How To Build A Professional Resume

List Your Professional Experience

Include your job titles, dates of tenure and names of the organizations in reverse-chronological order. This means you should place your current or most recent job first, your second most recent job next, and so on. Only include the past 10 years of professional experiences. If you havent held a relevant job yet, feel free to include leadership roles youve held in clubs or organizations, volunteer jobs, or other positions youve held in the past such as retail or food industry jobs.

What Are Some Examples Of A Good Resume

Heres the thing: Your resume wont ever look exactly like someone elses, nor should it. How you choose to format it, organize your information, and talk about specific experiences depends not just on your career path, but on your field, the job youre applying for, the company that job is at, and more.

So there isnt a universal way to do a resume. But there are common themes. To give you some context as to how yours might turn out, here are three examples of different kinds of resumes.

Who Is Zety Resume Builder For

The Zety resume creator is a tool for anyone tired of fighting with formatting their application document in a word processor. Its even more valuable to job seekers pressed for time or worried about how the wording of their resume reflects on them as candidates. Zety can dramatically cut down on the time it would take to create a resume on your own. Weve heard success stories from job seekers in all industries. Interns, juniors, mid-level staff, all the way to c-suite executives. Even students writing resumes for college applications.

Also Check: Resume Honor Society

Review A Resume Example

This is a professional resume example. or read the example below.

Production TechnicianStrong and able-bodied Production Assistant with 8 years experience in assembly of components and sub-components for automotive and aviation parts manufacturers.

• Process-oriented, ensuring safe and quality assembly line production within hazardous factory settings.
• Skilled in use of weld guns, air-actuated tools, forklifts, manual tools, and automated machinery.
• Diligent in completing daily production reports and timesheets.
• Outstanding work ethic and team building skills willing to work overtime and flexible shifts.

Professional Experience

Hughes Automotive Company, Canton, MSProduction Technician, July 2017-PresentWeld automotive components as technician on fast-paced assembly line. Operate welding tools and automated machinery perform quality control and pack parts for shipping.

• Maintained perfect attendance record throughout tenure.

Pine Hills Avionics Manufacturing, Jackson, MSAssembly Technician, June 2014-June 2017Skillfully set up and operated assembly department test stands. Interpreted schematics utilized hand tools and testing instruments including micrometers and venire calipers.

• Earned Employee of the Month awards at least twice each year.
• Selected by supervisor to train summer workers in assembly line, packing, and cleaning tasks.

• Willingly worked overtime and weekend shifts as requested.
• Earned top scores on quarterly performance reports.

Education

Include An Education Section

An education section will be especially valuable if you have limited work experience or if you are transferring to a new industry. You can include information such as:

• Relevant coursework

• Grade point average

• Participation in clubs or organizations

• Leadership positions held

• Awards, achievements or certifications

When writing your education section, you should include the name of the institution, dates of attendance and your degree or area of study. If you are applying to mid or higher-level positions, you might remove all but the name of your school and dates of attendance to make room for more relevant professional experience on your resume.

If you have certifications or licenses that are relevant to the job description, you can include them in this section as well. To save space, you can leave off any credentials that are not directly related to the requirements of this job.

Related: How to Include Relevant Coursework on a Student Resume

Don’t Miss: How To Edit Your Resume On Linkedin

How To Build A Resume

Your resume is your introduction to a potential employer, and as such, you want to make sure that it includes all the important information that the employer needs to evaluate your suitability for the role that you’re applying for. Writing your resume is a process that commands your full attention so you’re able to get the most out of it, but it doesn’t have to be overwhelming. In this article, we’ll show you the step-by-step process of creating a standout resume to increase your chances of being hired.

List Your Skills And Personal Attributes

Write out any special abilities or qualities that will aid you in the position. If youre in the tech field, for example, skills could include computer networking, search engine optimization or familiarity with software like Microsoft Office. You should also include soft skills like team leadership, time management or public speaking.

Once you have compiled information relating to these topics, consider what items you are most proud of, and reflect on which combination provides the greatest insight into your experience and capabilities. Its wise to think about the hiring companys needs and how you can demonstrate your ability to meet them. However, be sure to save these lists in their entirety so that you can reference them in the future and easily change your resume as needed.

Read Also: How To Put Conferences On Resume

Top 10 Parts Of A Modern Resume Template

How To Make A Resume In 2021

For most job-seekers, a good resume is what stands between a dream job and Choice D. Get your resume right, and youll be getting replies from every other company you apply to.

If your resume game is weak, though, youll end up sitting around for weeks, maybe even months, before you even get a single response.

So youre probably wondering how you can write a resume that leads to HR managers inviting you to interviews daily.

Well, youve come to the right place!

In this guide, were going to teach you everything you need to know about how to make a resume:

How to Make a Resume – Step by step

So, lets dive right in!

Recommended Reading: Resume Multiple Positions One Company

Include A Summary And Objective

Since employers may only spend a short time reviewing your resume, you want to display your positive qualities concisely. These statements should succinctly illustrate the qualities that make you an attractive candidate while also describing the engaging, yet professional, personality that you can bring to the workplace.

Your summary statement should include a concise overview of your work experience. Try to focus on work experience that relates to the roles in which you are applying to stand out more to hiring managers.

For a resume objective, you should provide a brief display of your skills and qualifications as they relate to the specific position to which you are applying. As with anything on your resume, though, these skills and qualities should be concrete and, where possible, quantifiable.

Related: Writing a Resume With No Experience

Save Time To Focus On Content

A resume builder allows you to save time in the process of building a resume. Instead of taking a long time to choose the style and add in all your information, you just have to fill in the information youve already collected about your career history and qualifications. That way, you can focus on making your content personalized to your job search.

A free resume builder isnt a shortcut think of it as an extra tool that makes it easier to do the more taxing aspects of the resume. When you create a resume with a resume builder, it can be even more high quality than the resume you would have created yourself, as you get the benefit of input from experts who have plenty of experience in resume writing.

If you want the best resume experience, try out the ResumeHelp resume builder. One try, and youll see why so many job seekers trust this resume builder.

You May Like: What To Write In Email With Resume

Target A Specific Job

The hiring manager is the ultimate judge of how good your resume is. To make a resume theyll see as perfect, you must:

• include skills-based resume keywords from the job description
• research the company
• place your most relevant qualifications in a resume introduction to immediately capture their interest

Using keywords from the job ad is key to making a perfect resume. Many companies use automated applicant tracking systems to determine applications relevance based on keywords from the job description.

Craft A Career Snapshot

More recently, career experts have urged job seekers to do away with the old “objective” statement and instead consider including a brief summary, called a “career snapshot,” at the top of their resumes.

“With the career snapshot, you present a branding statement that briefly explains your unique value as well as your skills and qualifications,” said Tomer Sade, founder and CEO of FACTORE. “This would then be followed by a few bullet points that highlight your experience and your accomplishments. Whatever you list here should be relevant to the position you’re applying to.”

“The top third of your resume is prime resume real estate,” added Lisa Rangel, an executive resume writer and official LinkedIn moderator at Chameleon Resumes. “Create a robust summary to capture the hiring manager’s eye.”

Think of your career snapshot as an answer to the question “how would you describe your work experience in one sentence?” The summary is an opportunity to sum up your most relevant and important skills, experience, or assets right off the bat.

Read Also: How To Find Resume Templates On Microsoft Word 2010

Just Four Simple Steps To Download Your Resume:

Pick a template.

Fill it out with our resume app.

Customize the design.

Weve developed our resume builder with one goal in mind: to help you find a great job faster. Our resume maker comes with ATS-optimized layouts and a wizard that guides you through every step of the process.Plus, you’ll get ready-to-use AI-generated suggestions for every section of your resume, personalized to match your desired position. Dont feel like writing? Just drag and drop the content that suits you and let our resume editor do the rest.Have a hard time choosing which style is right for you? Check out all our resume templates here, and read more about their advantages.

As seen in:

What Makes A Professional Resume Template

A professional resume template is characterized by a focus on the candidates skills and experience. One accent color may be used but overall, the emphasis is placed on the text with minimal distractions from icons or other flourishes. The resume format may have room for a headshot or logo but there should be enough white space on the page to effectively balance out large chunks of text. Candidates should focus on writing their professional experience and summary in a professional tone, using strong action verbsthat connote leadership and competence.

Don’t Miss: Academic Projects In Resume Example

Save Time On Formatting And Editing

With Canvas free resume builder, weve taken the heavy lifting out of designing and formatting your resume. Using our flexible templates will save you hoursall you need to do is add your professional experience and customize the existing design as needed.

Rest assured that Canvas templates come designer-approved, so you dont have to worry about how they lookbecause they already look great!

Is Zety Resume Builder Free

Zety resume builder is free to create a resume. The app follows the try before you buy credoyou pay once youre satisfied with the results. Downloading a printable resume as a pdf or MS Word .doc file from Zety costs just 2.99 USD for two week access. Pricing may vary depending on the plan and subscription.

Also Check: Emailing A Resume To A Recruiter

The 7 Best Free Resume Builders We’ve Ever Discovered

A couple of weeks ago, my brother Max sent me his resume in a text message and asked me to spruce it up a bit for him. Undoubtedly, I needed to do more than copy-and-paste the text into a Word document. To truly stand out, I knew the resume needed to demonstrate a level of professionalism and effort something content alone can’t always convey.

Fortunately, with the help of Zety, I was able to input Max’s resume information, choose a template, and have Zety design the piece for me within 20 minutes:

Looks a little better than a text message, doesn’t it?

Resume builders are incredibly helpful when creating a resume and can help you showcase your unique personality. Here, weve compiled a list of the best free resume builders weve discovered. Keep reading, and then get to work designing your own trust me, with these tools, it’s almost as easy as sending a text.

What If I Need Cover Letters For My Resumes

If you need matching cover letters for your resumes, then youve come to the right place. Along with our resume generator, we also have a state-of-the-art cover letter builder for you to use. In under ten minutes you can make a matching resume and cover letter, and be ready to apply for your dream job. We also recommend that you check out our free cover letter examples and how to write a cover letter guide to understand what makes the best cover letter in 2022.

You May Like: How Many References Do You Need On A Resume

Explain Your Achievements And Awards

Employers may be more impressed if you can prove that your abilities have been tested and that you have found success despite challenges. You can emphasize your victories by including a brief section in your resume that outlines your relevant achievements and awards. Maybe you received Employee of the Month three times in your previous job, or maybe you received an award for generating the most sales on your team in one quarter. These awards can set you apart from other candidates with similar experience.

Save And Edit As Many Versions As You Like

One of the most time-consuming elements of applying for new jobs is customizing your cover letter and resume for each new role that you apply for.

With Canvas free resume builder, all your cover letter and resume designs are saved automatically within the editor.

Create multiple versions of your resume, and make small edits where needed.

Recommended Reading: When Should You Put Your Gpa On A Resume

Start With A Resume Objective

A good resume objective first tells the hiring manager what your career goals are, and why youre passionate about the position.

In three or four sentences, your resume objective should:

• state your skills
• highlight your relevant experience
• detail your education or training

The relevant experience can be something you accomplished at school or elsewhere in your life, as long as it relates in some way to the job.

When writing the objective for your first job resume, consider the companys needs. Dont just write about what you want from working there. Instead, show the hiring manager how your goals align with theirs. For example:

Resume for First Job Objective

High school honors student with two years of volunteer experience. Aiming to use acquired interpersonal and problem-solving abilities to effectively fill your retail position. A quick learner looking to fulfill the company mission and grow in the role as fast as possible.

If you can quantify several of your core skills, a different type of introduction might benefit your overall application. Its important to learn how to start a resume in the way that best plays to your strengths.

Tried And True Resume Templates

Pick from perfectly designed resume templates

Our online resume maker features design and customization tools with real-time previews available, giving you the ultimate control over the look and feel of your resume

Contempo

Modern

Professional

Refined

Includes optimal formatting suggestions and advice on how to add relevant courses and training programs

Tips for Skills

Explains how to tailor this resume section for your current job search and suggests relevant hard and soft skills

Tips for Professional Summary

A professional summary acts as the sales pitch for your talent, and we offer expertly written examples for you to edit and customize

Just fill-in-the-blanks for an expertly written resume, every time

Read Also: Listing Relevant Coursework On Resume

The Creative Angle: An Infographic Resume Or Resume Website

This resume type is characterized by how its formatted visually. You may choose a reverse chronological order or skills-based style to organize your information, but also use graphics, colors, unique fonts, and even multimedia elements to help that information pop. Keep in mind that any creative resume is still likely subject to an ATSand certain elements may be unreadable by a robot. So consider going this route only if you know a human will be reading your resume .

Who its good for: People applying to creative roles , startups, or fun companies, or to jobs where a creative resume is encouraged, if not required.

Not a designer but want your resume to look just as pretty as this example? Check out these articles:

• 5 Digital Tools That Will Make Your Resume Infinitely More Beautiful

Your resume is a living, breathing document. So while you wont go through this whole process every time you apply for a job, you should be thinking about all these things as you go to update your resume for your next career step. You might decide later on to switch up the order, or remove or add things, or even get creative and try out a whole new format. If youre not getting the calls back you expect, you may decide to scrap it and start overand thats totally OK.

Fast Company