The Hidden Dangers Of Using Microsoft Word Resume Templates
Professional Resume Writer | Career Strategist | Interview Coach | LinkedIn Optimizer | Chemical Engineer | PARWCC Member
Microsoft’s resume templates aren’t all that great.
Creating your resume can be a daunting task. So, if a tool that you use regularly, like Microsoft Word, has a slew of pretty cool-looking templates, why not use them? You’re almost guaranteed to have a decent-looking and complete resume just by following their guidelines, right?
While all of that can be true, you may want to reconsider banking on that template to help you build a resume especially if you want to win the job. Here’s a look at the pros and cons of using Microsoft Word’s resume templates. *Spoiler alert* the cons are going to outweigh the pros.
Resume Template With Personal Endorsements
Download this template here.
This resume template has quite a flashy header no photography pun intended but its not just for photographers. What makes this resume unique is the space for references on the lower right-hand side.
Does your field need others to vouch for your experience? This resume gives you room for three solid recommendations.
Recommended For: Brand Marketers or Personal Influencers
If you work in branding or have a large social media following, you can demonstrate your ability to create a cohesive message with this resume template. Feel free to change the color scheme to suit your brand.
Super Resumes Template 11
File Format: PDF, DOCX, DOC, HTML
If you want columns, this template includes them in a way that can still be read by an ATS. Just be sure to move your name and contact info out of the text box its currently in and into the body of the resume. You can customize your resume directly in your web browser and download it as a PDF, Word, or HTML file. Not all of Super Resumes templates are ATS friendly , but you can also check out Resume Template 5 and Resume Template 6 for more options.
Recommended Reading: What To Write On The Subject Line For Email Resume
+ Free Resume Templates For Microsoft Word
Our career experts have cherry-picked a curated list of 50+ free Microsoft Word resume templates, so you can focus on what’s important – writing an awesome resume.
Weve searched every virtual nook and cranny to bring you a handpicked selection of the best free Word resume templates.
Weve grouped them into five popular categories so you can quickly find the ones you like the most, and start making your resume right away.
Plus, weve peppered the gallery with tips and hints on effective resume writing.
By free templates we mean resume templates for MS Word that are entirely free to download and edit.
Without even having to leave your email address anywhere.
Save hours of work and get a job-winning resume like this. Try our resume builder with 20+ resume templates and create your resume now.
What users say about ResumeLab:
I had an interview yesterday and the first thing they said on the phone was: Wow! I love your resume.PatrickI love the variety of templates. Good job guys, keep up the good work!Dylan My previous resume was really weak and I used to spend hours adjusting it in Word. Now, I can introduce any changes within minutes. Absolutely wonderful!George
Upload Your Outside Templates Into Word
While Microsoft Word offers some excellent resume templates within the program, you can find even more options on the internet, including our handy examples.
Here’s how to find online templates and upload them into Word.
*Note: This process will upload your template, but it may be distorted, requiring you to spend some time manipulating boxes, lines, and font, which is why we recommend uploading your resumes with our free resume tool.
Recommended Reading: What Is A Soft Copy Of Resume
Monogram Header Resume Template
Download this template here.
We’ll start with a simple one. This is a HubSpot exclusive resume template that is simple and clean with attractive monogrammed headers to call out each section of the resume. The rest of the design relies on a simple serif font for easy reading, which is a good thing considering that hiring managers only take 7.4 seconds to evaluate a resume. You want your experience section to be easily scannable.
Recommended For: Freelancers
This resume template is best for freelancers. The project section is great for showcasing the skills that would be most applicable for the industry the applicant wants to enter.
Clean Word Cv/resume Template
Big, bold header for personal branding, timeline design for presenting work experience, education and a warm color palette are the features that make this Word resume template stand out. This one page resume is straight to the point focused on your work experience with skills and expertise included as bar graph. Download contains resume and matching cover letter templates in Word, InDesign and PSD formats.
Read Also: How To Put Internship On Resume
Bonus: Premium Word Resume Templates
When it comes to your career, you would surely like to put in your best effort and that starts with a professional resume to send out to recruiters. Which is why we have selected some of the most impressive looking Word resume templates that are available at a reasonable pricing to leave you with more options.
Should I Tailor My Word Document Design
You should tailor your resume for each job that you’re applying to. It’s easier to tailor your resume when you’re using a resume template in Word. Templates are organized to help you provide relevant information.
Keep the template but change the information on it. You should only have information on your resume that’s relevant to the job you’re applying to. For some examples of professional templates for Word and other tools, review this article:
You May Like: Resume With Bullet Points
Jobscans Management Resume Template 2
File Format: DOCX
This ATS resume template highlights industry knowledge, interpersonal skills, the ability to delegate, and leadership qualities. The summary and skills at the top let you put the most important pieces of a longer work history front and centerfor when its time for a human to look at your resume.
Free Professional Resume Templates
A large variety of careers are appropriate for professional templates.
Architects, accountants, financial advisors, clerks, bookkeepers, HR professionals, lawyers, doctors, and psychologists are perfect examples of the kinds of jobs these templates fit.
Check out our entire collection of MS Word downloadable professional resume templates to see all the options.
Read Also: How To Write References In Your Resume
Page Cv Resume & Cover Letter Word Template
With a clean, simple design with focus on personal branding, this 2 page resume and cover letter template utilizes modern fonts, section titles, icons and a limited color palette consisting of shades of a single color to make it pleasing to read and is sure to make a great first impression. It comes in Microsoft Word and Illustrator EPS formats.
Get The Skills You Need To Land The Job
If you really want to impress employers, you need the right skills. GoSkills offers a range of bite-sized business courses taught by award-winning instructors to teach you the practical skills you need to thrive in todays workplace.
Learn some of the most in-demand skills that many hiring managers expect to see on your resume with our on-demand online training. Master Microsoft Word, become an Excel ninja, start managing projects like a pro, or learn to code the choice is yours.
If you’re interested in building your resume using another Microsoft product, look no further than this Excel Resume builder.
Start your 7 day trial today to get FREE access to ALL courses on GoSkills!
Recommended Reading: How To Put Together A Great Resume
Black & White Professional Profile Template For Word
This attractive CV format DOC file is a true study in effective minimalism. It comes with Microsoft Word files as well as PDF and InDesign files. It’s ready to open in Microsoft Word and customize to your liking.
This professional resume template DOC is available in A4 size and has an included picture placeholder. Grab this professional resume design to help make your next application stand out! 2022 resume formats can’t get any better than this one.
More Microsoft Resume Templates
More free Microsoft resume templates are available as a download for Microsoft Word users to use to create their resumes. Microsoft also has templates for cover letters, curriculum vitae, and more career-related correspondence.
Microsoft Word resume options include:
- Job-specific resumes
- Career-specific resumes ,
- Resumes labeled by format .
Read Also: Will Cruises Resume In 2020
How To Start Writing A Cv Read The Job Offer Carefully
In every official recruitment process, or at least the vast majority, the candidate is required to send a CV. Based on the information contained therein, the employer or HR specialist checks whether the candidate meets the specified requirements, and if so, the person is invited to an interview. After this stage of the recruitment process, a decision is taken to recruit the candidate. The sectors and jobs are different and therefore the requirements for candidates vary. Why do I mention this and why is it so important? I wanted to remind you that there is no single template, no single universal document, no CV template designed and adapted for all jobs. The CV is the answer to a specific job offer. Remember to adjust your CV to the chosen job offer.
How to do that? Compare the required competences to your skills. If the requirements and your competences coincide, that means only one thing, you are the right person for the job. Use similar vocabulary, phrases from the job offer while writing your CV, it will make you well understood and appreciated as their perfect candidate. Your CV should be consistent. Your experience, skills and interests must be compatible with each other. What else can you do? Even if there is no direct request in the job offer, consider writing a cover letter. Attach a cover letter to your CV template (we have ready-to-use templates, general examples for selected positions.
Find Free Word Resume Templates
Accessing resume templates on Microsoft Word is a quick, easy way to structure your document. All you have to do is take the following steps:
You May Like: How To Make Your Teaching Resume Stand Out
Why Should I Use A Resume Template For My Job Application
A resume template simplifies the job-seeking process. The best template provides you an attractive, well-formatted resume layout that conforms to industry standards. Simply fill out your template and start sending it to employers.
Additionally, using a premade template guarantees that you have an applicant tracking system friendly resume, and that its easy to read.
What Are Microsoft Word Templates
Microsoft Word offers users a few pre-prepared resume template designs that they can edit and adapt for themselves. This is quite similar to the options provided by competitors like .
There is a broad variety of styles and layouts of resume templates you can pick and prepare for a job application. A number of these are free to use if you already have access to Microsoft Office and the Word application.
You May Like: When Is Champions League Resuming
How To Make Your Resume In Word
The best thing about building a resume in Word is that it’s remarkably simple. Word comes with many resume templates you can easily find within the program. If none of these preloaded formats do the trick, you can search for alternate templates on the internet. Between the templates included in Word, the additional options available online, our free , or by using our savvy resume builder, you should have no trouble finding a format that works for your resume.
Resume Microsoft Word Layout Design
This is another one of the best MS Word resume templates around online. It’ll provide you with a polished resume and cover letter. CV format Word docs like this one give you all the guides you need to make it easy to design your first CV.
Like some other two-column resume templates on this list, this option has an excellent use of white space and subtle hints of yellow. The sections are easily identifiable, making your CV template for 2022 easy to read and scan.
Read Also: Basic Resume Template Free
Use A Template To Create A Resume
If you need help creating a resume or cover letter, start with one of the dozens of professionally-designed resume and cover letter templates that are available in Word.
In the search box, type Resume or Cover Letter.
Double-click the template you want to use.
Replace the placeholder text with your own information.
On the File menu, select New from Template.
In the search box, type Resume or Cover Letter.
Double-click the template you want to use.
Replace the placeholder text with your own information.
Clean Resume/cv + Cover Letter By Tamzid Hasan
Whos it for: Web, IT developer
Creator: Tamzid Hasan
Where to find it:Behance
Price: $5
If you are indeed looking for a more professional resume, this clean resume/CV combo by Tamzid Hasan might work great.
When to Use This Template
Clean one page resume that also comes with a cover letter and a reference template. It follows a professional black and white color scheme and a layout that focuses on work experience. Main features include:
- A4 & US Letter size
One page is ideal, but depending on the job role and your experience, you can also include some extra sections to back up your background.
Recommended Reading: When Does This Is Us Resume
Do I Need A Specific Resume Template For My Job
You dont need a specific resume template for your job. For the most part, almost all industries can use similar resume templates, unless youre a graphic designer then it can help to create a more creative resume.
We do have resume examples by job title and industry, and its a great idea to consult one of our samples while customizing your own.
Cv Templates For Every Career
As a candidate, you are a unique individual with the skills and experience to get the job done. So why shouldnt your resume be just as interesting as you are? When it comes to convincing an employer to hire you, your resume is the best way to tell your story and make a strong first impression. Thats why weve curated a collection of dozens of expertly-designed CV templates to fit a variety of fields and career levels. To make choosing a template even easier, weve divided our collection into five types: professional, modern, creative, simple and basic. These groupings offer a great starting point to explore the CV templates best suited for your field. Then, if nothing catches your eye, try another collection to find the right style and add your personal flair.
Recommended Reading: How To Put Self Employed On Resume
What Makes The Best Resume Template
Most resumes contain the same basic elements: contact info, a profile summary and sections for experience, education, skills and achievements. While our builder tool makes it easy to add or delete sections based on your industry and needs, its a good idea to start with a resume template that offers you the best chances at customization. The best layouts make your information attractive and clear, with the right balance of text and white space. Color and icons should be used depending on the best practices for your industry, and whether or not to include a photo often depends on the country where you intend to work.
Our resume templates are expertly designed so that all your information fits on one page , without looking crammed or cluttered. Our resume buildertool, along with our guides, will help you create the best layout that makes the most of each element.
The job hunt is a fierce competition, and youll want to take on this challenge from all angles. That means applying to multiple positions at once. Tailoring your resume for each and every opening is not only highly suggested, its the reality of the 22st century hiring process. But that doesnt mean it has to be time consuming. With our subscription service, you can edit, update and change your resume as many times as youd like and download each new version as a .pdf to make the application process run even smoother.
How To Access Microsoft Resume Templates
There are two ways to access Microsoft resume templates: on your computer or online through Microsofts templates page.
To access these resume templates from your computer:
To access Microsoft resume templates online:
Read Also: How To Do A Resume Format On Microsoft Word