The Importance of a Professional Resume Today
Professional Resume Writing: Find What Works Best For You!
It’s no secret that the job market is competitive. As more young professionals earn college degrees, specialized jobs are becoming fewer and farther between. User-friendly online tools for job searches, along with the increasing demand for remote work during the pandemic, have increased competition even more. This is why it is so important to have a well-written, professional resume today. In this article, we will look at professional resume examples and professional resume templates to teach you all you need to know about writing the perfect resume!
Objective for a Professional Resume
The main objective for professional resume writing is to highlight your relevant skills and experiences. You want your future employer to notice you! A professional resume is your best (and only) chance to make a good first impression.
When a future employer looks at your resume, they will immediately assess your writing and organizational skills, as well as your attentiveness to details. This doesn’t even touch on the actual content of your resume. Just the formatting! The point is, there are high standards and an acceptable professional resume format.
Including Keywords in Your Professional Resume
It’s important to include keywords in your professional resume. The best way to figure out which keywords to include is to take them directly from the job listing. This will signal to future employers your attention to detail. It will also give you the opportunity to highlight your unique qualifications.
When you apply for a competitive position, the company may sort through resumes using a computer program known as an Applicant Tracking System (ATS). Ultimately, this is why it is important to include keywords in your professional resume. These tracking systems will register your use of keywords and make sure that your resume ends up on a physical desk. This is the first step towards landing an interview!
Changing careers? Learn how to write the right resume for your new position below.
Examples of Professional Resume Formats
There are several different types of professional resumes, including “chronological” and “functional” resumes. There are pros and cons of choosing either professional resume format. In the following sections, we will go over the strengths and weaknesses of each professional resume format. Then you can decide which format best meets your needs.
Chronological Resumes: Pros and Cons
“Chronological” resumes are written in reverse chronological order, starting with your most recent work experience and moving backward through your previous employment. These types of resumes follow a clear, logical progression and are very thorough.
One of the pitfalls of this professional resume format, however, is that gaps in employment become very obvious. Another factor to consider is that your most relevant experience may not necessarily be at the beginning of your resume. Consequently, if you are a part of a large applicant pool, your future employer may not read your entire resume.
In conclusion, chronological resumes are often favored for their straightforward, familiar format, but may obscure some of your most relevant experiences and may also highlight gaps in your employment history. These resumes, however, are considered to be the most standard.
Functional Resumes: Pros and Cons
A “functional” resume highlights only your most relevant experiences and skills. It is clearly written for a specific job and will often focus on including language directly from a job description.
Functional resumes focus on your professional skill set and what you can offer a company, rather than on your employment history. It is more about your potential than about your past. This innovative professional resume format is appealing in many ways.
For young professionals, this format could highlight your passion and potential, while softening a lack of practical work experience. Even if you don’t have as much work experience as you would like, you will still have a chance to stand out! You do not necessarily need years of industry-related experience to be a suitable job candidate, and this professional resume format caters well to this concept.
While some recruiters may appreciate the directness and innovation of this professional resume format, others may be critical of missing details and may prefer to assess job candidates through more familiar standards, often conveyed in a chronological resume.
What is a “Tailored” Resume?
Sometimes when you find a job opportunity you want to apply for, your resume doesn’t seem to highlight your most relevant work experiences and skills. A “tailored” resume is a version of your existing resume that highlights anything related to the specific job you are applying for.
For example, if you have a professional background in both education and art and are applying for an education-related position, you will want to give your education-related work experience more importance in your resume. You’ll still include your art-related experiences and skills, but these professional resume skills may be granted less importance and may be listed at the bottom of your resume.
Professional Resume Formats: In Conclusion
Each professional resume format has its own pros and cons. Chronological resumes highlight professional growth and clearly tell a story. They are familiar and there are lots of professional resume templates that you can use.
Functional resumes can feel exciting and different! Maybe it’s exactly what you need to catch your future employer’s eye. If you’re someone with a clear passion for your future, this format will help you demonstrate your professional zeal.
Don’t be afraid to write a “hybrid” resume by drawing upon elements of each professional resume format. There are pros and cons of each, and there is no reason you cannot try to use a bit of both to best highlight your professional resume skills.
Good Practices for Professional Resume Writing
It’s a good practice to periodically update your resume. By adding work experience and new skills as you progress in your career, you will always have an up-to-date professional resume ready to go!
This will make it easier for you to apply to positions in a timely manner. Competition is high, so you want to do your best to be on the top of the pile!
It’s also a good practice to have a folder on your computer with all of your different resume versions. This will make it easier to “tailor” your resume for different positions. Have several resume versions ready to go, each with a different professional focus.
How to Best Use Professional Resume Templates
There are lots of professional resume templates out there for you to use. Find one that makes the most sense to you!
There are lots of factors to consider when choosing a professional resume template. Look at how it’s organized. Does it look neat? Professional? Does the order make sense? Does it use a professional resume font? Is it easy to skim?
When you find a job you want to apply for, start by writing down a few sentences about why you think you’d be a good fit. What do you want to highlight? Then look at the professional resume template you’ve chosen for yourself and try to decide if it can best help you communicate these attributes. If not, find another one! There are plenty of professional resume templates to choose from.
1. Always use a clean, readable font. It can be tempting to use a smaller font so you can include more details but do not sacrifice readability for the sake of including more details. Make sure you always use a font between 10pt and 12pt.
2. Use a slightly larger font for your headers and subheaders. This will help with the overall organization and readability. You may want to bold your headings as well.
3. Include all of your contact information. It’s important that a company can easily reach you if they want to move forward with your application. Always include your full name, professional email, personal phone number, and your location (while you may include your mailing address, this is not strictly necessary).
4. Make sure your resume is well organized and easy to read. While you can hope that your future employer will read your resume thoroughly, make sure your resume is easy to skim. Your resume should stand out at a glance. The most important thing is to stay in the pile until someone can read through your resume more thoroughly.
5. Proofread! This one may be obvious, but it doesn’t make it any less important. When you submit a resume, make sure there are no mistakes.
6. Finally, attach your resume as a PDF whenever possible. This will help limit potential formatting inconsistencies. That said, always follow specific guidelines. A job may ask you to upload your resume in a specific format.
Should You Hire a Professional Resume Writer?
Everyone has professional strengths and weaknesses. If writing and organizational skills are not among your top strengths, you might consider hiring a professional resume writer. It’s okay to ask for help and to delegate tasks that are less suited to your professional skill set. Not everyone is skilled at writing resumes, but this doesn’t mean that they aren’t valuable, skilled professionals.
There are lots of articles and resources that can teach you important tips for writing your own professional resume. Regardless, it might be worth working with a professional resume writer. You only have one shot at making a strong first impression. So do everything you can to write an exceptional professional resume. Then you can focus on how to ace your interviews and compare job offers.
Professional Resume Services: The Help You Deserve
Here at Prepory, we are here to help! Reach out to learn more about our services. A well-written professional resume can help improve your job prospects significantly while speeding up your timeline. Land more interviews and compare job offers. You deserve to find professional, fulfilling employment. Don’t wait! Reach out to learn more about how our professional resume writers and professional resume services can assist you in finding your ideal employment today.
