To a potential employer, not only is your resume a slice of who you are, the way it is written also hint at your ability to organize and present information in the most effective way. Even before they meet you, they want to be able to see from your resume, your personal details as well as what you can do and what you are qualified to do. Sometimes, even with good experiences, a bad resume can show a lack of organization and presentation limiting the chances of a employer setting up an interview with you.
A good and effective resume should be kept to a minimal page count, and more often than not, employers will specify a one page limit to resumes. Therefore it is important to prioritize the information to ensure you include all the essential details an employer will look for to consider you as a candidate for their vacant position.
Consider the following suggestion on a format for your resume:
1. Your Personal Details
Obviously, the employer will want to know your name and your contact details should he/she want to contact you for further discussions. This section should always be at the top of your resume and be noticeable. The essential details to provide here are: Your name, your address, your contact phone numbers and your email address.
Some people may choose to include nationality, a personal website if they have one and their date of birth here too, however these are dependent on the job roles you are applying for and are generally not necessary.
2. Optional section: Personal Skills
This section is completely optional yet can provide better insight to your skills. Things like customer focus, open and fast learner are things that can be put here. As well as any other extra skills such as negotiation skills and your computer literacy can also be included here if they can assist you with the job role being applied for.
3. Optional: Your education details
If you have just finished school and are still studying at the university, it is essential to list both your school and university details. For a professional job seeker that do not have recent education history can omit this section.
Note: any details requiring dates should always be listed with the most recent first, followed by the next most recent.
4. Your Employment History
If you have no employment history, this section can be left out. However, should you be looking for further employment, you should be listing all your relevant employment here starting with the most recent.
It is important to format each of your employment entry to the same style, listing dates employed, the company or employer name, your position as well as a short description of what your job involved. This is a good insight to the employer on what you have done and if you are suitable for the job you will be applying for.
5. Extra Curricular Activities
Extra curricular activities give employers an idea of your personality outside the professional environment. Employers can tell a lot from the activities you participate in and listing them down may aid you in securing that interview. Activities such as being part of the local basketball team, or volunteering with a charity on a casual basis can be helpful aid to your job search.
This is also a good section to list any organisations you are part of, such as being a member of the local Rotary Club for example.
6. References
Generally, you don't need to list out your referees yet on your resume. A sentence stating "References will be provided on request" is often accepted as employers would not be asking for your reference until they want to further your application. Make sure that you have at least two people as your referees, and one of them should be a professional referee from a previous job.
The above is for a general guide only. It is recommended that you tailor your resume to the job you are applying for, and have a different resume for a different position. This way, you are giving the right information to the right people and will not waste their time reading about things that do not concern them.
It is also a good idea to create two resumes, one comprehensive resume with all the description necessary and one brief, one page resume in case the employer specifically ask for a brief resume only. This way, you are well prepared to provide which ever upon the employer's request.