Resume Layout And Formatting: Function Wins Over Art
The rule of thumb here is to keep your design from getting in the way of your information. Keep it neat and legible. This guide has already mentioned that your resume should not include fancy fonts that may not be read by the ATS and also may be more difficult to read. Keep legibility in mind for all aspects of your design.
Recruiters see dozens of resumes for each position, so dont give them a reason to eliminate yours. The best designs contain these elements:
- Easy-to-find contact information
- A variety of line lengths to leave white space
- Consistency of fontsizes and styles
- 1-inch on all sides
They avoid:
- Information in headers and footers
Always save your resume as a PDF file to avoid formatting glitches that can occur with different word processing software. Then, double-check to make sure alignment, lists and spacing have remained consistent. Some specific online application systems require you to upload a Word file and may not even accept PDF files. But in all other cases, avoid Word or other text-editor formats whenever possible when saving the final version of your resume, They tend to be buggy in terms of formatting and design.
Resume.io offers four different categories of expertly designed templates to get you started. Choose from options in Modern, Simple, Professional, or Creative.
Social Worker Cover Letter And Resume Sample
Do you need to write a cover letter or a resume for a social worker position? Review information on what to include in your letter, along with an example of a cover letter you can edit to fit your employment history and skills. Youll also find a sample resume specifically targeted to the social work career field.
Social Work Resume: Key Skills
The key skills section is the second last section that you should compose when writing your resume for social workers. This is where your social worker resume skills should go.
This is the first section of your resume that the recruiter notices when he/she goes through your resume. So, in order to attract the attention of the recruiter, you need to perfect this section.
Mentioned below is a list of what you should to perfect this section of your resume:
- The key skills section endorses your social worker resume skills. This means that it is in this section that you should highlight your core skills as a professional
- To objectively single out your core skills, scan through your professional experience section to get a good sense of what your key performance areas are, and then list them down in the key skills section of your resume
- To attract the recruiters attention to this section, mark your key skills in bold
- To stand a good chance at getting shortlisted, analyze the keywords used by the recruiter in the job listing that he/she has posted and replicate them in the key skills section if it matches the roles & responsibilities that you have done in the past
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Contact Info And Header
Your social worker resume explains your qualifications and credentials for the job you’re seeking, but if recruiters don’t know how to contact you, nothing you write will matter. As a result, you need to write and format your contact header effectively. This section should include:
Notice the customized header that lists the job posting title below the name.
Next Create A School Social Worker Skills Section On Your Resume
Your resume’s skills section should include the most important keywords from the job description, as long as you actually have those skills. If you haven’t started your job search yet, you can look over resumes to get an idea of what skills are the most important.
Here are some tips to keep in mind when writing your resume’s skills section:
- Include 6-12 skills, in bullet point form
- List mostly hard skills soft skills are hard to test
- Emphasize the skills that are most important for the job
Soft skills are also valuable, as they’re highly transferable and make you a great person to work alongside, but they’re impossible to prove on a resume.
Example Of School Social Worker Skills For Resume
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Create More Space For Your Skills
Resume space is typically limited to one page. Consider using a two column resume design to make more room for your skills section. By creating two columns, you can manipulate the format so that the left column appears narrower. You can put your name, contact information, resume objective and any optional sections on the left side. Doing this expands the width of the column on the right and offers you a larger physical space to elaborate on your skills and abilities.
Tip : Note Keywords In The Job Description
Highlight the keywords in the job description and use these when describing your experience and knowledge. Look at these and match them to plan your CV/resume. Describe your experience based on what the job is about. This will show a clear sign that your experience matches the role. Mimic the keywords required in the job and incorporate in the phrases you use.
Example: If the job descriptions states that we require a social worker who has experience in preparing court reports, you can then say in your description or experience that I prepared court reports while working in the Referral and Assessment team
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Best Tips For Writing An Outstanding Cv/resume
- Keep Your Profile or Summary Informative but Short and Sweet
- Easy to Read Format
- Use Bullets at All Times
- Avoid Acronyms
- Mirror Your Experience to the Job You are Applying For
- Note Keywords in the Job Description
- Match Your Qualifications
- Put Your Most Important Qualifications and Achievements First
- Quantify Your Achievements Where Possible
- Be Transparent
- Keep It Simple Strategy
- Have References Separate
Clinical Social Worker Resume
Why this resume works
- Your clinical social worker resume should focus on your ability to diagnose and treat mental, behavioral, and emotional issues.
- Be sure to discuss how your responsibilities and leadership abilities resulted in positive changes at your workplace.
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Top Social Worker Skills To Mention
Social work positions require very specific skill sets, like particular diagnoses, treatment methods, and clinical theories. Review the job description carefully to see what skills they need for the position and thus, what you should include on your resume. Use these terms throughout your social worker resume to catch the eye of any recruiter.
Top social work skills in 2022 include:
- Soft skills: Empathy, active listening, collaboration, critical thinking
- Clinical positions: CBT, evidence-based practice, intake, assessment, treatment planning, discharge
- Management/Oversight positions: Program development, community organizing, budgeting, compliance, supervision
Here’s a solid list of additional soft skills you might include:
Choose The Right Resume Format
Resume formats organize your resume to highlight your strengths and diminish your weaknesses. The three resume formats you can choose from chronological, combination and functional will serve very different types of candidates. Lets break down the purpose of each format so that you can make a more informed decision about your resume.
The chronological resume focuses on the reverse-chronological account of the entire work history, so its suitable for candidates with a long and consistent career of 10+ years of work experience.
The functional resume showcases the candidates skills as the most critical resume section and downplays their work history. This format is appropriate if youre at the start of your career or have career gaps.
A combination format balances skills and work experience it is ideal for candidates with less than 10 years of experience, individuals applying for a promotion or career changers.
You will find more information on creating each type of resume in our resume formats guide.
-
Combination
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Prepare To Write Your Resume
Before you write, make sure you do the prep work necessary to have a smooth sailing resume-writing process. A resume consists of precise information therefore, taking the following steps to gather all you need to write will help:
- Ensure your professional background and qualifications align with the desired role’s requirements. Pay close attention to repeated keywords and skills for example, treatment of mood disorder diagnosis or behavioral intention plans since you will likely need this knowledge to thrive in the role. If you possess most of the requirements, you should feel confident to apply.
- Collect details such as the exact dates of your employment, graduation dates, performance reviews, promotions, certifications, training degrees, etc. Have all this information ready when you begin to write youll be able to build your sections accurately without getting distracted trying to look for the date when you changed jobs.
- Write with recruiters and applicant tracking system in mind. They will both be on the lookout for the usage of relevant keywords, spelling errors, hard-to-read fonts, irregular resume layouts and overused terms like “go-getter.” Double-check with a copy editor friend to make sure your resume is grammatically correct.
- Check out resume examples for your desired job. These examples demonstrate a hypothetical candidate’s resume, which gives you a clear idea of the skills and accomplishments you should highlight and the jargon you should be utilizing.
Key Takeaways For A Social Worker Resume
- Social workers can choose from many career paths.
- Your resume must get you past Applicant Tracking Systems before it reaches a person.
- Keep the layout legible and professional.
- Use your profile to express your professional personality and highlight your biggest achievement.
- Customize your skills section for each job listing using your master list.
- Turn your employment history into a story of growth.
- Dont leave anything up to chance: use the builder-tool to avoid any formatting glitches.
With resume.ios expertly designed resume templates, builder-tool, and this guide, you are on your way to securing your dream job as a social worker!
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Social Worker Cover Letter Example
Aidan Applicant123 Main Street Stamford, CT 06902555-555-5555
123 Business Rd. Stamford, CT 06902
Dear Ms. Lee,
Please accept my enthusiastic application for the school social worker position at Acme High School, listed on Monster.com. I have extensive experience working with diverse populations of adolescents, both inside and outside of the classroom, and I believe I would be an ideal fit for your innovative school.
My two social work internships have given me extensive and varied experiences as a social worker in an educational setting. At XYZ Charter School, I provided both individual and group psychotherapy to a socioeconomically diverse population of teenagers. At my internship at ABC Elementary School, I led group play therapy activities for students with a variety of behavioral disorders. My experience in individual and group therapy will allow me to successfully act as both an individual and group counselor at Acme High School.
You state that you want a social worker who will be able to serve as a leader for your summer outdoor program. As a former camp counselor with extensive experience leading hiking, biking, and camping trips, I know I would be an ideal leader in your program. Having served as a leader for a counselor-in-training program, I know what kinds of outdoor activities help build both self-confidence and teamwork in students.
I am confident that my experience and skills will make me a valuable member of the Acme High School social work team.
Sincerely,
Social Worker Resume Objective
For a young graduate whos willing to set sail into the realities of the world with just one objective, to care for people and help them with their problems. However, getting their first position can be difficult. Even though they might be qualified, highlighting their lack of experience might be counterproductive.
Replacing the professional summary, here the Objective comes into play.
An objective on your resume replaces your professional summary section for a reason as it covers the following points:
Your current and future goals
Your skills
What you would bring to the table
Unlike the professional summary, in a social work resume, the objective should not be longer than 3 lines and must include all the above 4 points in a cursive format.
Check out these social work resume examples on how to correctly frame an objective:
Self-motivated and highly empathetic recent graduate with a masters degree in psychology seeks to use communication and problem-solving skills to people at ABC hospital adjust to the challenges in their lives.
Im a recent graduate from XYZ school looking to find an opportunity with your NGO to help and change lives. Im hardworking, caring, and willing to help people and promoting a self-care attitude.
A resourceful individual with a degree in sociology, looking to bag an opportunity with ABC NGO and be an efficient member of their team with skills like communications and initiation.
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Empathy And Communication Skills
Empathy is the ability to understand someone else’s feelings. Much of a social worker’s day involves communicating to clients, advocacy groups, schools and social service coordinators. Your ability to be compassionate and interact with people helps identify you as a qualified candidate. Here are six important communication skills to include on your resume:
-
Engaging in active listening
Tip 1: Identify Both Soft And Hard Skills
Employers like to see what you can offer when it comes to your skills. This helps them see if you are a solid fit for the company culture and if you have the fundamental aspects to thrive in the role. So, adding in key skills, especially the ones they want to see based on the job description, is recommended. Some examples include:
- Soft Skills: teamwork, creativity, organization, problem-solving, critical thinking, flexibility, detail oriented
- Hard Skills: computer software applications, data analysis, management, administrative, foreign languages
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Keywords And Skills For A Social Worker Resume
Unfortunately, there are no keywords for helping families reconnect, going the extra mile for dozens of clients or renewing peoples hope for the future. Your passion and authenticity will be apparent in the interview, but here are some keyword ideas for what to include in your resume to get that interview request.
Interpersonal Skills that bring your clients comfort and security in vulnerable times:
- Compassion
- Communication
- Active Listening
The Professional Skills required to manage your caseload, making sure each client gets the care and services they need:
- Time Management
Why A Resume Template
No two cases are ever alike, and neither are two roles in social work.
While you could have a stock care plan for every patient and client, it takes a customized plan thats tailored to fit their needs to truly inspire, empower and mentor them to success.
The same goes for your resume. Your future employer isnt looking for a generic resume with your BSW, ability to write a care plan and attention to detail. They want to see the specific skills and work experience that apply to their open position whether thats in a school, hospital, government office or rehabilitation facility.
Thats why the objective is to write a custom resume template that can be tailored toward each potential employer. This approach will give you more interview requests and job offers.
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Associate Social Worker Resume
Why this resume works
- If you have limited social work experience, youll need to add content to fill the page.
- Consider including work-related projects, activities, or hobbies on your resume to demonstrate your abilities.
Why Is The Reverse Chronological Resume Format Best For You
- The Reverse Chronological Format is universally acknowledged as the most preferred and ideal resume format.
- It approaches time from a reverse order i.e. from the most recent to the least recent.
- In this format style, your most recent work experience comes first followed by the second recent, and so on and so forth.
Your most recent work experience is your most relevant work experience, and by highlighting it first, this resume format sees to it that your social work resume is both relevant and meaningful.
Hiration Pro Tip: Use the Reverse Chronological Format to write a highly relevant, ATS-targeted social work resume to stand a better chance at getting the shortlist you deserve!
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Social Worker Resume Examples That Worked In 2022
Social workers protect vulnerable populations, support families, and help people solve and cope with problems in their everyday lives, all within different settings.
Since social workers support numerous communities, work in various environments, and develop different scopes based on their licensure, it can be a challenge to create your social worker resume to target the right job for your career goals.
We’ve analyzed hundreds of social worker resume samples from all populations, environments, settings, and licenses to attract the attention of a hiring manager or recruiter so you can get more interviews in 2022. We created seven resume samples to help you build an eye-catching resume and check your resume using AI-powered tips.
Resume Examples
Why this resume works
- It’s important to showcase any niche areas you’re familiar with in your work experience on your social worker resume.
- Make sure to mention the facility settings where you’ve worked, whether it’s a hospital, school, rehabilitation center, group home, or community facility, so hiring managers see your expertise.
- Social workers typically have high volumes of cases to manage, so you should highlight the number of cases you managed per day/week/month.