Resume Makeover Series – What type of resume format should you use?

Taking into account requests from our readers around the resume writing process, we started a series of articles titled ‘Resume Makeover Series.’ The objective is to take you through the complete process of writing a resume, with best practices for each stage.

In article we provide information about the type of resume format that is most suitable for your situation.

Chronological Resume Format

Chronological resume format is preferred by most employers because it clearly demonstrates your work history and professional growth. The chronological resume format focuses on the chronology of your work history by highlighting dates of employment, places of employment, and job titles. This format directly ties responsibilities and accomplishments to companies and time frames. This is usually the preferred format if you are applying for a similar or more advanced position in the same field.

Use this resume format if you:

• Want to highlight stability, consistency, growth, and development in your career.
• Are looking for a similar or more senior position within the same industry.
• Have job titles that are impressive stepping stones and your most recent position is the one most likely to impress prospective employers.

Advantages

• Enables an employer to determine, at a glance, where and when you’ve worked and what you accomplished at each job.
• Is the most common and widely accepted format.
• Provides the employer with a clear sense of your career progress.

Disadvantages

• Limited work experience and employment gaps are obvious.
• Could reveal a history of changing jobs frequently.
• Could reveal if you were in the same job too long or have held the same type of job too long.
• Does not highlight skills and accomplishments as much as it highlights work history.

Functional Resume Format

If you are changing careers, or have gaps or other inconsistencies in your work history, a functional resume format is recommended. The functional format emphasizes your skills, capabilities, and accomplishments, and de-emphasizes your job titles, employers, and dates of employment. The functional format allows you to prioritize your experience and accomplishments according to their impact and significance, rather than chronology.

Use this resume format if you:

• Have changed jobs frequently in the past few years.
• Have gaps in your employment history.
• Have limited work experience in your job target.
• Are changing careers.
• Gained significant experience outside your career path.

Advantages

• Highlights accomplishments, skills, and experience most relevant to your career objective.
• Takes focus off gaps or inconsistencies in your work history.
• Draws from a range of paid and non-paid experiences.

Disadvantages

• Experience is not directly tied to specific job titles and dates of employment which can lead employers to suspect you’re trying to hide something.
• Does not emphasize promotions and career growth.
• Makes it difficult for hiring managers to tell exactly what the candidate did in each job.

Combined Resume Format

To highlight specific skills, abilities or accomplishments, you could choose a combined resume format, which adds sections for the areas you would like to emphasize at the top of your resume. The combined format includes the traditional Experience section of a chronological resume as well as the skills and accomplishments sections of a functional resume. This format is the most flexible, allowing you to highlight those sections of your resume that are most relevant to your career objective. This is an increasingly popular format for resumes.

Use this resume format if you:

• Are a senior-level professional or executive and have significant accomplishments.
• Want to highlight your relevant abilities during a career transition.
• Are targeting your resume to fit specific job requirements while displaying the continuity of your career history.
• Want to emphasize skills and abilities you have not used in recent jobs.
• Have been freelancing, consulting, or performing temporary work.

Advantages

• Highlights your primary skills and accomplishments at the top of your resume.
• Format can be arranged to emphasize either skills and abilities or work history, whichever is most appropriate for your career objective.
• Groups qualifications into categories that relate directly to your career objective.

Disadvantages

• Resume could become longer than necessary and may lose the employer’s interest.
• Resume may contain redundant information or lack focus.

Sources and references: Sandbox Advisors, RMP; Topics: Resume format