Types of Resumes: Choosing the Right Format for Your Needs

Key takeaways

The most widely used resume formats are chronological, functional, and combination. 

• A chronological resume emphasizes your career path, while a functional resume highlights your skills. 

• A combination resume is a more flexible option that incorporates aspects of both chronological and functional resumes. 

• You can make your resume more ATS-friendly by using keywords that reflect the job description. 

Explore the three most common types of resumes: chronological, functional, and combination. Afterward, enroll in the University of Michigan’s Good with Words: Writing and Editing Specialization to sharpen your writing skills to create a more compelling resume. In as little as two months, you can learn how to proofread and add nuances to your sentences.

What are the 3 types of resumes commonly used?

The three most common resume types are chronological, functional, and combination. Before we detail each format, here’s a quick introduction:

Certain jobs or graduate schools will request a curriculum vitae (CV) instead of a resume. Learn more about the differences between a CV and a resume.

Chronological resume

• When to use it: When you’re applying for jobs via an applicant tracking system (ATS) or showing career growth

• What to include: Objective or summary (optional), work experience, education, skills, and certifications

• Pros: Easy to read and straightforward outline of your accomplishments

• Cons: Doesn’t highlight skills as explicitly as other formats

With a chronological resume (sometimes also called a reverse chronological resume), you’ll list out your experience starting with your most recent role. With this format, you’ll show how each of your professional experiences built upon the last.

This format is generally the most common, as it makes it easy for prospective employers to visualize your career trajectory. It’s also the format that an ATS is best equipped to scan, so if you’re applying for jobs online, you’ll probably want to submit a chronological resume first.

Free resume templates

If you’re starting with a blank page, use these free customizable templates for chronological, functional, or combination resumes to make your resume in a Google Doc. Simply log in to your Google account and select the “Make a copy” prompt.

Functional resume

• When to use it: When you’re changing careers and applying directly through a recruiter or hiring manager

• What to include: Objective or summary, key skills, brief work history, education, certifications

• Pros: Emphasizes your transferable skills

• Cons: De-emphasizes your work experience

With a functional resume, you’ll highlight your journey of acquiring specific skills. You’ll still list your work history, but typically, this format doesn’t include dates of employment, accomplishments, or job tasks for each role. Instead, your functional resume names your dominant skills, and you’ll include a few bullets underneath each skill that show how you acquired, strengthened, and used it throughout your career.

Although you’ll be able to incorporate several resume keywords in your functional resume, this format isn’t super ATS-friendly, as the software is typically programmed to scan the chronological resume format. Still, if you are applying for a position where it makes more sense to highlight your skills than your previous roles—for example, if you are changing your career—you may decide to have a functional resume on hand to send directly to recruiters and hiring managers.

Combination resume

• When to use it: When it’s important to show skill development for a role as well as career progression

• What to include: Objective or summary, key skills, work experience, education, certifications

• Pros: Benefits of both chronological and functional resumes, flexible formatting

• Cons: Can be lengthy and repetitive

A combination resume is a more flexible option that incorporates aspects of both chronological and functional resumes, and you get to decide which sections to include and how to utilize them. You’ll include a section that explicitly outlines your work history (dates and description included) and a section that highlights your skills.

With this format, you can present your career path in a traditional way while still emphasizing your skills. It can be helpful if it’s important to demonstrate your skills development in order to qualify for a role, for example, if you are changing careers or trying to level up. However, this format can get quite lengthy, and you’ll want to be mindful not to repeat bullet points across various sections.

What are the different types of resumes for unique career goals?

If you don’t want to go the traditional route and aren’t submitting your resume through an online job board that uses an ATS to filter applicants, you may want to show off a different set of skills with a specialized resume. Here are some specialized resumes you may want to consider:

• Targeted resume: With a targeted resume, you’ll create a highly tailored resume to demonstrate your fit for a specific role, and often, at a specific company.

• Infographic resume: Infographic resumes are more visual than the common resume types, incorporating graphics and colors for a visually appealing presentation.

• Video resume: A nontraditional resume format, video resumes are reels that demonstrate your accomplishments and goals in just a few minutes.

• Mini resume: A mini resume is both a business card and a condensed version of your resume that notes your job title and a few accomplishment bullets, which you can give to prospective employers you may meet at job fairs, for example.

Navigating applicant tracking systems (ATS): What type of resumes do employers prefer?

Most companies use ATS software to screen submitted resumes before a person reviews your qualifications. The ATS is programmed to filter resumes that have specific keywords deemed a match for open positions. Some ways to help your resume stand out in an ATS are:

1. Align your resume keywords with the job description.

2. Include the dates of your employment.

3. Avoid over-formatting and choose standard colors and fonts.

4. Spell out acronyms.

Read more: 13 Ways to Strengthen + Enhance Your Resume to Stand Out as an Applicant

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