Choosing the Best Resume Format For You

  by Stephanie Legatos

In the past ten years of working with people in career transition, I’ve seen a myriad of books about resume writing and the job search process. Almost all of the books include examples, from the traditional to the innovative. Some showcase design layouts and formatting enhancements, or a step-by-step process for resume development, while others focus on industry-specific resumes.

Where should you start? Where once the chronological resume was the only known format, there are now four different formats that you can use. Choosing the one that will most effectively showcase your skills and expertise can be tricky. Do you choose the chronological format – the one still most widely recognized and accepted? A functional format – the format that focuses on transferable skills and most often effectively positions career changers? What about the combination format, with a chronological structure but a functional content? And, have you heard of the skills resume?

Here are a few guidelines to support you in your selection of the right format(s) for you – the first step in creating an effective resume!

The Chronological Resume: This format emphasizes your employment history by listing your work history in reverse chronological order. It provides a triple focus on positions, employers, and dates. Continuity of employment is emphasized with this type of resume – as are gaps in employment. This format is best used if you have a progressive career track, or have made lateral moves in the same industry or profession. It is the format I least recommend to career changers.

The Functional Resume: While the chronological resume uses dates as a framework, this format uses skill clusters or competencies. The most effective functional resumes I’ve seen are those that identify three-to-four competencies. For example: public relations, counseling, advocacy, fundraising, program management. Each cluster includes specific information and details about your experience and accomplishments. Your skills are not visibly connected to any specific employer, nor are they correlated to dates of employment.

If you are a career changer, this most likely is the best format for you. It is also effective if you have minimal work experience; or, (along with the Skills Resume) if you are re-entering the workforce, have had many jobs or have several employment gaps in your work history.

The Combination Resume: This format uses the same framework as the chronological resume, but the details of your experience and accomplishments are written using a functional framework. This type of resume has two advantages: it provides the traditional chronology of employment that people are used to seeing and it allows you to target specific skill clusters within each employment experience. If you choose this format, you would list your current or most recent title, employer, location and dates. Then, you would identify two or three competencies and detail your experience in each category.

This format works best for people with a solid work history who have worked in the same or similar industries and occupations and who are marketing themselves for similar positions.

The Skills Resume: Like the functional resume, this format also focuses on skills and does not correlate them to any specific employment or non-paid work experience. Unlike the functional format, the skills resume lists six-to-ten specific skills without imbedding them in skill cluster headings.

I have seen this format used effectively for people re-entering the workforce, ex-offenders, and those with limited work experience (paid or unpaid).

Tips: When you’re writing or editing your resume, you face many challenges and questions. Deciding on the most appropriate format is only one question. Remember:

• Position your skills and experience as they relate to the position for which you are applying.
• Choose only relevant information from your employment history
• Give yourself credit for volunteer, internship or other non-paid experiences. You gained or enhanced skills – use it to your advantage.
• Use the 15-year rule: exclude any experience prior to 1988 unless it’s highly relevant to the position you are seeking.

Stephanie Legatos, career counselor/coach, and trainer and instructional designer, with a M.S. in Human Resources and Counseling Psychology. In my career counseling work, I balance the practical and concrete aspects of the job search process with the expression of passion, soul and spirit in your work/life. I am a Certified Professional Resume Writer, qualified to use the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, and have more than 12 years of experience using a variety of career assessment tools and presenting workshops on job search strategies.

I can also help contribute to your organization’s staff development needs by designing and presenting training workshops on a variety of topics. Most of my career history has been in nonprofit organizations. Please contact me for a list of topics, including outlines and learning objectives.

I can be reached at BE WELL – 978-356-2939 or via e-mail: slegatos@yahoo.com.