Member-only story
The Resume Layouts That Work
How to organize your resume
On average, recruiters spend about 7.5 seconds scanning your resume. This means you must ensure the most relevant information is at the top.
It is important to remember that a recruiter is looking for reasons not to hire you instead of reasons to hire you. They aim to find the best candidates to present to the hiring manager.
There are a few tips for capturing a recruiter’s attention.
First, keep your layout simple and organized. It is much easier for a recruiter to quickly scan your resume if you have clearly labeled sections.
Second, understand which format will showcase you the best. There are three formats we can use to build our resume.
1. The reverse chronological format
The first is a reverse chronological format, the most common format.
In this format, you emphasize your work experience by listing the most recent first. The work experience section is subsequently followed by skills and education.
This format is great for people with any level of work experience. Whether you are a student looking for your first job, or an experienced candidate with many years in the industry, the reverse chronological format is always a safe and familiar choice.
This format is also great for people without large gaps in their employment history and who are looking to stay in the same industry or obtain a similar job to their current role.
There are however some downsides that come with the reverse chronological format. Since this is the most widely used resume format, it’s more challenging to stand out from the rest of the candidate pool. And if you have a significant gap in your employment history or no relevant work experience, this format might draw attention to those areas.
