:

“Hard-working recent graduate with an M.A. in Mass Communication from Mumbai University seeking new opportunities. 2+ years of practical experience working with XYZ1 and XYZ2 and fluent in creative writing. Looking to grow as a creative writer at the ABC News Station.”

2) If you’re going through a career change, you can consider writing your resume objective like this:

“Accomplished management professional with 6 years of managerial experience and strong analytical and budgeting skills seeking to transition to a product management position with a thriving company.”

5. List Down Your Work Experience

• Write down work experience in reverse chronological order
• Job title | Company Name | Date of employment | Accomplishments & Achievements
• If you’re a fresher, keep the education section at the top, and if you’re an experienced person or did work in FAANG companies or big coming, then put work experience at the top.
• If you’re a backend intern, make sure you’re writing the designation as a software engineering intern. 
• Make sure you’re covering up your tasks in 2-3 points.

Now we’re down to the most important part of the resume – work experience. If an ad sells a product with just a few words, your resume does the same with you by selling you on the basis of your past work experience and achievements. Mastering writing this section is a bit tough but once you master writing the perfect work experience section, 80% work is done here. So, let’s see how to list your work experience: Your work experience should be written in reverse chronological order as ATS can scan reverse chronological resume format easily.

It should be something like this:

Job title | Company Name | Date of employment 

Accomplishments & Achievements

• Job title: Keep it on top of your resume so that recruiters can easily see what position you’re applying for.
• Company name: Mention the company you are working in or working for.
• Date of employment: Mention the timeframe of your employment in all the companies you worked for. Ensure that format is like this – dd/mm/yyyy. It is important to mention as ATS parses it only then.
• Accomplishments and achievements: This is where you mention your core achievements that will in turn bag you – your dream job. List your achievements or responsibilities according to your job role.
• If you’re a fresher, keep the education section at the top and if you’re an intern or worked in FAANG companies or big companies, then make sure to put the work experience section at the top.
• If you’re a backend intern, instead of writing your job title as “Backend Intern”, write it as a “Software Engineering Intern”. You should always write the job title mentioned in the job description.
• Don’t write 10-15 points covering your job responsibilities. Recruiters don’t have the time to go through all of the responsibilities. Keep it to 2-3 points max.
• Mention achievements in terms of how exactly you helped the company grow, reach quarterly quotas, and so on. Numbers play a big role when it comes to convincing your future employers what exactly you achieved.

6. Mention your Soft and Hard Skills

Now that you mastered writing your work experience section, it’s time to dive into your skills section. There’re 2 types of skills:

• Soft Skills: These are your personal skills like social skills, communication skills, personal traits, career attributes, leadership, critical thinking, and management.
• Hard/Technical Skills: Hard Skills are measurable skills that you can measure like how proficient you’re in that particular skill. The use of technical skills frequently requires specialized tools and the technologies needed to use them.

A good resume should cover both. However, it’s highly advisable that you should mention those skills in which you’re fluent and not just at a beginner level. To know more about how to list your key technical skills, read our article 7 Key Technical Skills to List on Your Resume in 2022 .

Once you list your hard skills with your experience level, double-check your skills section and remove any skill you feel you’re not confident in and don’t LIE even if your life depends on it. Lying about skills can get you in serious trouble later on and can get you blacklisted too.

7. Add Your Educational Background, Achievements, and Projects

The next section is all about your educational background, achievements, and projects. We’ll keep it short and concise for you. List your educational background in this way:

• Program Name. E.g.: “MBA in Marketing”
• University Name. E.g.: “Mumbai University”
• Years Attended. E.g.: “06/2019-05/2021”
• (Optional) CGPA. E.g.: “CGPA: 8”
• (Optional) Academic achievements. If you have written any interesting papers or excelled in any courses, do describe them.

Let’s move on to some tips that will help you perfect your educational background, achievement, and project section:

• Only keep the last 2 educational qualifications or examinations you’ve given.
• Only add those projects which are relevant to your job opening – projects which have more number of features.
• Projects to list- API-based projects, Portfolio-based projects, and Full-stack projects.
• Add as many numbers as you can while listing achievements – add your highest ranking in CP or the highest number of problems you solved on GeeksforGeeks or XYZ. 
• Don’t add intra-college achievements as it put forth a negative impression on recruiters.
• Don’t add “President of the xxx club” if you’re applying for tech roles. 

8. Mention Other Sections (Optional)

All the sections we’ve covered are must-haves but there are a few more sections that are optional and don’t hold much significance. These are like booster sections that can give you an extra wow effect.

The following sections can be added to your resume:

• Languages – If you’re multilingual and can be handy with different languages, do mention that in your resume. However, avoid mentioning language that you’re not proficient in as it can get you in trouble later on if you’re not able to help your colleagues when they require your help with the said language.
• Hobbies and Interests – Have extra space in your resume? Add up your hobbies and interests. It shows how you’re as an individual.
• Volunteering Experiences – Some studies show that volunteering has a greater impact on hiring. It shows that you’re an empathetic person by nature and can be loyal to the company. 
• Courses, Certifications, and Awards – Do you have any certifications or awards that can show you off and is relevant to the job position you applied for? Note them down in the resume as it shows your expertise in the said field.

9. Customize Your Resume According to the Job Posting

• Intro about ATS
• Why tailor your resume according to the job posting?

We’re almost at the end of the guide. Now that you’ve done 80% of the work done. It’s time to format your resume in such a way that ATS can scan your resume smoothly. To understand the term ATS better, you should know ATS stands for applicant tracking system. It is software used to manage the entire application process for employers. This system compiles, scans, and ranks all of the applications. According to a survey done, 98% of Fortune companies are using ATS to scan their resumes.  ATS segments resume into various sections: Work Experience, Education, Skills, etc. Next, it looks for precise keywords and qualifications to see if you fit the job description. So it’s important to tailor your resume as per the job description. Resumes that don’t comply with the basic requirements are automatically discarded. A job candidate’s resume is ranked based on its relevance (the best resume appears at the top of the recruiter’s pipeline).

10. Proofread Your Resume With Correct Formatting

• Resume fonts
• Check tenses
• Resume action words
• Correct keywords according to the job role

Now that you’re done with your resume writing task, it’s time to do the most important task – Proofread your resume. Here’s the checklist we’ve for you:

• Resume fonts – Stick to Ubuntu, Roboto, Overpass, or traditional fonts like Helvetica, Garamond, or Georgia . Your font should be 10-11 and don’t ever go with Comic Sans (only if you want to look like a joker)
• Check tenses – Describe the current work you are doing in the present tense, and use the past tense to describe jobs from the past.
• Resume action words – Use resume action words like “Chaired”, “Controlled”, “Executed”

Final Thoughts

Now we can say that you’ve mastered the art of writing ATS friendly resume. If you want to steer your resume in the right direction without much hassle, let us do the work for you. Use GFG Resume Builder to create an ATS-friendly resume that can impress recruiters and will land you the job you’ve been dreaming of for years. 

Please Login to comment...

• 10 Best Free Social Media Management and Marketing Apps for Android - 2024
• 10 Best Customer Database Software of 2024
• How to Delete Whatsapp Business Account?
• Discord vs Zoom: Select The Efficienct One for Virtual Meetings?
• 30 OOPs Interview Questions and Answers (2024)

Improve your Coding Skills with Practice

What kind of Experience do you want to share?

20 Best Resume Writing Tips and Tricks 2022 (with Free Checklist)

Knowing the best ways to write a resume with efficiency and legibility goes a long way. These simple tips and tricks can be the driving factor towards successfully landing a job interview.

Competition in the job market is tougher than ever.

Having the proper skills and know-how for crafting the ideal resume will give you a leg up on the competition.

In this article, we’ve listed 20 resume tips with helpful insights, tricks, and advice for putting together an effective resume that stands out to employers.

Here they are at a glance.

• Keep your resume specific
• Use bullet points
• Have a professional email address
• Include both hard and soft skills
• Tailor your resume to the job description
• Choose a simple and readable font
• Make sure it's always relevant
• Include achievements when appropriate
• Use an active voice
• Use a two-column layout
• Provide quantifiable descriptions
• Always tailor your resume to the job
• Double-check contact information
• Make sure you’re using the right resume format
• Know when to provide references
• Use strong action verbs
• Showcase your job promotions
• List relevant education and certifications
• Create your resume with a template
• Review professional resume examples

Keep reading to see recommended examples and usage for each one of these resume tips.

Beautiful resume templates to land your dream job

Free resume writing checklist

Writing a resume has a lot of different elements that you always need to keep in mind.

However, it might be hard to keep track of it all.

That's why we made this handy checklist that will help you write a more perfect resume .

Feel free to download the resume checklist by right-clicking on the image and clicking Save.

Now you can always have this to refer back to — but let's keep reading to see how start incorporating some of these resume tips.

1. Keep your resume specific

Flowy and intricate writing has a proper time and place…and on your resume is not it. Save it for your memoirs.

When writing out the sections and headings on your resume, it's crucial to keep your wording simple and concise.

Most hiring managers won't read through every single resume they receive. That means, you'll want to keep your resume pretty concise, which makes it easier for recruiters to skim through and find the most important details quickly. 

While you don’t want the language you choose to make your resume sound too boring, the key is to stick to simple sentences with clear explanations. 

For example, when writing job descriptions, be as specific as possible without writing complex sentences. 

☹️ Incorrect: 

• In this position I was responsible for a multitude of important tasks, from training new staff and completing onboarding paperwork to assisting with administrative work and bookkeeping.

The issue with this description is that the sentence is too long and complex, plus it covers too many responsibilities.

To correct this, focus in one particular action or achievement and include the additional achievements in later sentences or bullet points. 

☺️ Correct:

• Trained and on-boarded over 30+ employees on company policy and conduct-code. • Assisted with handling administrative work and bookkeeping every quarter.

See? That's much easier to parse now.

2. Use bullet points

Bullet points go hand-in-hand with being specific.

Plus, they give your resume a clean and organized appearance that is much easier to read through quickly.

Remember, the goal is to get the recruiters attention.

You want to make it easy as possible for someone to read your resume.

Using bullet points is mostly recommended when listing out your work experience history.

To do that, summarize your main responsibilities and achievements at the job in a bulleted list. 

For example, rather than writing a job description as one long paragraph, break it up into specific bullet points that focus on your biggest or most relevant accomplishments.

Shift Lead, Mellow Mushroom January 01, 2018 – June 30, 2020 As the shift lead at this restaurant, I was responsible for opening and closing the restaurant, end-of-the-night bookkeeping, and customer complaint resolutions. 

Shift Lead, Mellow Mushroom January 01, 2018 – June 30, 2020 • Led the opening and closing crews through essential morning and nighttime tasks • Completed end-of-shift bookkeeping and created daily sales reports • Resolved customer complaints with efficiency and professionalism 

Notice how this is much easier to read.

3. Have a professional email address

All of us at one time or another have had a funky email address with some random combination of words, nicknames, and numbers.

But we're no longer teenagers. It's time for a more professional approach.

If your email falls into the category of silliness, it could be off-putting to potential employers.

When including contact information on your resume, ditch the childhood or university email address in exchange for a more professional one.

We'd also recommend using Gmail if you can. It's the most widely used email address .

How to create a professional email address?

When creating a professional email address, generally you will want to avoid numbers. This makes it harder to distinguish and remember.

Instead, try including your name if possible (or initials). Another option is to include keywords having to do with your work, which is great if your name is unavailable.

For instance, let’s say a man named Patrick Smith is applying for a writing position. Here are examples of good and bad email addresses he could use on his resume:

☹️ Incorrect (feels too playful):

[email protected] 

☹️ Also incorrect (not personalized):

[email protected] 

☺️ Correct (using a name):

[email protected]

☺️ Also correct (incorporating a job function):

[email protected] 

The correct examples present you with much more maturity and professionalism.

See the following resume example of a 3D animator , notice how simple and professional the email looks:

‍ 4. Include both hard and soft skills

For those unfamiliar, hard skills are skills that are teachable and quantifiable, while soft skills have more to do with personality traits and people skills. 

It is important to show both hard and soft skills on a resume . Keep in mind that because hard skills are easily quantifiable, they can be written plainly.

Comparatively for soft skills, such as communication, will need to be shown through other means, such as highlighting changes to a teamwork dynamic you initiated. 

Examples of Hard Skills:

• Computer Programming
• Adobe Creative Suite
• Microsoft Office
• Google Suite
• Math Skills
• Copywriting
• CRM Software
• Lead Generation

Examples of Soft Skills:

• Communication
• Time Management
• Detail-Oriented
• Presentation Skills
• Network Skills
• Organization
• Decision-Making
• Adaptability

If you need more help in this section, we've listed over 100+ skills for you to choose from.

5. Tailor your resume to the job description

Job descriptions actually contain a good amount of information that can be useful to you when crafting your resume.

Within a job description will be keywords that reflect the company’s values and the characteristics they are looking for in a candidate. 

Locating those keywords and finding ways to repeat them in your resume is a good way to show hiring managers that you are attentive to detail and took note of what they were specifically looking for.

This also greatly increases your chances of passing an ATS (Applicant Tracking System) screening.

Quick Tip: When searching for keywords within job descriptions, a good place to start looking is in the section that details what the employer is looking for in an ideal candidate.  For instance, if a job description states they are looking for a “natural leader,” proof of your leadership skills and experience would be smart to include.

Curious for more insights on this topic? Take a look at our article on how to tailor your resume to job descriptions .

6. Choose a simple and readable font

Nowadays, there are so many fonts to choose. It's almost too easy (and risky!) for candidates to go a little wild with their font selections.

However, choosing an inappropriate font can actually kill your chances of receiving a callback or invite to an interview. Not fun anymore is it?

The font you use on your resume should be simple and easy to read. Avoid using any intricate embellishments or unusual design elements.

Additionally, the font you select should be kept consistent throughout so don't use a variety of fonts for a single resume. 

The exception to the rule is your resume heading. You can try using a louder heading font to draw attention to your name and summary.

5 good fonts to use on a resume:

• Times New Roman

Types of fonts to avoid on a resume:

• Cursive fonts
• Large, chunky texts that fill up a lot of space
• Fonts with symbols or images

We wrote up a well-detailed guide on choosing readable fonts that you can read here .

7. Make sure it's always relevant

Whether you’re writing about your work experience, education, or any other section, you have to prioritize relevancy . 

For instance, if you are applying for a job as a paramedic , you would want to place greater emphasis on relevant experiences such as prior jobs as a "first responder" or other medically-related positions.

However, don't try to list your work experience out of chronological order too drastically — it can risk making your resume too long. See our guide on how long your resume length should be , but in summary, try to keep it to a single page with only relevant information.

How can we make your resume more relevant?

Let's say you were applying to an HR Manager job that lists in the description that it is " looking for someone with administrative and computer skills ".

You have two prior job experiences that you held simultaneously – 1)  office manager and 2) server .

You wouldn't want to write a summary about your serving experience.

Those skills are not really transferable nor directly relevant to the job being applied to.

Instead, focusing your resume summary and skills as an office manager is much more effective, since those skills are more relevant to the position. 

However, if you have other experiences that are somewhat more relevant, then it would be best to list those instead and leave your server position out entirely.

8. Include achievements when appropriate 

When submitting a resume to a hiring manager, remember that they'll potentially be receiving hundreds of resumes that may all look and sound similar. 

How are you going to stand out from the crowd?

One effective way is to show achievements in your work history.

Including achievements or accomplishments on your resume is a great way to show not only that you have relevant work experience, but that you also have the talent and potential for growth in that specific field. 

Quick tip: When including achievements on your resume, try to first include them under the specific job descriptions within your work experience before making a dedicated accomplishments section. This will make your work experience section more compelling and attention-grabbing. 

To learn more about how to show accomplishments on your resume, check out our guide on listing achievements.

9. Use an active voice

An "active voice" and "passive voice" are the two main types of perspectives you can write in that affect the tone of your work.

When you write a resume, you should use the active voice. It's more commanding and ultimately ends up helping you focus on your talents and accomplishments.

Here is an example of the same statement on a resume written in passive voice vs. active voice:

• Passive Voice: The company’s revenue grew by 40 percent over time through my efforts.
• Active Active: Increased company revenue by 40 percent.

You can pair your active voice with strong action verbs to make for a more impactful statement.

10. Use a two-column layout

Making your resume eye-catching is crucial.

But not only should it be attention-grabbing, it should also contain elements that make it appear more visually organized and easy to read through quickly.

A hiring manager should be able to effortlessly find the information they are looking for without spending too much time on it.

Two column-layouts are great for this because you get to see more at a glance.

Take a look at this two-column resume example for a security guard , you're able to see work experience, resume summary, skill, education and hobbies effectively at a glance.

‍ 11. Provide quantifiable descriptions

When listing out objectives that you accomplished in previous jobs, being specific is highly important as mentioned earlier.

Most hiring managers don’t want to be told what you are capable of doing. They want to be shown examples of that through numbers or statistics. 

Whenever possible, use exact numbers (25,00,000), percents (24%), monetary values ($5,214) and other quantities to describe your achievements within a previous job. 

How can you quantify your experience?

First, you'll want to know how much you've helped improve certain initiatives. But, what are some ways you can find that out?

Let's say you helped to reduce operational costs at a company.

You can ask questions like:

• How much we did we decrease _______ from [x%]?
• How much we did we increase _______ from [x%]?
• How much time we did we save doing ______?
• How much money did we spend acquiring ______?

Once you find that out, here's what it looks like when actually quantifying those operational reductions:

‍ Decreased operational costs while serving in this position.

☺️ Correct: ‍

Decreased operational costs by 15 percent by adopting and implementing a new point-of-sales system.

That feels a lot better.

We wrote up a guide on listing your work experience to write the most effective job descriptions .

12. Always tailor your resume to the job

Like we mentioned above, a hiring manager is going to to be looking through A LOT of resumes.

This might mean they'll see many of the same, cookie-cutter formatted documents that contain basically the same information.

You can stand out by taking the extra time to edit your resume to be tailored specifically for the job your are applying to.

You can do this by using similar keywords from the job descriptions on your resume.

Hiring managers are likely to take notice of this since it'll feel way more relevant to the role.

Need to know more about how to tailor a resume for a specific job? See our 4-step guide on tailoring your resume to any job.

13. Double-check contact information

There’s nothing that will ruin your chances of landing a job or interview more than providing incorrect contact information. Like an e-mail address typo or incorrect phone-number.

Proof-reading your resume is a crucial step that can be easy to skip. But it might save the day if there's any critical errors on your resume.

Quick Tip: After double-checking your personal contact information, it's also a good idea to check the rest of your resume for any grammatical errors. Online tools like Grammarly can be very helpful for finding and correcting mistakes you may have missed!

14. Make sure you’re using the right resume format

Most job applicants use the standard resume format, also known as reverse-chronological format.

‍ It's the most common and often what recruiters expect to see.

However, there are actually additional formats that serve different purposes.

For instance, a standard resume may not be best suited for someone with large employment gaps, making a different format more preferable.

Knowing what formatting options you have is key to ensuring you are using the right one for your own needs.

Overall, are the 3 main resume formats:

1) Reverse-Chronological

This usually the most standard resume format, as it focuses primarily on your work experience. Jobs should be listed with the most recent companies first followed chronologically by other relevant past work experiences.

2) Functional

A functional resume is focused on skills rather than experience. It is a great format for people who are recently graduated with minimal work experience or for those who have large gaps in their employment history.

3) Hybrid (Combination)

For job applicants who may have some work experience but not enough to fill an entire resume, the hybrid format combines elements of both the reverse-chronological and the functional resumes for this very purpose.

There is also a fourth resume format – the Curriculum Vitae, or CV. This is specifically intended as a long-form resume for use by professionals in the fields of academia and science.

Not sure if you’re using the right resume format? Take a look at our guide on choosing the best resume format.

15. Know when to provide references

The general rule-of-thumb is to not provide references unless specially asked to do so .

Most companies have their own hiring methods, but typically reference stages come much later in the process, and way after your resume is reviewed.

So including references ultimately ends up wasting space on your resume that could've been better used for showcasing accomplishments or skills instead.

Quick Tip: If an employer does request references, be sure to know how to format them properly. We recommend creating an entirely separate page dedicated to your references to conserve space on the first page.

16. Use strong action verbs

One of the best ways to ensure you are using an active voice, as mentioned above , in your job descriptions is to utilize action verbs at the start of your sentences. 

Action verbs are also known as dynamic verbs and are used to describe physical or mental actions.

For resume purposes, this can include words like “increased”, “coordinated”, “implemented,” or an array of other verbs that describe an achievement or activity.

For example, let’s say you increased your department’s sales by 25 percent .

You would want to start that description with an action verb in order to place the emphasis on what you specifically accomplished. 

• My department’s sales were increased by 25 percent thanks to my help.

• Increased departmental sales by a 25 percent margin.

Check out our list of 350 action verbs for your resume to brainstorm more action verbs for your own resume. 

‍ 17. Showcase your job promotions

If you worked for a business or company for a long period of time and earned promotions over the course of your employment, this is essential information to provide in a resume. 

Showcasing promotions on your resume lets hiring managers know that you have a strong work ethic and ability for growth that has been previously recognized by former employers. 

When showing promotions on a resume, you should include them within your work experience section.

There are two main ways to list a promotion on a resume:

1) Stacking job promotions

‍ If you held multiple positions in the same company, but the highest position is the most relevant and important, you can stack the different positions within the same job description and describe only the highest and most recent position.

Art Director, Tiny Bee Agency New York, NY • March 2015 – Present ‍ • Promoted to current position of Art Director in 2017.

Art Director, Tiny Bee Agency • June 2017 – Present • New York, NY Associate Art Director , Tiny Bee Agency • March 2015 – 2017 • New York, NY

2) Separate Entries

If you held multiple positions that involved different responsibilities and demonstrate multiple talents, it can be beneficial to separate these positions into individual entries. 

Art Director and Marketing Manager, Tiny Bee Agency New York, NY• March 2015 – Present

Art Director, Tiny Bee Agency New York, NY • June 2017 – Present • Description • Description • Description ‍ Marketing Manager , Tiny Bee Agency New York, NY • March 2015 – 2017 • Description • Description • Description

18. List relevant education and certifications

Education and certifications shows hiring managers your academic credentials that you earned through degree programs, trade school, or other types of training. 

Your resume should always have a short and concise education section that summarizes your academic background and degrees.

Here's the information you should include within the education section of your resume :

• The name of the school — "e.g. Georgia Institute of Technology"
• The location of the school
• Your degree ( high-school diploma, GED, associate’s degree, bachelor’s degree, etc. )
• Graduation year ( if applicable )
• Major field or department of study (if applicable )
• Minor field or department of study (if applicable and relevant )
• GPA ( If you're a student or graduates who held lower GPAs, this bit of information may be good to omit unless specifically requested by the employer )

As for certifications, these should only be included if they are relevant to the job.

Depending on how many relevant certifications you have, you can choose whether or not you have enough for their own dedicated section on your resume. See our guide on listing certifications correctly on your resume .

19. Create your resume with a template

If you're new to creating resumes or not quite sure how to structure your existing resume to be more effective, using an online template is a great way to ensure your resume looks good and contains all the required details.

Check out our own resume templates available for editing and download here on Easy Resume.

You can choose from the following types of templates that we have available:

• CV Templates
• Downloadable Resume Templates
• Printable Resume Templates
• PDF Resume Templates
• ATS-Friendly Resume Templates
• One-Column Resume Templates
• Two-Column Resume Templates
• Fresher Resume Templates
• Executive Resume Templates
• Academic Resume Templates
• Clean Resume Templates
• Basic Resume Templates
• Photo Resume Templates
• Unique Resume Templates
• Traditional Resume Templates
• Elegant Resume Templates
• Reverse Chronological Resume Templates
• Combination Resume Templates
• Functional Resume Templates
• One Page Resume Templates
• Minimalist Resume Templates
• Simple Resume Templates
• Modern Resume Templates
• Creative Resume Templates
• Professional Resume Templates

20. Review professional resume examples

Resumes will differ depending on what field or industry the job being applied to resides in. Taking the time to review examples of resumes made by professionals within your own industry or niche is essential for figuring out how to tailor your resume and make it stand out to the hiring manager. 

Here at Easy Resume, we offer a variety of free resume samples to look through.

From 3D animators and accountants to civil engineers and content writers – we’ve got you covered.

Take a look at a few of our resume examples:

• Chef Resume Example
• Barista Resume Example
• Graphic Designer Resume Example
• Mechanical Engineer Resume Example
• Medical Assistant Resume Example
• Account Manager Resume Example
• Software Engineer Resume Example
• IT Specialist Resume Example
• Elementary School Teacher Resume Example
• Marketing Manager Resume Example
• Physician Assistant Resume Example
• Clinic Coordinator Resume Example
• Office Manager Resume Example
• Financial Advisor Resume Example
• Event Planner Resume Example

Final takeaways 

Your resume can be your golden ticket that gets your foot in the door at the job of your dreams. Using the tips discussed here will greatly help you in optimizing your document to be noticed by more hiring managers and land you a spot in the crucial interview process.

Our main takeaways for you are as follows:

• Always be mindful of the relevancy of the information you are sharing.
• Use conciseness and structural elements, such as bullet points and headings, to give your resume visual organization and an easy-to-read flow.
• Always double-check your resume to confirm you have provided the right information.
• Active voice and action verbs will make your resume read with more confidence

Get to writing your perfect resume today, and don’t be shy of checking out our free resources for a bit of help along the way!

Browse more resume templates that fit your role

Ed is a co-founder of Easy Resume. His background in scaling teams at tech startups over the last decade has given him extensive experience and knowledge around how to hire top talent and build successful teams. He enjoys mentoring, coaching, and helping others reach their career goals. When he's not writing about career-related advice, he's playing with his dog, Lilo, or going on long hikes in upstate New York.

Get inspired with more resume examples

More advice that will accelerate your career path, 15+ key healthcare skills to list on your resume in 2022 (with examples).

Healthcare is a massive and important industry that contains all sorts of professionals. To land a job in healthcare, you must understand what relevant skills employers are searching for. In this guide, we will cover key healthcare skills to include on your resume and why doing so is so important.

15+ IT Skills to List on Your Resume in 2022 (With Examples)

IT is a massively growing industry with tons of potential for professional growth. It’s no wonder why so many applicants are flocking to these jobs! In this guide, we will cover what IT skills are and offer you examples of some of the top skills to include on your resume.

50+ Key Technical Skills to List on Your Resume in 2022 (With Examples)

Including technical skills on a resume is an absolute necessity. These types of skills show employers your quantifiable qualifications. In this guide, we will cover exactly what a technical skill is and some of the best examples to include on a resume.

20+ Key Computer Skills to List on Your Resume in 2022 (With Examples)

With the world becoming more digitally focused, having strong computer skills is more important than ever. In this guide, we will cover what computer skills are and which ones are best to include on your resume.

Read our how-to guides on making your resume perfect

How to write a resume header.

Your resume header is the very first thing an employer will see. Not only does it need to contain the correct information, but it needs to stand out as well! In this guide, we will teach you how to write the ideal header for your resume.

How to Write Your Resume in Reverse-Chronological Order

When setting out to write the perfect resume, choosing a format is an important decision. Reverse-chronological resumes are the standard format, so knowing how to craft one is key! This guide will teach you how to write the best reverse chronological resumes.

How to List Contact Information on Your Resume in 2022

Learn how to format contact information on your resume and what information to share with the hiring manager.

How to Write a Two-Page Resume (with Examples & Tips)

Don't know whether you should write a one-page or two-page resume? Find out when it is appropriate to write a two-page resume and learn how to write it correctly.

Professional resume templates to help land your next dream job.

Facebook • Twitter • Linkedin • Pinterest • Crunchbase

• Knowledge Base
• Free Resume Templates
• Resume Builder
• Resume Examples
• Free Resume Review

How to start a resume?

Starting a resume is as simple as smiling into the mirror but almost as hard as smiling every day.

As per the findings of internal research done by experts at Hiration, here’s what employers want to see at the top of resumes:

• Summary statement : ~86%
• Objective statement : ~35%
• Customized for their open position : ~62%
• Links to the applicant’s online portfolio, blog, or website : ~40%

It does not matter if you are wondering how to start a resume/how to create a CV, or simply how to begin drafting your resume.

In this blog, you will learn all the tricks and tips that can help you start your resume and create the perfect resume that can make the recruiters shortlist you.

Start by getting a clear idea of the following points to get a thorough understanding of the perfect resume:

• How to start your resume perfectly.
• How a resume outline is started and its importance
• What are the key sections of a resume.
• What are resume heading and how to start them.
• What to avoid while starting a resume.

What is A Resume?

Wondering how to start a resume?

Well, you need to be well versed with what a resume exactly is to go about it.

The term resume is a French word that means "a summary." That is precisely what your resume does. It summarises your qualifications, unique skills, and achievements.

It represents you to your future employer, showcasing your past experiences with details of your skills and training, work experience, and accomplishments with past employers and education.

Also Read: How to write a resume in 2022?

Why Do You Need a Resume?

Today, the resume has become of primary importance to potential employers. Before taking the time to interview you, an employer would like to meet you on paper. How you write your resume is how you impress that employer.

Without a resume, you cannot compete. A superior resume will quickly eliminate you. Hence it is imperative to have a resume that effectively lets employers know what you can do for them.

It should also concisely inform the employer of your career objective and the benefits you will bring to the table.

A resume essentially looks like this when you have made it.

However, you must proceed in a few specific steps to reach the concise model. Let us discuss this further.

How to Start a Resume

Apart from being yourself and focusing on value, you need to know how to streamline your experiences one step at a time.

1. Open the Original Job Description

Both your job description and your experience decide how to start a resume. It determines which resume starter keywords will be essential and whether you should write an objective section or a summary section.

The job description gives you a fair idea of your recruiter is looking for. It describes how your experiences count and whether your education section will make a difference or it won't.

The instructions provided in the job description are always necessary to start writing your resume and cover letter.

2. Prepare a Master's Resume

Before customizing your resume for each application, we recommend compiling a Master CV that includes, quite literally, everything.

The Master CV could be several pages long. This idea is to have a comprehensive record of all your activities, experiences, and accomplishments.

A Master CV will save you enough time. Rather than creating multiple renditions of your resume from scratch, you can optimize your resume based on your job description and existing points.

Further, this document will jog your memory regarding all you have done throughout your life.

Your Master Resume should include all information about your past work experiences, duties, and achievements, along with:

• Volunteer Activities
• Extracurricular Activities
• Internships
• Memberships
• Publications and Presentations
• Honors, Awards, and Achievements
• Certifications and Training
• Grades ... and anything else that could be significant in getting yourself a job.

3. Choose the Perfect Font

You should make a resume that stands out from other resumes for the right reasons. Using it as a marketing tool for the recruiter should represent your professionalism.

Professionalism does not include the tricks for artistic expression.

First, say goodbye to cartoon fonts. Do not use Comic Sans. It is almost ridiculous. Nobody takes that font seriously.

On average, the recruiter spends 6 seconds over a resume. So you have to make it count. That is not going to happen with sloppy or unprofessional fonts.

Anyone with basic style or design skills can know that there are many fonts from which one can choose. Choosing the right one can, therefore, be difficult.

There are two types of font:

• Serif fonts are those with decorative markings and style. They are traditional, authoritative, and reliable.

Some serif fonts include:

Times New Roman,

Bookman Old Style,

Goudy Old Style,

San-serif fonts are simpler fonts with no frills. They are characterized as objective, universal, clean, and stable.

San-serif fonts include:

• Century Gothic,
• Trebuchet MS,
• Lucida Sans,
• Gill Sans MT,

Tips to consider while selecting fonts are:

• First, it doesn't matter which font you use; you must consider legibility. The typeface you choose must be easy to read and show up well in print and on-screen.
• Secondly, every recruiter doesn't have the same operating system. So different or newfangled fonts might look good on one system and might not appear as absolutely ridiculous on another.
• Finally, in today's job portals, resumes are first passed through an Applicant Tracking Software. Any font that is illegible with the software will be automatically rejected.

Times New Roman is a tried & tested choice for job seekers. However, we recommend using some other font as it is incredibly overused.

Also Read: What fonts to use for a professional resume in 2022?

Choose the Perfect Resume Format

There are three standard resume formats to use.

1. Reverse Chronological Resume Format

Generally, people use the reverse chronological resume format. In reverse chronological format, your most recent or former job is written first and traces back to the initial years of your education.

It is easy for employers to quickly scan what job positions you have served and how long you have served them. It may also include other sections such as technical skills, education, and certifications.

This format is perfectly suitable for applicants with extensive work history to highlight their experience.

Also Read: How to write a resume using a reverse chronological resume in 2022?

2. Functional Resume Format

Functional resumes emphasize skills and professional experience.

However, the reverse-chronological work history is not evident in the functional format. Therefore, it is perfectly suitable for people looking for a career change or having gaps in their work history.

This happens by focusing on capabilities and skills. The functional resume format emphasizes your skills and demonstrates your abilities rather than your responsibilities.

This type of format is perfectly suitable for those who are applying for a job that demands certain specific traits or skills.

Also Read: How to write a resume using a functional resume in 2022?

3. Combination Resume

This type of resume combines functional and reverse chronological resume formats.

Your skills and professional experience are written in reverse chronological order in this format.

The combination resume highlights your relevant skills and provides your recruiter with the reverse chronological order of the jobs you have served in the past.

The first half of the combination format is derived from the functional resume format in which things like skills, qualifications, and achievements are highlighted. The second half is derived from the reverse chronological resume format for the timeline.

The combination format is most useful for applicants who want to showcase their skills and professional work history. This format gives you space if you are looking for a career change or to explain the gaps in your work history.

Also Read: How to write a resume using a combination resume in 2022?

Research & Groundwork

First, start Writing the Experience Section . This section is to list the responsibilities you performed and your accomplishments. Also, quantify your achievements. Write only those duties and achievements which are relevant to the target profile.

Once you have your work history, you have a fair idea of what you did and who and how long you've worked for. Including the titles you held before the one-line bullet points of responsibilities or duties ensures you have the transparent knowledge to understand your potential.

Secondly, write your Education Section . Write the educational information in the following format to leave an impact on the recruiter.

• University/school name, location, and dates (in mm/yy-mm/yy) format of enrolling and graduating from
• Degree acquired

This encompasses your idea of how well your curricular scope is.

Thirdly, write your Skills Section . After bolding and bucketing, find the highlighted words. These are your skills. Although the skills section consumes a major portion of your resume, it greatly impacts you, especially while you start writing your introductions.

This section involves a quick explanation of your exhibited skills across your resume work experience. You can include soft skills, language skills, technical skills, computer skills, etc.

Check out our best examples of skills you can on a resume on our website .

How to Start a Resume Outline?

Once you learn how to start a resume, start learning about other important features of resume writing.

After preparing the Master Resume, let's look at how to start a resume outline. Before you begin writing your resume outline, keep the following tips in mind to ensure your resume outline is tailored for each application:

• Read the target job description carefully and research the organization to identify the significant parameters and critical skills.
• Use targeted headings that direct to the main requirements of the position.
• Include an additional section for key achievements during your work profile.
• Make sure the order of your sections ensures the essential experiences appear early.

Your resume outline is your first draft. It assists the person in more ways.

• It makes sure that you have included all key sections.
• It gives you a rough idea of your resume structure.
• It enhances the efficiency of your resume.

On average, each resume is scanned by the recruiter for 6 seconds. So, here the resume outline plays a crucial role in giving the recruiter a brief about your resume and you.

Also Read: How to create a resume outline in 2022?

Key Sections of a Resume

The key sections of a resume that allows the recruiters to get an insight into your resume even before they scan through it are the Summary/Objective and Key Skills sections.

It plays a vital role in making all those points in your resume highlighting your professional expertise to stand out.

Why to Write a Resume Summary/Objective Section

How to start a resume summary or how to start an objective in a resume is something that professionals often tend to wonder about.

The Resume starter introduction does the following things:

1. Quickly Articulates your Value

To convince your recruiter to hire you in 5 lines, you need to think about what you would write, as this is the aim of a summary. Recruiters usually read the three to five sentences to know if you’re eligible for the job before spending time on your resume.

The summary statement acts as a short yet powerful description of your skills and achievements, spanning 4-5 sentences. Your summary is personalized to the important aspects of your profile.

Recruiters first see the things that are at the top, so it is important to prioritize your resume summary.

Write the most valuable information that highlights how you stand apart from the other eligible applicants. The objective of the resume summary is to make the recruiters want to read your resume further.

The following example briefs you on how to start a resume summary which involves a cohesive structure of all skills.

2. Makes you stand apart from other applicants**

Your application for a job will probably be under a long pile yet to be reviewed. It is, therefore, important that you stand apart from other applicants.

By going through your education/ professional experiences, your recruiter might find it difficult to determine how you are different from the other candidates.

Make your experiences and skills evident in an executive summary or profile.

3. To summarize all the important points**

Your proven track record of success with regard to values is pursued best in your resume summary.

Your resume highlights your skills, and the summary gives across the message that you are a good communicator.

Most jobs need one to simplify complex concepts similarly; your summary will showcase how you can demonstrate your skills and work experience in 3-4 lines.

The summary is your most valuable resume in real estate. It is your best chance to position yourself as an obvious fit for your target role in the industry. Make the most of your executive summary.

The following is an example of how to start a resume for different job positions.

How to Start a Resume Introduction?

Your introduction makes a whole lot of difference between getting an interview and elimination. So make your choice carefully.

You can start writing a resume in three different ways. Opt for the one that best suits the profile you're going for.

Resume Objective Section

The objective section is best for those who are students or recent graduates with no experience.

It comprises around four sentences targeting a specific position and addresses the requirements given by the recruiter in the job description.

The best way to start writing a resume is by including a career objective section in case you do not have relevant experience for the position.

It highlights the necessary aspects of your work ethic, character, and personality. They show that you would be well suitable for the job.

Also Read: How to write a resume objective in 2022?

Resume Summary Section

The qualifications summary benefits experienced candidates applying for jobs in any industry. It's written in 5 or 6 points in a small paragraph right after your title.

The qualifications summary demonstrates your proficiency and achievements, which correspond to the requirements mentioned in the job description. It also focuses on achievements from work and academia.

The summary is longer than a career objective. It acts as a resume summary well suited for applicants applying for a job in different industries and stresses the skills and professional experience the most.

Here's an example of resume summary section for a professional resume:

Also Read: How to write a resume summary in 2022?

Resume Professional experience Section

If you are applying for a job in a similar profile or industry, write a combination of qualifications and a summary in your objective section.

Specially designed for entry-level employees, the professional profile is the most used introduction style. You can also write it in paragraph form or as one-line bullet points.

A professional profile is essential if you apply to an industry job from academia. Many jobs list industry experience, but recruiters ultimately consider applicants without it. Leading with an executive summary gives you time to persuade a recruiter you're worth considering, rather than emphasizing the fact you are fresh out of academia.

If you have relevant work experience, then you can also mold it to highlight your strengths.

Here's an example of resume professional experience section for a professional resume:

Also Read: How to write the work experience section of a resume in 2022?

Resume Summary & Key Skills

Your resume summary and key skills should resonate with the proceeding profile. You should not ideally include key skills or keywords in your skills and summary, which you haven't used in your experiences sections.

Therefore, experts suggest you write the experiences and bucket your responsibilities and accomplishments before you write the sections.

You should write your summary and key skills section at the end lest you add less or extra information about your words.

Example of Resume Summary:

"Dynamic and result-oriented Business Analyst adept at deploying analytical and database tools to scrutinize business operations across multiple sectors & deliver client-centric solutions. Highly skilled in identifying and fulfilling client requirements within the framework of organizational work processes. Employs effective data analysis techniques to form a support system for decision-making by senior management. Adept at preparing relevant reports to direct knowledge transfer & ensure adherence to organizational processes. Proven track record in formulating process enhancements to deliver bottom-line profitability."

Key Skills of a Resume

Example of Resume Summary for Senior Professionals:

"20 years experienced, value-driven & result-oriented Top-level Management Professional & Port/Shipping Specialist with a track record of spearheading teams to champion operations management for inbound/outbound cargo across international trade lines. Highly skilled in conducting audits and directing quality assurance initiatives for achieving business objectives. Proficient in conceptualizing cost optimization measures and enhancing utilization of resources for delivering compelling business value to key stakeholders."

Resume Heading Section

You are almost done with the whole resume if you have followed the instructions. Finish writing the resume by touching the points up with other essential guidelines.

Your heading statement will be the first thing recruiters start reading. It is the first impression.

The header section has three components:

• Personal Contact Information
• Resume Title

Here's an example of resume heading section for a professional resume:

Also Read: How to write a perfect resume header in 2022?

How not to start a Resume?

You must be clear on how to start a resume, but you also need to know what not to do while starting a resume.

Attempting the multipurpose approach

If you start writing a generic resume that you send to all advertised vacancies, you always end up with a huge chance of being tossed in the bin. Your lack of effort is evident in your disinterest in a particular company.

Employers expect you to clearly show how and why you fit the position in their organization.

Establishing what you want to gain from the job.

Your focus should be on what you can provide to the employer. Here’s what to include in a resume summary statement.

Since summaries are written at the top of the resume, it takes up a crucial spot and space of the resume, so it is best to only write about the important things like your skills and proficiencies as you can write about yourself in the cover letter as well.

Blatant lies

Candidates claim to be former CEOs, have won the Nobel Prize, and attended colleges that do not exist. These lies are sometimes misguided attempts to compensate for lacking the necessary qualifications.

However, candidates should only concentrate on the skills they can offer.

Candidates who meet three out of five key qualifications for a specific role are prospective of being called for an interview. So, you may not have to add too many false details next time.

Inconsistent formatting

Your resume format is as important as its content. The best format is one that makes it easiest for the hiring manager to scan your resume and be able to pick out your key qualifications and career goals.

So, pick a format and stick with it. For example, if you start writing the month and year for the dates, then use the same format throughout the rest of your resume.

Starting phrases with I

Follow two simple instructions:

Do not write your resume in the third person.

Do not include pronouns while writing it in the first person.

Still wondering how to start a resume?

Key Takeaways

Learning how to start a resume can help you curate the best resume.

• Open the Original Job Description
• Prepare a Resume Outline that Suits your Content
• Choose the Perfect Font that Suits your Style
• Choose the Perfect Format that Suits your History

Secondly, research your target job description. Analyze the keywords you can use, and then start writing your resume summary/objective. Note that they serve the following common purposes:

• Quickly Articulates your Value
• Makes you Stand Out from the Crowd
• Summarizes all the Important Points

Thirdly, you should know the difference between a career objective and a resume statement.

The resume objective statement represents your ambitious side and discusses your expectations. It is essential for a candidate who is about to join the industry to include an objective statement.

A resume summary statement represents your qualifications summary. It talks about everything you have done to date in a concise format. Therefore it is preferred by experienced professionals.

Do not start writing your resume in the following ways:

• Attempting the Multipurpose Approach
• Establishing What you Want to Gain from the Job
• Blatant Lies
• Inconsistent Formatting
• Starting Phrases with "I."
• Writing the Resume Summary & Key Skills first

Go to Hiration career platform , which has 24/7 chat support, and get professional assistance with all your job & career-related queries. You can also write to us at [email protected] , and we will make sure to reach out to you as soon as possible.

Share this blog

Subscribe to Free Resume Writing Blog by Hiration

Get the latest posts delivered right to your inbox

Stay up to date! Get all the latest & greatest posts delivered straight to your inbox

Is Your Resume ATS Friendly To Get Shortlisted?

Upload your resume for a free expert review.

How to Make a Resume in 2022: A Beginner’s Guide

In the job market of 2022, it is more important than ever to have a strong resume. With so many people competing for jobs, you need to do everything you can to stand out from the crowd. A great resume is your best chance at getting hired. In this guide, we will teach you how to make a resume that will impress employers and help you get the job you want!

When making a resume, there are a few things you should keep in mind. First, your resume should be clear and concise. It should be free of any grammar or punctuation errors. Second, your resume should be tailored to the specific job you are applying for. You should highlight your skills and experience that are relevant to the job. Finally, your resume should be visually appealing. Employers will often spend less than 30 seconds looking at a resume, so you need to make sure yours is easy on the eyes!

1. Start by creating a list of your skills and experiences.

When it comes to writing a resume, one of the most important things you can do is to create a list of your skills and experiences. This will help you to identify your strengths and weaknesses, and it will also give you a good starting point for creating your resume. Include everything from your educational background to your work history, and don’t forget to list any special skills or training you have. Once you have your list, you can start to craft your resume. Highlight your best qualities, and make sure to tailor your resume to the specific job you’re applying for. With a little effort, you can create a resume that will help you get the job you want.

2. Choose a resume format that will showcase your strengths

Your resume is your first opportunity to make a good impression on a potential employer. As such, it’s important to choose a resume format that will showcase your strengths and highlight your most relevant qualifications. For example, if you have a strong academic background, you might choose a chronological format that begins with your education. Alternatively, if you have extensive experience in a particular field, you might choose a functional format that emphasizes your skills and achievements. Whichever format you choose, be sure to tailor your resume to each individual job application so that it perfectly demonstrates why you are the ideal candidate for the role. With a little care and attention, you can ensure that your resume makes a strong and positive impact.

3. Use keywords to make your resume stand out

In today’s job market, it is more important than ever to make your resume stand out. One way to do this is to include keywords that are specific to the job you are applying for. For example, if you are applying for a job in marketing, be sure to include keywords such as “social media,” “content marketing,” and “SEO.” By including these keywords, you will increase the chances that your resume will be found by employers who are searching for candidates with your specific skills and experience. In addition, including keywords will help you to beat the algorithms that many employers use to screen resumes. So, if you want your resume to stand out from the rest, be sure to include some carefully chosen keywords.

4. Proofread and revise your resume until it’s perfect

It’s important to proofread and revise your resume before you send it out to prospective employers. A typo or grammatical error can make you look careless and unprofessional, and it may even cost you the job. Take the time to review your resume carefully, and make sure that all the information is accurate and up-to-date. In addition, be sure to check for any typos or errors. If you’re not confident in your own proofreading skills, you can ask a friend or family member to help you out. With a little effort, you can ensure that your resume is error-free and represents your best professional self.

5. Don’t forget to attach a cover letter!

job application process, many job seekers focus all their attention on perfecting their resume. However, it is important to remember that the cover letter is also an essential component of a job application. A well-written cover letter can introduce your skills and qualifications in a way that your resume cannot. It can also demonstrate your ability to communicate clearly and concisely. In addition, a cover letter can give you the opportunity to explain any gaps in your employment history or clarify why you are seeking a new position. For these reasons, it is important to take the time to craft a well-written cover letter that will make a positive impression on potential employers.

6. Follow up with employers after submitting your resume

After you’ve submitted your resume to an employer, it’s important to follow up. This demonstrates that you’re truly interested in the position and will help you to stand out from the competition. There are a few different ways to follow up. You can send a thank-you email, give them a call, or even connect with them on LinkedIn. Whichever method you choose, be sure to be polite and professional. Following up will show that you’re eager and enthusiastic about the position, and it may just be the thing that sets you apart from the other candidates.

Resume writing will not be the same in 2022 as it is today.

• The goal of a resume is to get you an interview, not a job.
• There are five main things that will make your resume stand out in 2022: creativity, experience, skills, story, and language.

If you want to make sure your resume stands out when applying for jobs in 2022, make sure to focus on these five key areas. And if you’re feeling lost or don’t know where to start, our team can help!

Vikash Chandravanshi

Related posts.

5 Ways to Get Kids in the Holiday Spirit

The Beginner’s Guide to Making Quizzes Online

What is an Immigration Lawyer?

Leave a reply cancel reply.

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Resume How-To Guide

How to: resumes — introduction.

How to: Format Your Resume

How to: Improve Your Resume's Content

Quick Resume Tips:

The Center provides many resources to help you create your resume.  As you are writing it, we encourage you to check out the following helpful guides:

• Preparing Your Resume
• Samples of Work Experience
• Action Verbs
• Resume Checklist

Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS)

Many companies use software known as an applicant tracking system (ATS) to identify applicants who either appear qualified or unqualified for the available position. Only those who appear qualified will be moved to the recruiter or hiring manager. The federal government also uses a similar process.

Luckily, there are several techniques you can put in place to try to move past these "resume bots" and get in the hands of the hiring manager.

Utilize Specific Keywords Found in the Job Description

When updating your resume to apply to an opportunity, read through the internship or job description with high attention to detail. Highlight the keywords and qualifications that you have prior experience with through part-time jobs, internships, major class projects, student organization involvement, military experience, and more. You should then incorporate this language into your resume.

Other Considerations to "Beat the Bots" - Applicant Tracking Systems

• Use both long-form and acronym versions of keywords (e.g. User Experience (UX) for maximum searchability
• Avoid tables or columns on your resume as they may cause major parsing errors
• Use traditional resume fonts like Helvetica or Georgia
• Avoid headers or footers as the information may get lost or cause a parsing error
• Use mostly standard resume section headings (i.e. Work Experience; Design Experience) instead of being cute or clever (i.e. Where I’ve Been)
• Save your file as a .docx if possible.  PDF is relatively okay, too!

Other tips on how to get past ATS, check out this article through Firsthand: 4 Tips for Beating the Resume Bots

• Beginning/Early College Resumes
• Advanced/Later College Resumes
• Veteran/Adult Learner Resumes
• Graduate Student Resumes
• Undergraduate Curriculum Vitae (CV) sample 
• If you are a Master’s student at the University of Maryland, click here for an example .
• If you are a doctoral student at the University of Maryland, please enroll in Doctoral Career Navigator within Open Catalog . Doctoral Career Navigator is a free self-paced online course in UMD’s ELMS-Canvas platform. It contains 13 modules of sample job application packets, career-related videos, worksheets, and links to relevant resources for all UMD doctoral students and postdocs. 
• Behavioral & Social Sciences
• Engineering  
• Finance & Economics
• Graphic Design/Digital Media , and Advertising/PR
• Journalism  
• Performing Arts
• Sciences , Technical , and Health  

How to Write a Cover Letter in 2024 + Examples

After weeks of heavy job search, you’re almost there!

You’ve perfected your resume. 

You’ve short-listed the coolest jobs you want to apply for.

You’ve even had a friend train you for every single interview question out there.

But then, before you can send your application and call it a day, you remember that the job ad requires a cover letter.

Now you’re stuck wondering how to write a cover letter ...

Don’t panic! We’ve got you covered. Writing a cover letter is a lot simpler than you might think. 

In this guide, we’re going to teach you how to write a cover letter that gets you the job you deserve.

• What’s a cover letter & why it’s important for your job search
• How to write a convincing cover letter that gets you the job (step-by-step!)
• How to perfect your cover letter with the Novoresume free checklist
• What excellent cover letter examples look like

New to cover letter writing? Give our resumes 101 video a watch before diving into the article!

So, let’s get started with the basics!

What is a Cover Letter? (and Why It’s Important)

A cover letter is a one-page document that you submit as part of your job application (alongside your CV or Resume). 

Its purpose is to introduce you and briefly summarize your professional background. On average, your cover letter should be from 250 to 400 words long .

A good cover letter can spark the HR manager’s interest and get them to read your resume. 

A bad cover letter, on the other hand, might mean that your application is going directly to the paper shredder. So, to make sure this doesn’t happen, it’s essential to know how to write a convincing cover letter.

How does a good cover letter look, you might ask. Well, here’s an example:

Keep in mind, though, that a cover letter is a supplement to your resume, not a replacement. Meaning, you don’t just repeat whatever is mentioned in your resume.

If you’re writing a cover letter for the first time, writing all this might seem pretty tough. After all, you’re probably not a professional writer.

The thing is, though, you don’t need to be creative, or even any good at writing. All you have to do is follow a tried-and-tested format:

• Header - Input contact information
• Greeting the hiring manager
• Opening paragraph - Grab the reader’s attention with 2-3 of your top achievements
• Second paragraph - Explain why you’re the perfect candidate for the job
• Third paragraph - Explain why you’re a good match for the company
• Formal closing

Or, here’s what this looks like in practice:

How to Write the Perfect Cover Letter (And Get Hired!)

Now that we’ve got the basics out of the way, we’re going to guide you through the process of writing a cover letter step by step. 

Step #1 - Pick the Right Cover Letter Template

A good cover letter is all about leaving the right first impression.

So, what’s a better way to leave a good impression than a well-formatted, visual template?

You can simply pick one of our hand-picked cover letter templates , and you’ll be all set in a jiffy!

As a bonus, our AI will even give you suggestions on how to improve your cover letter on the go.

Step #2 - Start the Cover Letter with a Header

As with a resume, it’s important to start your cover letter with a Contact Information section:

Here, you want to include all essential information, including:

• Phone Number
• Name of the hiring manager / their professional title
• Name of the company you’re applying to

In certain cases, you might also consider adding:

• Social Media Profiles - Any type of profile that’s relevant to your field. Social Profiles on websites like LinkedIn, GitHub (for developers), Medium (for writers), etc.
• Personal Website - If you have a personal website that somehow adds value to your application, you can mention it. Let’s say you’re a professional writer. In that case, you’d want to link to your blog.

And here’s what you shouldn’t mention in your header:

• Your Full Address 
• Unprofessional Email - Make sure your email is presentable. It’s pretty hard for a hiring manager to take you seriously if your email address is “[email protected].” Whenever applying for jobs, stick to the “[first name] + [last name] @ email provider.com” format.

Step #3 - Greet the Hiring Manager

Once you’ve properly listed your contact information, you need to start writing the cover letter contents.

The first thing to do here is to address the cover letter to the hiring manager .

That’s right, the hiring manager! Not the overly popular “Dear Sir or Madam.” You want to show your future boss that you did your research and are really passionate about working with their team.

No one wants to hire a job seeker who just spams 20+ companies and hopes to get hired in any of them.

So, how do you find out who’s the hiring manager? There are several ways to do this. 

The simplest option is to look up the head of the relevant department on LinkedIn. Let’s say you’re applying for the position of a Communication Specialist at Novoresume. The hiring manager is probably Head of Communications or Chief Communications Office.

So, you do a quick lookup on LinkedIn:

And voila! You have your hiring manager.

Or let’s say you’re applying for the position of a server. In that case, you’d be looking for the “restaurant manager.”

If this doesn’t work, you can also check out the “Team” page on the company website; there’s a good chance you’ll at least find the right person there.

Here are several other greetings you could use:

• Dear [Department] Hiring Manager
• Dear Hiring Manager
• To whom it may concern
• Dear [Department] Team

Step #4 - Write an Attention-Grabbing Introduction

First impressions matter, especially when it comes to your job search.

Recruiters get hundreds, sometimes even thousands, of applications. Chances are, they’re not going to be reading every single cover letter end-to-end.

So, it’s essential to catch their attention from the very first paragraph .

The #1 problem we see with most cover letter opening paragraphs is that they’re usually extremely generic. Most of them look something like this..

• Hey, my name is Jonathan and I’d like to work as a Sales Manager at XYZ Inc. I’ve worked as a sales manager at MadeUpCompany Inc. for 5+ years, so I believe that I’d be a good fit for the position.

See the issue here? This opening paragraph doesn’t say pretty much anything except the fact that you’ve worked the job before.

Do you know who else has similar work experience? All the other applicants you’re competing with.

Instead, you want to start off with 2-3 of your top achievements to really grab the reader’s attention. Preferably, the achievements should be as relevant as possible to the position.

So now, let’s make our previous example shine:

My name’s Michael and I’d like to help XYZ Inc. hit and exceed their sales goals as a Sales Manager. I’ve worked with Company X, a fin-tech company, for 3+ years. As a Sales Representative, I generated an average of $30,000+ in sales per month (beating the KPIs by around 40%). I believe that my previous industry experience, as well as excellence in sales, makes me the right candidate for the job.

See the difference between the two examples? If you were the hiring manager, which sales manager would you hire, Jonathan or Michael?

Now that we’ve covered the introduction, let’s talk about the body of your cover letter. This part is split into two paragraphs: the first is for explaining why you’re the perfect person for the job, and the latter is for proving that you’re a good fit for the company.

So, let’s get started...

Step #5 - Explain why you’re the perfect person for the job

This is where you show off your professional skills and convince the HR manager that you’re a better fit for the job than all the other applicants.

But first things first - before you even write anything, you need to learn what the most important requirements for the role are. So, open up the job ad and identify which of the responsibilities are the most critical.

For the sake of the example, let’s say you’re applying for the position of a Facebook Advertiser. You scan the job ad and see that the top requirements are:

• Experience managing a Facebook ad budget of $10,000+ / month
• Some skills in advertising on other platforms (Google Search + Twitter)
• Excellent copywriting skills

Now, in this section, you need to discuss how you fulfill these requirements. So, here’s how that would look for our example:

In my previous role as a Facebook Marketing Expert at XYZ Inc. I handled customer acquisition through ads, managing a monthly Facebook ad budget of $20,000+ . As the sole digital marketer at the company, I managed the ad creation & management process end-to-end. Meaning, I created the ad copy , images, picked the targeting, ran optimization trials, and so on.

Other than Facebook advertising, I’ve also delved into other online PPC channels, including:

• Google Search

Are you a student applying for your first internship? You probably don’t have a lot of work experience to show off in this section. Learn how to write an internship cover letter here.

Step #6 - Explain why you’re a good fit for the company

Once you’ve written the last paragraph, you might be thinking - I’m a shoo-in for the job! What else do I need to write? I’ll just wrap up the cover letter and hit that sweet SEND button.

Well, no. You’re not quite there yet.

The HR manager doesn’t only look at whether you’ll be good at the job or not. They’re looking for someone that’s also a good fit for the company culture.

After all, employees that don’t fit in are bound to quit, sooner or later. This ends up costing the company a ton of money, up to 50% of the employee’s annual salary . 

Meaning, you also need to convince the HR manager that you’re really passionate about working with them.

How do you do this? Well, as a start, you want to do some research about the company. You want to know things like:

• What’s the company’s business model?
• What’s the company product or service? Have you used it?
• What’s the culture like? Will someone micro-manage your work, or will you have autonomy on how you get things done?

So, get to Googling. Chances are, you’ll find all the information you need either on the company website or somewhere around the web.

Then, you need to figure out what you like about the company and turn that into text.

Let’s say, for example, you’re passionate about their product and you like the culture of innovation / independent work in the organization.

You’d write something like:

I’ve personally used the XYZ Smartphone, and I believe that it’s the most innovative tech I’ve used in years. The features such as Made-Up-Feature #1 and Made-Up-Feature #2 were real game changers for the device. 

I really admire how Company XYZ thrives for excellence for all its product lines, creating market-leading tech. As someone that thrives in a self-driven environment, I truly believe that I and Company XYZ will be a great match.

What you don’t want to do here is be super generic for the sake of having something to write. Most job seekers tend to mess this one up. Let’s take a look at a very common example we tend to see (way too often):

I’d love to work for Company XYZ because of its culture of innovation. I believe that since I’m super creative, I’d be a good fit for the company. The company values of integrity and transparency really vibe with me.

See what’s wrong here? The example doesn’t really say anything about the company. “Culture of Innovation” is something most companies claim to have. 

The same goes for “values of integrity and transparency” - the writer just googled what the values for the organization are, and said that they like them.

Any hiring manager that reads this will see through the fluff.

So, make sure to do a lot of research and come up with good reasons why you're applying.

Step #7 - Wrap up with a call to action

Finally, it’s time to finish up your cover letter and write the conclusion.

In the final paragraph, you want to:

• Wrap up any points you couldn't in the previous paragraphs. Do you have anything left to say? Any other information that could help the hiring manager make their decision? Mention it here.
• Thank the hiring manager for their time. It never hurts to be courteous, as long as you don’t come off as too needy.
• Finish the cover letter with a call to action. The very last sentence in your cover letter should be a call to action. You should ask the hiring manager to take some sort of action.

And now, let’s turn this into a practical example:

So to wrap it all up, thanks for looking into my application. I hope I can help Company X make the most out of their Facebook marketing initiatives. I'd love to further discuss how my previous success at XYZ Inc. can help you achieve your facebook marketing goals.

Step #8 - Use the right formal closing

Once you’re done with the final paragraph, all you have to do is write down a formal “goodbye” and you’re good to go.

Feel free to use one of the most popular conclusions to a cover letter:

• Best Regards,
• Kind Regards,

And we’re finally done! Before sending off the cover letter, make sure to proofread it with software like Grammarly, or maybe even get a friend to review it for you.

Does your cover letter heading include all essential information?

• Professional email
• Relevant Social Media Profiles

Do you address the right person? I.e. hiring manager in the company / your future direct supervisor

Does your introductory paragraph grab the reader's attention?

• Did you mention 2-3 of your top achievements?
• Did you use numbers and facts to back up your experience?

Do you successfully convey that you’re the right pro for the job?

• Did you identify the core requirements?
• Did you successfully convey how your experiences help you fit the requirements perfectly?

Do you convince the hiring manager that you’re passionate about the company you’re applying to?

• Did you identify the top 3 things that you like about the company?
• Did you avoid generic reasons for explaining your interest in the company?

Did you finalize the conclusion with a call to action?

Did you use the right formal closure for the cover letter?

5+ Cover Letter Examples

Need some inspiration? Read on to learn about some of the best cover letter examples we’ve seen (for different fields).

College Student Cover Letter Example

Middle Management Cover Letter Example

Career Change Cover Letter Example

Management Cover Letter Example

Senior Executive Cover Letter Example

Want to discover more examples AND learn what makes them stand out? Check out our guide to cover letter examples .

Next Steps in Your Job Search - Creating a Killer Resume

Your cover letter is only as good as your resume. If either one is weak, your entire application is for naught. 

After all, a cover letter is just an introduction. Imagine going through all this effort to leave an amazing first impression, but flopping at the end because of a mediocre resume.

...But don’t you worry, we’ve got you covered on that end, too.

If you want to learn more about Resumes & CVs, we have a dedicated FREE guide for that. Check out our complete guide on how to make a resume , as well as how to write a CV - our experts will teach you everything you need to know in order to land your dream job.

Or, if you’re already an expert, just pick one of our resume templates and get started.

Key Takeaways

Now that we’ve walked you through all the steps of writing a cover letter, let’s summarize everything we’ve learned:

• A cover letter is a 250 - 400 word document that convinces the hiring manager of your competence
• A cover letter goes in your job application alongside your resume
• Your introduction to the cover letter should grab the hiring manager’s attention and keep it all the way until the conclusion
• There are 2 main topics you need to include in your cover letter: why you’re the perfect candidate for the job & why you’re passionate about working in the company you’re applying to
• Most of the content of your cover letter should be factual , without any fluff or generalizations

At Novorésumé, we’re committed to helping you get the job you deserve, every step of the way! Follow our blog to stay up to date with the industry-leading advice. Or, check out some of our top guides…

• How to Write a Motivational Letter
• How to Write a Resume with No Work Experience
• Most Common Interview Questions and Answers

To provide a safer experience, the best content and great communication, we use cookies. Learn how we use them for non-authenticated users.