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So you‘re searching for a new role and need to create a resume that convinces hiring managers you‘re the perfect fit? With so many formats and styles out there it can feel overwhelming deciding which approach is best. Well, you‘ve come to the right place!
As someone who has reviewed over 5,000 resumes for IT and engineering jobs, I‘ve seen every type and know first-hand the pros and cons of each. My goal is to explain the full landscape of resume options so you can choose the right one tailored to your situation.
We‘ll cover all the categories ranging from standard to creative formats. I‘ll share insider tips, templates, and examples along the way. Let‘s dive in!
Core Types of Resumes
There are three fundamental types of resumes you‘ll encounter most frequently. Each serves a different purpose.
1. Reverse Chronological Resume
The reverse chronological resume lists your work history and experience in reverse date order, starting with your current or most recent position. This format emphasizes steady career growth with one company or within the same industry.
According to recent surveys from Jobscan, over 75 percent of resumes follow this standard format. Why? Hiring managers typically prefer seeing your roles and responsibilities presented chronologically.
When to Use It
This style works well if you:
- Have 5+ years of experience in the same field
- Demonstrate increasing responsibility/impact over time
- Have minimal gaps in your work history
- Are applying to a traditional or conservative industry
Tips & Best Practices
- Only go back 10-15 years (list additional experience in a separate section if relavant)
- Start each position with a powerful action verb
- Emphasize achievements and quantifiable results
View reverse chronological template and example
2. Functional Resume
The functional resume focuses on your list relevant skills and accomplishments rather than work history. Experience is summarized into broad categories rather than being explained chronologically.
This format allows you mask gaps in your employment record and highlight capabilities that align to the target role. Around 10 percent of resumes follow this skills-focused style.
When To Use It
The functional resume works well when you:
- Are changing careers or industries
- Have multiple gaps in work history
- Lack much paid experience in the field
- Want to emphasize transferrable abilities
Tips & Best Practices
- List your strongest, most relevant skills up top
- Categorize work experience under "Career Accomplishments"
- Be prepared to discuss work history gaps in interviews
View functional resume template and example
3. Combination Resume
Also known as a hybrid resume, the combination format blends aspects of chronological and functional resumes. Your relevant skills and accomplishments are summarized first, followed by your work history explained in reverse chronological order.
This approach provides more context than a plain functional resume. The work history details back up the claimed skills and abilities with real-world examples and impact.
Around 13 percent of resumes utilize this hybrid model that offers the best of both worlds.
When To Use It
The combination resume is great if you:
- Have 7-10+ years of diverse work experience
- Are apply for senior-level roles
- Want to showcase relevant skills backed by career history
Tips & Best Practices
- Lead with a branded career summary
- Use bulleted accomplishments under each job
- Cut back work history to 15 years max
View combination resume template and example
Which of these core resume types is best for you depends on your individual situation and the type of job you‘re pursuing. As a general rule of thumb:
- Recent grads should start with reverse chronological
- Significant career changes warrant a functional resume
- Senior-level roles may benefit from a combination approach
Now let‘s look beyond the big three to some industry-specific formats.
Specialized Resume Types
In certain fields, hiring managers expect formatted resumes that follow industry-specific guidelines and requirements.
1. Federal Resume
Applying for a government job? Federal resumes adhere to strict standards set by the US Office of Personnel Management. They include more comprehensive information on work histories, skills, and achievements than any private sector resume.
Key Features:
- Strict formatting guidelines
- Average 5-15 pages in length
- Extensive employment history and accomplishments
Federal resumes are required for any government job application. Familiarize yourself with the specific chronological format and level of detail expected. Highlight clearances if relevant.
View federal resume template and example
2. Teaching Resume
Teachers tailor and tone down their resumes compared with other fields. Details should emphasize the focus areas principals care most about – educational philosophy, classroom skills, professional development, and specialties.
Key Features:
- Certifications prominently listed
- Teaching philosophy explained early on
- Volunteer work with students highlighted
Readability is essential so principals can quickly scan for required skills. Craft your teacher resume to align with the job description.
View teaching resume template and example
3. Nursing Resume
Given the life-saving nature of their work, nurses must detail specialized skills, certifications, and health care training. Hiring managers want clear indicators of nursing capabilities and experience right up front.
Key Features:
- Required certifications and licenses
- Skills synced to specialty units
- Indicators of bedside manner and care
Choose the right nursing resume template that allows your ER, OR, and floor experience and abilities to shine. Check it against postings to ensure proper fit.
View nursing resume templates and examples
Creative Resume Formats
Pursuing a creative career in media, design, photography, advertising or the arts? You have full creative license to vividly showcase your talents beyond boring standard resumes.
1. Online Portfolio Resume
Designers, photographers, animators – visually demonstrate what you can do best through radiant websites or online portfolios integrated with or replacing traditional resume PDFs.
Key Features:
- Professionally presents creative work
- About page serves as resume summary
- Links to download full resume
Show producers your demo reels. Display interactive prototypes to high tech employers. Give graphic examples of campaigns you’ve produced. Do it all through integrated online portfolios that convey skills and accomplishments impossible to capture on paper alone.
View online portfolio resume examples
2. Infographic Resume
Infographic resumes use vivid icons, engaging charts, and minimalist designs to creatively present your qualifications and career progression. This resume style grabs eyeballs unlike all the dull Word-template designs out there.
About 5 percent of resumes today incorporate graphical and infographic elements to help certain details pop according to Jobscan‘s 2021 infographic resume survey.
Key Features:
- Professionally designed layouts
- Skillset graphs and work history visual timelines
- Exportable as image file or PDF
Just ensure critical details aren’t lost in the flashy design. Strike the right balance between style and substance. The images should enhance the content rather than distract from core details jobs seekers need to convey.
View infographic resume examples
3. Video Resume
A video resume dynamically showcases your story, personality, qualifications, and achievements set to engaging background music. This multimedia format helps you stand out from the static PDF pile.
About 7 percent of hiring managers surveyed say their open to video resume in lieu of traditional formats according to a 2021 SkillRoads study.
Key Features:
- Conveys soft skills visually
- Brings achievements stories to life
- Uploaded privately to YouTube or Vimeo
The video resume offers a creative way for directors, editors, animators, public speakers, or sales reps in client-facing roles to vividly showcase key talents impossible to get across through paper.
The Right Resume Formula
Now that you know the full landscape of resume options, how do you decide? Ask yourself these five key questions:
- What field and role am I pursuing? Do conventions and common practices for my industry call for a certain format?
- What are my strongest credentials and selling points? What highlights from my background do I most want convey?
- Are there any gaps or issues in my work history? Will a functional or hybrid format help smooth over employment gaps?
- Do I fall into a specialized category? Does my situation call for federal, academic, nursing or other field-specific resume?
- Do I have visually engaging work samples? Can an online portfolio or infographic resume better showcase my work?
Once you reflect on your unique background and desired next step, the ideal resume type becomes clear.
The key is crafting the format, structure, content focus and details to align with your targeted role. Specialize your resume to fit the job the same way you want employers seeing you as the perfect specialized fit for for the role.
This targeted, intentional matching is what ultimately convinces hiring managers you‘re the ideal candidate worth interviewing.
Key Takeaways
- The reverse chronological resume reflecting steady career growth is the most common and familiar format to hiring managers
- Functional resumes that emphasize skills over work history benefit career changers and those with gaps
- Combination resumes blend professional summaries with career histories to form a hybrid approach
- Certain fields like government, academia, healthcare etc have their own formatting conventions
- Creative roles lend themselves to infographics, video resumes, online portfolios that make work dynamically come to life
I hope mapping the full terrain of resume options helps you narrow in on the approach that optimally conveys your background to stand out for the right roles.
It’s about specialization and matchmaking – conveying you have the precise qualifications and talents hiring managers seek for a specific job function and industry. Feel free to reach out if you have any other resume questions!