best format of resume for interview

How To Make A Resume 101 (Examples Included)

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By Mike Simpson

If you are reading this article, I think it is safe to say that we can call you a “job seeker”, correct?

But what kind of job seeker are you?

Are you looking for a change of pace from your everyday job?

Are you just starting out in the workforce?

Maybe you’re a seasoned veteran trying to make the leap up the chain of command?

Or perhaps you’re just fed up with the way things are going (or not going) with your career and it’s time for a change?

Well, no matter what stage you are in your career, you’re going to need to know how to write a good resume for a job interview … and we are going to show you how! So start by downloading our Free “Perfect Resume” Checklist that will help you overhaul your resume and will get you more interviews.  Click here to get the “perfect resume” checklist

What Is a Resume?

Don’t laugh.

Believe it or not, some people (especially those who are completely new to the workforce) have never seen a resume before, let alone written one.

If you’re one of those people, this section is for you!

So what is a resume?

A resume   is a document used by job seekers to help  provide a summary of their  skills , abilities and accomplishments .

In other words,  a resume is typically a short and quick way for a job seeker to introduce themselves to a potential employer. (In North America a resume should not be confused with a CV . Check out our blog post on the difference between a CV and a resume if you’re interested.)

Resumes are normally submitted to hiring managers along with a cover letter (Need help writing a cover letter? Check out our article How To Write a Cover Letter 101 ), usually via email or on online job posting.

Sounds pretty easy, right? Just take a piece of paper and put some basic info on it and “wham, bam, thank you, ma’am, I’m right for the job and can start tomorrow,” right?

Unfortunately (or fortunately, which I’ll explain later) it’s not that easy.

In fact, writing a bad resume is much easier than writing a good one…and trust me, there are lots of bad ones out there…which is why you want to make sure you have good one…no wait, a GREAT one so when employers look at it, they say, “Heck yes, bring this kid in for an interview!”

Why Do I Need a Resume?

I know the (company CEO, boss, hiring manager, owner’s dog walker who works on Tuesday’s and they’ve totally promised me a job no matter what.)

If that’s true, then hey, you probably don’t need a resume…you’re essentially guaranteed the job already… but what about when that job ends?

Betcha no matter how great your hookups are right now, at some point in your career, you’re gonna need a killer resume, and luckily we’re here to tell you how to create a resume.

And not just any resume… a professional resume .

For those of us who don’t have direct connections to killer jobs, a resume is essential to getting your foot in the door.

Employers use resumes as a way to quickly screen potential applicants , selecting only the individuals they feel are right for the position, so making sure your resume is in tip-top shape is absolutely vital.

Here, let me walk you through a quick little scenario and we’ll see just how important those little pieces of paper actually are:

Imagine you’re a hiring manager and it’s your job to find the perfect candidate for an open position with your company.

You’ve trolled the usual job listing sites and posted what you’re looking for and the response has been…overwhelming.

Your desk is COVERED with resumes. Pile after pile. Stack after stack.

All you need is that one qualified person, but as you look through the piles of paperwork, you feel your stomach starting to knot up. These resumes are a mess. Most of them are sloppy, with spelling errors, confusing headings, and lists of qualifications that have absolutely NOTHING to do with the job at all. You need an IT specialist and a third of these resumes have things like ‘underwater basket weaving specialist,’ and ‘professional poodle groomer’ listed under relevant skills. How is that relevant?

You call maintenance and ask them to empty your trash can, again. It’s filling up too quickly with all these rejected candidates.

You continue to slog through the pile of papers, your eyes growing heavy with each rejection. You’re sleepy, you’re bored, and you’re frustrated. Does NOBODY really qualify for this job?

And then you see it. A single resume that’s clean, crisp and clearly written. The font is professional, the layout is well organized and thoughtful and the qualifications are…gasp…actually on target! You smile as you read it, your heavy eyes suddenly snapping open in excitement as you realize you’ve got someone here who might actually be able to do the job!

You carefully set that resume to the side, a bright yellow note stuck on top of it: “ Interview THIS one. ”

Then you turn back to your unending mountain of resumes. Back to the slog.

Okay. Story time is over…back to reality. How would you like to be that hiring manager?

No fun, eh? Absolutely not!

Unfortunately, odds are, your current resume is probably buried in that mountain of not quite right resumes…or worse yet, in the trash waiting to go out with the next trash run.

Wouldn’t you rather be the one with the yellow “Interview THIS one” sticky?

Okay, then… it’s time to give you all the resume help you need! That’s why we created this fantastic (and free) Resume Checklist for you to use to make sure your resume stand out against your competition.  Click here to get the “perfect resume” checklist .

In this article, we’ll show you SECTION 1 , “How to Build a Resume” or proper resume format and SECTION 2 , “How to Write a Resume.”

Section 1 – How To Make a Resume (or Proper Resume Format)

Good resume writing (and proper resume format) is an art form and can make the difference between getting lost in the pile and being invited in for an interview.

(Here’s the good news. We’ve dedicated an entire blog article just to resume format and the best practices for 2017 and beyond! Click here to head over to that article now! )

The problem is, a lot of people don’t see it as an art form…rather an obligation. Most people look at writing a resume as just something you have to do to get a job.

There’s no time put into it. No thought. And certainly no enthusiasm.

Just a bunch of stuff thrown on a page with the expectation that if the company really want to hire you, they should be able to look at that mess and pull what they need out of it and bring you in based off of that.

Reality check!

Research has proven that hiring managers only bring in about 1 person per 200 resumes received .

Those are some pretty miserable odds!

Time to step up your game and go from one of the 200 to that one out of 200!

Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS)

Okay, so we just finished telling you that writing a resume is an art form and that you need to stand out. BUT (there’s always a “but” isn’t there?) this doesn’t mean that you should paint your resume in water colors or build a resume diorama out of Play-Doh and Legos.

In fact, you should know that a lot of companies today are using Applicant Tracking Systems to help them screen resumes and find the best candidates.

How does this work exactly?

Well, a piece of software analyzes your resume for certain keywords and gives you a score based how well your resume matches a predetermined list of keywords chosen by the company you’re interviewing with.

There are a few things you can do to ensure your resume gets past the software and into the hands of hiring managers, which Lifehacker does a nice job of outlining here .

In the meantime, here are our best practices to follow when it comes to formatting your resume.

Resume Fonts

Of course you want your resume to stand out, but for the right reasons…and you have to understand that it starts with the very first second someone looks at it.

Your resume is a marketing tool to sell you to an employer and that means making sure it clearly represents you in a professional manner.

Notice the word professional. That’s what this is. PROFESSIONAL .

This isn’t a time for artistic expression or a place to make a personal statement using gimmicks or tricks..and that means say goodbye to cartoon fonts.

No. Comic. Sans.

I repeat. DO NOT EVER USE COMIC SANS.

Look at it. It’s ridiculous.

Who is ever going to take that font seriously? Nobody. That’s who.

You get, on average, 10 to 20 seconds to make a first impression with your resume… so make it count!

If your resume is sloppy or has unprofessional font, odds are those 20 seconds are going to end with you in the trash.

For anyone with a basic word processing program, it’s easy to see there are hundreds of fonts out there to choose from and picking the right one can be difficult. We’ve already discussed Comic Sans (no) but what fonts are good ones to use?

There are two categories of font. Serif and San-serif .

Serif fonts are stylized fonts with tails and other (subtle) decorative markings. Examples of serif fonts include Times New Roman . They are perceived as being reliable, authoritative, and traditional.

Other serif fonts include: Bell MT , Bodoni MT , Bookman Old Style , Cambria , Goudy Old Style , Calibri , Garamond, and Georgia .

San-serif fonts are also often used and are characterized as being simpler and no-frills. San-serif fonts include Helvetica and Arial and are associated with being clean, universal, modern, objective and stable.

Examples of san-serif fonts include: Verdana , Trebuchet MS , Century Gothic , Gill Sans MT , Lucida Sans , and Tahoma .

No matter which font you use, the biggest consideration you have to keep in mind is legibility .

You need to make sure that your typeface is easy on the eyes and shows up well both in print and on screen, regardless of formatting or size.

Another consideration to keep in mind is that not everyone has the same operating system on their computer so unique or gimmicky fonts that look great on one computer system might show up as absolute nonsense on another.

Also, remember in today’s increasing digital age that most resumes are first scanned by an automated applicant tracking software program and any form that can’t be read will be automatically discarded!

Which one is right for you? It’s up to you really, but if you really want a recommendation then I suggest keeping it simple and going with  Helvetica . It’s the perfect combination of style and clarity.

Mike's Tip:

Resume layout & formatting.

Okay, now that you’ve got your font picked out, it’s time to focus on your resume formats (or layouts).  Don’t worry if you can’t remember all of this stuff, because we summarize it all on our “Perfect Resume” Checklist we made for you.  Simply click here to get your copy .

The first rule of layout is, keep it clean and clear. You want a resume that’s easy to read and easy to follow.

Again, remember, you get 10-20 seconds to catch a hiring manager’s eye so handing in something that’s messy, unorganized or confusing is going to end up in the trash.

Margins – Keep your margins to ½ to 1 inch on all sides of the paper, especially if you’re sending your resume to anyone you think might print it out. The last thing you want is to have a printer crop your resume and leave off important information!

Font Size – With the exception of your name which can be larger, you want to keep your font size at between 10 and 12 point. Keep in mind that some fonts are larger and/or smaller than others so an Arial 12 is larger than a Times New Roman 12. Ideally you want your resume to be a single page so feel free to tweak your font size a bit to make it fit (some programs allow you to adjust sizes by half points) but remember, keep it readable! Don’t sacrifice legibility in order to get everything on the page .

Spacing – Generally single spacing works the best, with a blank line between each section of content.

Paper – If you’re printing out your resume make sure to use a laser printer or inkjet printer that produces high-quality results. Use off-white , ivory or bright white paper and always stick to the standard 8 ½ X 11 paper in the highest quality you can afford. Make sure if there is a watermark on the paper that it’s facing the correct way and whatever you do, keep it readable. Don’t cram so much on the page that it’s crowded or confusing!

Resume Categories

Resumes are really nothing more than a bunch of specific categories that quickly outline who you are and what you’ve done and can do. Making sure your categories are well organized is a quick way to help put you in the “yes” pile and keep you out of the “trash” pile.

One of the biggest problems with many resumes is they lack focus and clarity. Double check yours and make sure your categories are well defined and organized.

Header – Start your resume off with the most important information first: your personal information! Include your full name, phone number, email and personal branding website if you have one . It’s also appropriate to include your permanent mailing address, but this can be optional.

Objective or Resume Summary – Depending on what sort of job seeker you are and what job you’re applying for, you will have to choose between an objective statement (what your employment goals are with the company you’re applying to) or a resume summary (a quick recap of your skills and experiences that highlight your value to a potential employer.) Regardless of whether you include an objective or a summary, keep this short and sweet (no more than a sentence or two.)

• For our in-depth article on how to write a resume objective, click here .
• For our in-depth article on how to write a resume summary statement, click here .

Experience/Qualifications – This part is all about your work history and should not only include who you worked for but what you did and how long you did it. Include the title you held and a quick bulleted list of responsibilities and/or duties. This is listed in reverse chronological order with your most recent job first .

Skills & Abilities – This section is a quick outline of the skills to put on a resume that relate to the position/career you’re applying to. These can include things like computer skills , technical skills , language skills , anything that can help make you the perfect candidate!

References – Including references is no longer a requirement. It’s a good idea to have references, but the days of listing them at the bottom of your resume is a thing of the past. Instead, have them as a separate list, and if requested, you’ll be able to provide it. Check out our article on professional reference letters if you need more info. (If you need a character reference, check out our article .)

Interests – This category is a tough one. Not every resume should include an interests section…this isn’t Facebook and your potential IT employer probably doesn’t need to know you spend your weekends dressing up as a troll warlord and reenacting great battles… Interests and hobbies can be a double-edged sword and listing something that has nothing to do with the job you’re applying for can not only waste valuable resume space but can also make you seem unfocused or scattered. HOWEVER…there are times when including interests can help you out…especially if they’re related to the job you’re applying for and show interest outside of the office, such as volunteering for an organization you know the corporation is already involved in (do you research first)! This category should be carefully considered before you add it. Weigh the pros and cons very seriously.

Types of Resumes (And 3 Resume Samples)

There are three major types of resumes: chronological, functional and combination (sometimes called targeted or hybrid), and we’ve included a description of each below along with some good resume examples.

Chronological Resume

Chronological resumes are the most commonly used layout and is exactly what it sounds like, a chronological listing of all your work history with your most recent positions listed first.

Employers tend to really like this type of a resume because it’s easy for them to quickly see what jobs you’ve held and how long you’ve held them. It also often includes an objective or career summary as well as education, certifications, and special skills.

For job seekers with a strong working background, this is a great way to showcase what you’ve done!

Here is a great chronological sample resume:

Source: Vault.com

Functional Resume

Functional resumes focus more on skills and experiences rather than on chronological work history and are perfect for people who are changing careers or have a gap in their work history as they focus attention on specific skills and capabilities.

Rather than displaying a timeline of your work history, the functional resume focuses on the actual skills you possess and highlights what you know rather than when you did it.

If you’re applying for a job with specific skills or clearly defined requirements and/or traits, this is the one you want to choose!

Here is a great functional sample resume:

Combination Resume

Combination resumes are exactly that, a combination of chronological and functional. A combination resume lists both your skills and experiences as well as your employment history in chronological order.

The idea is to not only highlight the skills you have that are relevant to the job you’re applying to, but also provide your potential employer with a chronological record of the jobs you’ve held in the past.

Because this type of resume is essentially two different types mashed together, it’s typically broken into two parts. The first part is your functional resume section and highlights your skills, achievements and qualifications and the second part is your timeline of work experience.

Although more complicated to pull together and keep cohesive and clear, this type of format is effective when used by an applicant who wants to show off the most relevant skills while still documenting work history. It’s also a great way to explain gaps in work history as well as career changes.

Here is a great combination sample resume:

So How Long Should A Resume Be?

Once upon a time the fast and hard rule was keep your resume to one-page MAX! Job seekers who found their resumes exceeding the one page limit were forced to either cut out valuable information or tweak their formatting, font sizes and/or margins to make it work, often resulting in either difficult formatting or incomplete histories.

Nowadays the rules are a little more relaxed and the new rule is: Your resume should be long enough to entice the hiring manager to call you in for an interview.

Confused? Don’t be.

First off, your resume is an introduction to who you are…give them enough information to get them comfortable, but brief enough that they’re left wanting more (and call you in for an interview!)

This isn’t a novel. It isn’t a 10-page dissertation on who you are or a 20-page essay on everything you’ve done from your first moments on earth to the moment you sent it to the company.

It’s a career marketing tool and should be used exactly like any good advertising is used…to build excitement, pique curiosity, and encourage the viewer to ask “ Okay, I like this so far…what else? ”

Remember our hiring manager from story time at the beginning of this article? Remember, they’re looking through hundreds, if not thousands of resumes and the last thing you want to do is to hand them a long document they’ll have to pour over to get the info they need.

Be concise . Be brief . Be clear . Be professional .

The best way to determine how long your resume should be is to follow these simple rules:

If you have less than 10 years of experience, are in the middle of a career change, or held multiple positions with one single employer, keep your resume to one page.

If you have more than 10 years of experience, your field is technical or engineering related and you need space to list all your skills and qualifications then two pages is appropriate.

And only in the most rare of situations, usually scientific or academic fields where extensive lists of publications, speaking engagements, professional courses, licenses or patents are normal, can you have a resume three or more pages long…

Okay, got all that? Ready to move onto Section 2 – “How to Write a Resume?”

If you haven’t already, now would be a good time to get your free Resume Checklist. It will help to have it open as you go through the next section!  Click here to get it now .

Section 2 – How To Write a Resume

Now that we have a general idea of what a resume should include, let’s look at how to write one that helps you stand out from the crowd.

Again, let’s go back to our poor beleaguered hiring manger toiling away over mountains of unfocused resumes…and while we’re there, I’m going to let you in on a little secret.

Out of all of those resumes, there are hundreds of qualified candidates…people who would probably do an amazing job and would be great additions to any company.

Sure, there are those in that pile who have NO business applying for the job…but I guarantee there’s a big chunk of applicants who are qualified and would be great hires…problem is, their resumes…well…suck.

Luckily yours…doesn’t. In fact, yours is brilliant and you are the perfect candidate! You’re the answer to the hiring manager’s prayers. You’re the reason they post jobs and slog through piles of paper poo and when they finally stumble on your little nugget of job history gold, jump to their feet in excitement and yell “Bring this one IN!”

Or at least, if you follow these guidelines and rules, you will be!

Tailoring Your Resume

No, we don’t mean tailoring like getting a nice suit and having it professionally fitted to you (not a bad idea for interview wear, but that’s a different post for a different time.) but tailoring as in making your resume absolutely perfect for the job you’re applying for.

Job hunting is exactly that, hunting…and if you’ve ever done any sort of hunting, you know each and every animal requires different skills. And before you get all upset and tell me “Hey, I’ve never hunted an animal and I never plan on doing it and your analogy is horrible,” let me TAILOR this even further down.

Have you ever tried to get an animal to come to you?

Have a cat? Have a dog? Have a bird? Even a fish?

Each one requires a different approach and what works for one won’t work for another.

Ever tried to entice a horse to come to you with a juicy steak? How about tossing some hay to a tiger and wondering why it isn’t eating? Of course not! That’s because you tailor what you’re doing to the situation you’re in.

Give the steak to the tiger and the hay to the horse!

Cats typically respond well to string and lasers. Dogs love to chase balls. And job hunting is exactly the same!

If you’re sending out the exact same resume to 500 job listings, then you’re not doing it right.

Odds are, you’re not getting many interviews either, and you’re probably wondering what’s wrong with all those hiring managers.

Is it possible all 500 are idiots and can’t tell how amazing you are and how you’re incredible and they’re totally missing out by not hiring you?

Possibly, but I doubt it.

Tailoring means making sure that every resume is unique and specifically written to appeal to the hiring manager for the job you’re applying to. That means if you send out 500 resumes for 500 job listings, each and every one of those 500 resumes will be different.

Exhausting? Hell yes.

Worth it? When you get the job of your dreams…you bet!

The problem is, each job is different and what each hiring manager is looking for is different. There is no physical way to satisfy each and every employer’s individual hiring requirements using just one blanket resume.

If you want to catch the attention of the hiring manager, you have to give them what they want. You need to invest the time into each application and ensure that your resume is tailored to each employer and the job you’re applying to.

Of course, we’re not saying you have to write 500 resumes from the ground up…it IS okay to start with a basic resume that lists your skills and qualifications…but you have to make sure you customize it for each job you apply for.

Let’s start with our categories from the previous section, shall we?

Header – Again, this is your basic personal information. It’s your name and contact info and really shouldn’t change.

Objective or Resume Summary – Again, you need to decide which one will work for you…an objective statement or a resume summary . We recapped the difference between both in the above section. The key here is be concise and clear. One to two sentences MAX.

Experience/Qualifications – This is where WORK EXPERIENCES go. Include anything you’ve done for which you’ve been paid. This includes full-time and part-time work as well as anything you did that qualifies for self-employed work.

Make sure for each job you list:

• The name of the company or organization where you were employed.
• The city and state for that company or organization.
• Your last position and/or title you held while there.
• Your employment period for each job in Month/Date format
• A brief description of your duties and responsibilities in a short, bulleted list

The hardest part about writing this section is making sure that you list your contributions to the company while still being concise and clear, as well as accurate.

Highlight the relevant information that relates directly to the job you’re now applying for and cut out any clutter that might add unnecessary length to your resume.

Speaking of length, keep your bullets short and sweet.

Wrong : “Daily I worked hand in hand with the company’s most important clients assisting them with problem-solving and ensuring that they were happy and satisfied with our work.

Right : Worked daily with high profile clients to solve problems.

Do not include unpaid , volunteer or charitable work in this section. If you feel you have an unpaid experience or volunteer job that a hiring manager would find valuable, consider creating a new category labelled “Relevant Experience” or “Other Experience” and be sure to include the same identifying information you include for your “Experience/Qualifications” lists.

Skills/Abilities – Every employer is looking for specific resume skills and abilities for the job they’re trying to fill. Your job (while you’re trying to get a job) is to make sure you fit what they’re looking for. These are the job specific skills and should be tailored (there’s that word again!) for each application you submit. But did you know there are skills to put on a resume  that are almost universally valued by potential employers???? Those skills go HERE in this section.

Skills like:

Communication (listening, verbal and written) – This is the number one skill mentioned by employers when asked what they valued in an applicant.

Computer/Technical Literacy Skills – Almost every job these days requires some level of computer proficiency including basic word processing, spreadsheets, and emails.

Interpersonal Skills – Basically how well you work in a team and your ability to relate to co-workers.

Planning/Organization Skills – How well you can design, plan, organize and execute projects and tasks within a specific time frame. Can also apply to goal setting and achievement.

This is just a small sampling of what can go in this section. For a more in-depth look at what to put in this section, check out our previous blog all about it here!

Education – This one, much like your personal information, is pretty straight forward. You want to list your education in reverse chronological order (degrees or licenses first followed by certificates and advanced training).

If you include your college information, list only the school, your major and distinctions and or awards you’ve won. If you’re still in college or a very recent grad , include your GPA ONLY if it’s over a 3.4.

Dropped out or had to leave school because of extenuating circumstances but still want to include the fact that you went? No worries! List the field you were studying, then the school and then the dates that you attended.

If you’re listing just schooling, keep the title of this section “Education.” If you’ve graduated, are including other training, and or other certifications, try to include that in the title. Examples can include “Education and Training,” or “Education and Licenses.” Make the title fit what you’re listing…

Awards – This section is NOT for school-related awards. Include those in your education section. Rather, this section is for awards received, commendations or praise from senior sources. Make sure to mention what the award was for if you can.

Affiliations – If you are affiliated with an organization, guild or club that is relevant to the job you are applying for, the go ahead and include it. Include leadership roles if appropriate. It’s also a great idea to include any sort of affiliation or membership to any organization that might increase your appeal as a prospective employee to an employer.

For almost anything you want to include on a resume, there is a category to help organize it. We’ve listed the most popular above but feel free to do your own research online, especially if what you’re trying to include is unique or hard to categorize.

Action Verbs and Power Words

Speaking of unique, the primary goal of your resume is to make you stand out from the rest of the people applying for the same job and another way to make that happen is to use action verbs and power words (also referred to as “resume verbs”).

Action verbs and power words are exactly that…they’re words that help catch a hiring manager’s eye and give you an edge. After reading hundreds of resumes, many using the same words and phrases, it’s nice to have one that stands out and one of the best ways to do that is by incorporating action verbs and power words!

You’re not exaggerating and you’re certainly not lying, you’re just swapping out old and tired words for ones that are a bit more…dynamic and exciting!

When listing skills , accomplishments, or job described, try using the most impressive words you can think of (without overstating what you actually did).

Were you a leader of a project ? Instead of saying “Led,” use one of these words:

Chaired, controlled, coordinated, executed, headed, operated, orchestrated, organized, oversaw, planned, produced, programmed.

Did you pull a project from conception all the way to completion? Instead of saying “developed, created, or introduced,” try:

Administered, built, chartered, designed, devised, founded, engineered, constructed, established, formalized, formed, formulated, implemented, spearheaded, incorporated, initiated, instituted, introduced, launched, pioneered.

Are you an organizing wizard? Are you increasing productivity ? Sales ? Efficiency? Use these words to really hit home how dynamic you are:

Accelerated, achieved, advanced, amplified, boosted, capitalized, delivered, enhanced, expanded, expedited, furthered, gained, generated, improved, lifted, maximized, outpaced, stimulated, sustained.

Did you achieve something ? Did you hit your goals? Try these words:

Attained, awarded, completed, demonstrated, earned, exceeded, outperformed, reached, showcased, succeeded, surpassed, targeted.

This is just a small selection of action verbs and words you can use to spice up your resume and help you stand out in the crowd. (Need more? Head over to our blog article “68 Dynamic Action Verbs to Enhance Your Resume.” )

Grab your thesaurus and go through your resume…find words that are common and pedestrian and swap them out!

Wow, that’s a ton of information…can you just distill all this epic awesomeness down into a top ten list of tips for creating a resume??

Drum roll, please…

Here Are Our Top 10 Resume Tips

If you’re one of those people who likes to skim through an article or if you plan on coming back for a quick review before your interview, here are our best resume writing tips.

1) Tailored

You’re bringing steak to the tigers with your resume. The employer can look at it and know immediately that not only are you qualified but that you’ve done your research into what the job is and what they’re looking for in an employee. Your goal s are clear as are your skills , areas of expertise and or body of experience .

2) Aesthetically Pleasing

Remember what we said about a resume being a work of art? It should be clean, concise and have a simple structure that invites a reader to glance at it and immediately know what they’re looking at. It’s balanced and flows between sections smoothly. It’s not crowded, the margins are clean, and the font is professional. It’s also devoid of ANY ERRORS . No missing periods, no misspelled words, no grammar issues. It’s also correct and the information included is current and accurate.

3) Complete

That means everything you need to include is included, including (but not limited to) your name, current phone number and accurate email address, a listing of all the jobs you’ve held (in reverse chronological order), educational degrees (including any certifications and the highest degree achieved – again in reverse chronological order) and any targeted information that will help a hiring manager realize you are the perfect candidate.

The easiest way to make sure you remember all of this is to keep track using the “Perfect Resume” Checklist we made for you. You can simply check off the boxes as you complete them. Click here to your “perfect resume” checklist .

4) Accurate

Jobs listed also include your title, the name of the company or organization you worked with, the city and state where you worked and the years you were employed. The bulleted lists are summarized in a clear way that highlights the key ideas without taking up too much space.

And PLEASE! No fibs. Hiring Managers can easily verify anything you put on your resume, and getting busted lying isn’t exactly a winning formula for getting job offers.

The hiring manager can look at your resume and immediately know what you’re applying for and what you bring in value to the company. It’s clear and concise. There’s no confusion as to what your profession is and what you can do.

One page to two pages max, depending on your field, level of experience and skill set. Don’t bore people with details, keep them wanting more…but also learn the balance between not saying enough to saying just enough.

7) Relevant

Never include anything on a resume that might turn off an employer including political or religious affiliations, anything controversial, or that could be taken in a negative light.

8) Professional

This includes font, layout, and paper as well as content. Again, this is for a job and should be used as such. This isn’t a platform for personal statements or a novel detailing every job you’ve ever had since birth to present. It’s printed on high-quality paper in an appropriate color and is clean of any smudges, tears or wrinkles.

Every time you apply for a new job, check your resume to ensure that it’s not only targeted, but also current. Make sure your dates are correct and that you include the most up to date information (this is especially important if you’ve changed your phone number or contact email!)

10) It Is YOURS

That’s right…it might seem strange to say this, but the number one thing you have to remember when applying for any job is to be honest! Use action verbs and power words to give your resume life, but don’t let yourself get carried away and overstate your skills, positions, or abilities. Remember, they’re hiring you …and the last thing you want is to get a job you can’t do.

11) BONUS TIP – Your Resume Contains A Link To Your Personal Website

We’ve been seeing an interesting trend in 2017. Job seekers who add a link to a personal branding website are getting more job interviews and in turn getting more job offers. The fact is, having a simple personal website that highlights your skills and more importantly your personality go a long way to creating a three dimensional persona for the hiring manager . A personal website makes you stand out when compared to all the other candidates who just hand in a resume and cover letter. To find out more check out this blog post .

What Not To Put On Your Resume

Don’t title your resume “resume.” The hiring manager should know what it is just by looking at it. If they don’t, then it’s not a resume and you should re-read this article.

Don’t “fluff” your sentences with unnecessary words. Remember, short and sweet.

Don’t include salary requirements or information. For more info on how to discuss your salary and when and how to bring it up, check out our blog on “When to bring up Salary.”

Don’t list why you left your last job or jobs…and on that same topic, don’t trash former employers…ever…

Don’t include personal information beyond your name and contact. They don’t need your age, race, marital status, sexual orientation or hobbies.

Don’t include a photo of yourself. Unless you’re an actor and applying for a role…otherwise, it’s just creepy.

Don’t get sloppy. Double-check for errors. Then check again.

Resume Templates

Now, we imagined that you’d like some resume templates to help you build a resume, so we combed the internet for some job-specific free resume templates that you can use as a guiding tool.

Customer Service Resume

Administrative Assistant Resume

Teacher Resume

Nursing Resume

Receptionist Resume

Medical Assistant Resume

Project Manager Resume

Cashier Resume

NOTE : These are templates, meaning they are a good place for you to start. But keep in mind that other applicants will also have access to these templates so you don’t want to copy them exactly. Don’t forget you want to stand out among the other applicants, not blend in!

Putting It All Together

So there you have it! How to make a resume …or better yet, how to make an AWESOME resume! Just remember that no single resume is right for every job…make sure to keep it short, sweet, and relevant.

Now re-read this article, but as you do, go through your old resume and see where you can make improvements . Clean it up , pare it down , punch up your action verbs and make it the best possible resume you can…

And above all…good luck!

FREE : "Perfect Resume" PDF Checklist

Ok the next thing you should do is download our handy "Perfect Resume" Checklist PDF ".

In it you'll get a 38 point checklist that will let you overhaul your resume and make sure you aren't missing any critical components.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE "PERFECT RESUME" CHECKLIST

Co-Founder and CEO of TheInterviewGuys.com. Mike is a job interview and career expert and the head writer at TheInterviewGuys.com.

His advice and insights have been shared and featured by publications such as Forbes , Entrepreneur , CNBC and more as well as educational institutions such as the University of Michigan , Penn State , Northeastern and others.

Learn more about The Interview Guys on our About Us page .

About The Author

Mike simpson.

Co-Founder and CEO of TheInterviewGuys.com. Mike is a job interview and career expert and the head writer at TheInterviewGuys.com. His advice and insights have been shared and featured by publications such as Forbes , Entrepreneur , CNBC and more as well as educational institutions such as the University of Michigan , Penn State , Northeastern and others. Learn more about The Interview Guys on our About Us page .

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Use this new resume template and example to land an interview today, says hiring manager of 20 years

With unemployment rates skyrocketing this year, due to the  coronavirus pandemic , having a solid resume is crucial for getting noticed and landing job interviews .

As someone who's been hiring and interviewing for more than 20 years, and the founder of a resume template and writing service , I've noticed several changes in what employers are looking for in a resume today.

Below is an updated resume template and example that can help boost your chances of landing an interview — along with a breakdown of why it gets an "A+" score:

1. Indicates telecommunication skills

Thanks to the pandemic, companies have been given no choice but to adapt to remote work — making telecommunication skills  more valuable than ever.

Remember to use specific platform keywords, instead of wasting space with boring phrases like "I'm good at time-management" or "I'm tech-savvy." (In a recent survey of 277 hiring professionals, 43% named Zoom as the most-preferred video conferencing software.)

Where to put on your resume : At the bottom, in the "Skills" section Examples : 

• Google Meet

2. Showcases the ability to adapt to rapid changes.

The way we work has changed dramatically this year. Companies are looking for candidates who can quickly adjust to new policies, workplace norms and shifting expectations.

This might mean mentioning how you've taken on new roles, worked with modified budgets, implemented new platforms or grew sales despite a downsized team — all during Covid-19.

Where to put on your resume : Under the "Experience" section, specifically for your most recent job Examples :

• Led marketing team that downsized from 20 people to 11; grew sales by 25% (Q1 and Q2 2020)
• Implemented platforms like RemoteHQ and Trello for more effective remote team collaboration
• Raised Twitter engagement by 40% (Q2 2020)

3. Includes a resume title

Most candidates think that adding a resume title is just repetitive. But this will be an increasingly common practice for years to come.

Imagine a hiring manager reviewing dozens of applications to fill an accountant role. All it takes is a relevant title, in bold at the very top, to immediately grab their attention and show that the candidate is a potential fit for the job.

Where to put on your resume : At the top, as a header (beneath your name and contact information) Examples :

• Certified Public Accountant
• Senior Staff Accountant
• Digital Marketing Manager

4. Includes URL to LinkedIn profile

Adding a link to your LinkedIn profile has been the standard for some time, but so many candidates still miss this essential step.

Recruiters want to learn more about your credentials, aside from what's already listed on your resume. In fact, a recent study showed that having a comprehensive LinkedIn profile can increase your chances of landing a job interview by 71%.

Where to put on your resume : At the top, beneath your contact information

5. Includes experience summary

Think of this as your one opportunity to summarize your professional life , core capabilities and experience level — free of job titles and start dates.

Use this space to highlight your career choices and most impressive achievements (or even to show off your personality). All of this strengthens your first impression in a way that no other resume section can.

Where to put on your resume : Above the "Experience" section, and beneath your resume title Examples :

• Fiercely competitive sales manager with 7+ years of experience driving profitability through strategic growth, leading teams and quality control. Achieved $500,000 in monthly sales, while increasing customer satisfaction by 5% each year.
• Retail sales associate with 4+ years of experience communicating with and retaining clients. Achieved an average of 140% of sales goals for 6 consecutive months and provided recommendations that generated $13,000 in additional revenue.
• Science researcher of 10+ years working to better understand how neural activity motivates and shapes human behavior. Expertise includes project design and data analysis. My colleagues would describe me as a driven, resourceful individual who maintains a positive, proactive attitude when faced with adversity.

6. Includes brief description of companies

Unless you've held titles with major employers like Google, Apple or Amazon, it's important to include a short description of the companies you worked for (especially if they're small start-ups).

Mentioning the company size — in parenthesis — is also essential background information, because it gives managers an idea of things like your workload and the amount of support or resources that were available to you.

Where to put on your resume : In the "Experience" section, beneath each company name and position Examples :

• Led marketing operations for gaming hardware company (45+ employees)
• Manager of a 4-person engineering team for web analytics service (70+ employees)
• Sales assistant for award-winning web design agency (25+ employees)

Peter Yang  is a career expert and the CEO of  Resume Writing Services , the parent company of  ResumeGo . Before that, he worked as a hiring manager for nearly two decades. Peter has written for Business Insider, Inc. and Glassdoor. Follow him on Twitter  @ThePeterYang .

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The Best Resume Formats to Use in 2024 [+ Examples]

3 key takeaways

• What a resume format is (plus three types you should know about)
• How to choose the best resume format for your experience (with examples and templates)
• How to format your resume with the free Teal AI Resume Builder

You have the experience, you have the skills, but how do you make a good first impression on paper?

It's all about your resume format.

The right presentation can snag a hiring manager's attention. But the wrong one might send your application into a digital black hole.

Learning how to structure a professional resume that emphasizes your strengths and impact is key. And knowing how to format that resume can transform just a "piece of paper" into your next opportunity.

Want to choose the best resume format for your experience without more research and manual work? Sign up for Teal for free .

What is a resume format?

Resume format refers to the layout and structure of a resume, which is designed to provide a snapshot of your professional background and qualifications. 

There are many options, each with unique pros and cons. But choosing the best resume format ultimately depends on your experience and the job requirements of the position you’re applying for.

Why is it important to format your resume?

Formatting your resume makes a difference in how potential employers see you as a candidate.

Here's why getting it right is so important:

Grabs attention

Catching a potential employer's attention is key when it comes to your resume.

A polished, well-organized resume looks appealing and signals that you take your work seriously.

To grab attention, use a clean layout, choose a professional font, and make sure there's plenty of white space to make it easy on the eyes. Also, incorporate bold headings and bullet points to break up text and make it easier for people to skim through your document.

Not sure what this looks like? Check out the best resume templates designed and optimized by career experts based on what has proven to drive hiring decisions.

Organizes work experience

Resume organization is vital for showcasing your skills and experience. This means every section is clearly labeled and easy to find.

Then, within these sections, list information logically, such as chronological order of work experience By doing so, potential employers can quickly identify your most recent roles and accomplishments.

Properly arranging your information helps hiring managers find what they're looking for and makes your resume more user-friendly and professional.

Highlights achievements

Your resume is the perfect place to showcase your accomplishments, and the right formatting can make them stand out. Use bullet points to list achievements concisely and clearly.

Start each bullet point with a strong resume action verb and quantify your successes with numbers, percentages, or other metrics whenever possible. This gives potential employers a better understanding of your impact in previous roles.

For example:

Boosted employee productivity by 200% and achieved 50% fewer misplaced documents by creating/implementing a new filing system

Presents a professional image

A well-formatted resume creates a professional image. It's a direct reflection of your personal brand and immediately sends a positive signal to hiring managers. 

Here are a few tips for building a professional resume:

• Pay close attention to details like consistency in font style and size, alignment, and spacing
• Double-check for grammatical errors and typos, which can make your resume look sloppy and unprofessional
• Use a resume file format that's widely accepted and easily parsed by applicant tracking systems (ATS), like a PDF

The best resume formats to use 

Now that you understand what they are and why you need them, it's time to get familiar with the three main resume formats.

These formats include:

• Chronological resume format
• Functional resume format
• Hybrid or combination resume format

1. Chronological resume 

The chronological resume format (or reverse chronological resume format) is the most popular. This layout emphasizes your most recent work experience first.

Using this format is super straightforward—list your experience, starting with your most recent position, and work backward.

How to format a chronological resume

 In a chronological resume, each job entry includes the job title, company name, dates of employment, and key achievements with impact relevant to the position you're applying for. This gives potential employers a clear picture of your work experience and your contributions in previous roles.

A chronological resume format includes the following sections in this order:

• Contact Information
• Target Title
• Professional Summary 
• Work Experience
• Certifications
• Optional – Projects – Awards and Scholarships – Volunteering and Leadership – Publications

How is a chronological resume organized?

The chronological resume is organized by time, with the most recent experiences listed first.

The core of this organizational style is the Work Experience section, where each job is presented in reverse chronological order to showcase a clear timeline of your career progression.

This meticulous structure helps employers quickly understand your background, accomplishments, growth trajectory, and the skills you bring to the table.

When to use a chronological resume format

A reverse-chronological resume format is ideal when you have a solid, continuous work history in a specific field. It's the most common resume format, so hiring professionals are most familiar with it.

It's great for showcasing your career growth and highlighting your relevant experiences.

Choose this format to emphasize your consistent work history and progression in a particular industry.

However, this format might not be the best choice for everyone. If you have large employment gaps or are switching careers, a different resume format might be better for highlighting your relevant skills and experiences.

Example of a chronological resume format 

2. Functional resume 

The functional resume format, also known as the skills-based resume, focuses on your skills, experience, and achievements rather than your work history. 

It's designed to showcase your most relevant skills that align with a specific job instead of listing job titles and work experience. And while your work history is briefly mentioned with minimal details, the primary focus of a functional resume template is your skill set group.

A functional format can be helpful for those just starting out, anyone with gaps in their employment history, career changers , or individuals with limited work experience. Just be aware that some employers might be skeptical of functional resumes because they don't offer a clear timeline of your work history. 

How to format a functional resume

 In a functional resume, the more expansive Work History section is replaced with a Skills section focusing on three or four skills with achievements and impact (in the form of resume bullet points). These skills should always be relevant to the position you're applying for—giving potential employers a clear picture of how you used them in previous roles.

A functional or skills-based resume format generally includes the following sections:

• Professional Summary
• Skills (with achievements and impact)
• Employment History (if applicable)

How is a functional resume organized?

The functional resume format focuses on organizing skills and prioritizing your top aptitudes that align with a specific job.

The core of this organizational style is the Skills section. Each skill is presented clearly, followed by resume bullet points that outline the ways you used that specific ability to have an impact.

This structure helps employers quickly understand how your competencies align directly with the needs of the position they're trying to fill.

When to use a functional resume format

A functional resume format is a fine option for job seekers just starting out, those with gaps in their employment history, or anyone making a career change.

As this professional resume format emphasizes your skills and abilities rather than your work history, it's a good way to showcase transferable skills and demonstrate your value to a new employer.

When choosing between a functional vs. chronological resume , remember while a functional resume can be a great way to emphasize skills and accomplishments, it's important to consider the potential pros and cons of not showing your comprehensive work history before committing to this format.

Example of a functional resume format 

3. Combination resume 

The combination resume format (also called a hybrid resume format) combines chronological and functional formats.

It's designed to showcase your work history and specific abilities, making it a great professional resume template for those who want to focus on hard skills and work history.

The combination or hybrid resume is particularly helpful if you want to highlight your specific expertise while also mapping out your career progression. It's especially great for those in industries focusing heavily on tools, software, technical expertise, or specific methodologies.

Pro Tip: If you're trying to decide between a combination resume and another format, Teal's AI Resume Builder lets you quickly build a hybrid-style resume using the Drag-and-Drop Editor. This way, you can decide what works best for you without having to manually format your content (and then manually reformatting it if you don't love what you see).

How to format a combination resume

In a combination resume, your work history is presented in reverse chronological order, just like the chronological format.

However, because it's a hybrid between the two other formats, rather than putting skills at the bottom, a combination resume also focuses on skills by listing them directly beneath the professional summary and above your work experience.

A combination or hybrid resume format generally includes the following sections:

• Contact information

How is a combination resume organized?  

The combination resume is organized by skills and work experience, focusing on your top skills and relevant work history that align with a specific job description.

The core of this organizational style is the layout. A list of skills (preferably hard skills) is presented clearly, followed by work experience with resume bullet points outlining your achievements and impact in specific roles.

This structure helps employers quickly view your skills without taking emphasis away from your background, accomplishments, and growth trajectory.       

When to use a combination resume format

A combination resume format is the perfect blend of chronological and functional resumes.

It's ideal for those with a mix of experiences or a combination of work history and specific skills. This format is a great option if you want to emphasize both history and skills, presenting a well-rounded picture of your professional background.

Example of a combination resume format

Choose a resume format with Teal

With Teal's flexible resume design, you can change your resume format in just a few clicks. Use the Drag-and-Drop Editor to move any section, change the name of those sections to fit your experience, and more!

Examples of the best resume formats 

Now that you understand the different types of formats, let's take a look at a few resume format examples for:

• Candidates with no experience
• Candidates making a career pivot 
• Creative roles 
• Technical roles 
• Senior-level roles 

Teal Note: While this post only covers five examples of resume formats, you can also find an extensive selection of over 1500 resume examples developed by experts to help you win in 2024. Each example gives you a professional resume broken down by professional title and experience. 

Best resume format if you don’t have work experience

Writing a resume with no relevant work experience offers the chance to highlight the skills and strengths you've developed in other areas of your life. The resume format you choose should provide an opportunity to showcase your potential, adaptability, and diverse experiences that have shaped your unique skill set.

Benefits of a functional resume format for no work experience

If you're a job seeker with little or no experience, a functional or skills-based resume might be one of the better resume format options.

A functional resume will help you emphasize transferable skills over work history, which is more ideal for those with limited job experience. You can showcase relevant skills and experiences from other aspects of your life, like volunteer work and academic accomplishments.

If you'd rather stick to a more traditional resume format, you can also swap your Work Experience section for a more comprehensive Education section that includes relevant courses or projects.

Example of a resume with no work experience

What to love about this resume

First, you’ll note that the resume summary or short professional bio still focuses on what this candidate has done rather than talking about their professional goals or objectives.

The use of data, numbers, and metrics in the Skills section indicates this applicant has the proper training, knowledge, and hands-on experience to be considered for an interview.

But it's worth noting that as Ayesha Patel gains more work experience, this resume would ideally change to a chronological or hybrid format.

Best resume formats for pivoting careers

When pivoting careers, a functional resume can be useful as it allows you to highlight relevant skills. However, a hybrid resume is often more effective, blending your skills and experiences with a concise work history.

This combination resume format showcases not only your qualifications and abilities in new areas but also provides context with your career progression, making it a strong choice for career transitions.

Benefits of a combination format when pivoting careers 

A combination format enables you to showcase transferable skills and relevant work experience.

This format is great for career pivots, as it demonstrates your previous experience while emphasizing transferable skills applicable to your new career path.

Example resume format for a career pivot

This candidate focuses on the transferable skills they have that align with a specific job while being clear about relevant certifications and work history.

This simple resume format is clear and easy to scan, and it highlights the right skills and experience for a prospective new position.

Best resume formats for creative roles

Creative roles are inherently dynamic and multifaceted. A creative resume template that focuses on both what you've done and how you've done it provides a more comprehensive look at your qualifications.

Benefits of a chronological resume format for a creative role

A chronological format is probably your best bet if you're a job seeker in a creative position.

Creative roles often prioritize a traditional work history and a portfolio of your work. A chronological resume lets you highlight your experiences tailored to the job you're after, while a separate portfolio showcases your skills.

Example resume for creative roles

This resume reveals an accomplished person in a creative field by highlighting a consistent and progressive work history.

In other words, it balances creativity with professionalism, showing hiring managers that while this person is a creative spirit, they're a serious candidate who has made an impact in other positions.

Pro Tip: When you're applying for a position in a creative field, remember to include your portfolio URL at the top of your resume in your contact information. Your portfolio is where your creativity will shine brightest.

Best resume formats for technical roles 

For technical roles, the best resume formats emphasize proficiency in tools, software, and technical methodologies.

A reverse-chronological format that highlights your most recent technical experiences and projects can be effective. But, combining this with elements of a functional resume to create a hybrid format, where specific technical skills, tools, and software are also prominently displayed, ensures that your expertise aligns with more specific tech requirements.

Benefits of using a hybrid format for a technical role  

Using a hybrid resume format for technical roles merges the structured detail of your work history with a focused showcase of your tech skills.

This approach not only highlights various tools and technologies but also contextualizes them within your professional journey. It provides a balanced view, demonstrating how your technical capabilities have been applied and developed through your career, catering specifically to the nuanced needs of technical positions.

Example hybrid format for a technical role

This resume reveals an accomplished person in a technical field. It highlights the right tools and tech for someone in this position alongside a consistent and progressive work history.

In other words, it balances tools and professionalism, showing hiring managers that this person has the right experience and skills for the job.

Best resume formats for senior-level positions

For senior-level positions, your resume format should chronicle your career progression and highlight the strategic impact of your contributions. Think of it as a document that tells the story of your leadership, decision-making, and the significant results you've driven.

Benefits of using a chronological format for a senior-level position

For senior-level and executive positions, a chronological resume is best because it clearly outlines leadership experience, measurable achievements, and relevant skills and qualifications—demonstrating your ability to lead and make strategic decisions. This format prioritizes work history and career progression, important for roles requiring a solid record of success and leadership.

However, keep in mind it's important to prioritize professional achievements from roles within the last ten to fifteen years to:

• Emphasize your most recent accomplishments
• Focus on experience that's relevant to the position
• Keep your resume as concise as possible

Example resume format for a senior-level position

In concise, bullet-point form, this reverse chronological resume shows the measurable impact this candidate had at previous companies.

Without being too long or over the top, all of the information is scannable and easy to digest, perfect for any hiring manager to review easily.

9 resume format best practices

Ready to format your resume? Here are some best practices for getting it right.

1. Keep it simple and easy to read

Keeping your resume simple and easy to read is important to ensure that hiring managers can quickly understand your qualifications.

To do this:

• Write with a clean and easy-to-read resume font , such as Arial or Times New Roman
• make sure the font size is large enough to be easily read, typically between 10 and 12 points
• Keep the formatting consistent throughout the document
• Use consistent font, font size, and formatting for headings, bullet points, and other text

2. Use bullet points

Bullet points are an excellent way to make your resume more readable and user-friendly.

They allow the reader to scan your resume and identify key information. Use them to list your:

• Professional achievements with impact
• Multiple certifications or degrees

When using bullet points for professional achievements, begin each with a strong action verb and use specific examples.

3. Be consistent 

Consistency helps to create a cohesive document and makes it easier for hiring managers to read and understand your qualifications.

Ensure consistent formatting for headings, font sizes, and bullet points. Use the same font, font size, and formatting throughout the document.

4. Include white space

Proper use of white space is crucial to create a visually appealing and easy-to-read resume. White space refers to the areas of the page that are left blank or unoccupied by text or images.

Use resume margins, line spacing, and breaks to create space between different sections. This will help to highlight essential information and make it stand out.

5. Customize your content 

Tailoring your resume to the specific job you're applying for can increase your chances of getting noticed by potential employers.

Rather than sending out a generic resume, take the time to customize it to the specific job and company. To do this:

• Carefully review the job description
• Note the required skills, qualifications, and experiences.
• Customize your resume by emphasizing these skills and your experiences that align with the job requirements

6. Keep it concise

Keeping your resume concise is an important part of standard resume formatting.

While providing enough information to showcase your qualifications and experiences is important, a resume that's too long can be overwhelming and challenging to read.

To keep your resume concise, focus on providing only relevant experience and skills.

7. Proofread carefully

Proofreading your resume is crucial to keeping it error-free and presenting yourself in the best possible light.

Typos, grammatical errors, and formatting issues can make you appear unprofessional and decrease your chances of getting hired.

To proofread your resume carefully, read it slowly and pay attention to each sentence. Check for spelling and grammar errors, and make sure that the formatting is consistent throughout the document.

8. Use an ATS-friendly resume format

Applicant tracking systems (ATS) are digital filing systems used by recruiters to organize resumes and during the hiring process.

To make sure your resume scans correctly into these organizational tools, use a resume file format that's widely accepted and easily parsed by the ATS, like a PDF .

9. Take advantage of Teal's free resume templates

One of the best ways to save yourself time and quickly get up and running with your resume is to find a quality template that is designed for best practices.

Teal has over 100 free resume templates spanning multiple styles and formats that you can use.

How to make and format your resume with Teal (in two steps)

Step 1. Create your resume

Start by logging into Teal . 

If you don't already have an account, you can get started for free. This lets you test the software and see if it’s the right fit for you.

Click the Resume Builder icon from the left navigation menu. Then click "New Resume" in the top right corner. 

Now, create your resume. Fill in the resume sections by following the built-in guidance. (You can also upload an existing resume or your LinkedIn profile to save time.)

Pro Tip: If you're feeling stuck, try Teal's AI to create your professional summary and resume bullet points. AI will give you a great starting point and help you beat the blank page.

Step 2. Format your resume 

Teal gives you complete control over your resume formatting so you can submit every application with confidence.

To see flexible resume formatting options, click the Design tab at the top of your screen.

Teal's flexible resume design features allow you to blend your unique style and career journey so you can apply with confidence. Let’s look at how each feature can improve or change your resume’s format.

Resume presentation

This is where you can make changes to the following elements:

• Presentation: Choose from 10+ ATS-friendly modern, traditional, or creative templates
• Style: Select new fonts, accent colors, & line height

Resume sections

This is where you can change the organization of your resume:

• Sections: Reorder all of your resume sections
• Section titles: Rename any of your resume sections to match your experience and preferred format

Resume settings

Here you can customize the layout of specific information:

• Format: Dates, location, and experience
• Highlight: Opt to focus on specific companies, positions, degrees, and more

Advanced resume design

If you opt for a Teal+ membership to take advantage of more advanced tools, Teal+ is $9/week and with it you get:

• Advanced Styles : Change your bullet points and dividers
• Text Sizing : Choose different text weights, sizes, and customize headings, titles, and more
• Text Transformation : Opt for all CAPS or as written depending on your preferences
• Vertical Spacing: Change up your white space between sections
• Border Formatting: Add, remove, and format borders between sections

Choose the best resume format with Teal

Your resume formatting impacts your first impression on potential employers. The best resume format is visually appealing at first glance while effectively highlighting your key strengths and experiences.

Teal's  AI Resume Builder  offers a comprehensive solution for all your resume formatting. With a wide range of templates and design options, Teal eliminates the tedious manual work of formatting and researching best practices. 

Whether you want to change your resume's structure or refresh its style, Teal's user-friendly platform empowers you to adjust your format with just a few clicks—giving you full control over the presentation.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best format for a resume.

The best resume format depends on your career history and the job you're applying for. Chronological, functional, and hybrid formats each cater to different needs, with chronological being the most common and well-received.

What kind of resume do employers prefer?

Employers typically prefer a resume format that is clear, well-organized, and highlights your relevant experiences and skills. Chronological resumes are often favored because they provide a straightforward timeline of your work history, but the best choice can vary based on your industry and career stage.

What is a common mistake made on resumes?

A common mistake on resumes is the lack of proper formatting and attention to detail, which can lead to a cluttered appearance and make it difficult for employers to quickly find the most relevant information.

Using Teal’s free AI Resume Builder can help you avoid these issues with ATS-friendly templates and design tools that ensure a professional, clean presentation.

Kayte Grady

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How Long Do Recruiters Spend Reviewing a Resume?

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10 Common Job Interview Questions and How to Answer Them

• Vicky Oliver

Use this guide to stand out from the crowd and land the role you want.

Interviews can be high stress, anxiety-driving situations, especially if it’s your first interview. A little practice and preparation always pays off. While we can’t know exactly what an employer will ask, here are 10 common interview questions along with advice on how to answer them. The questions include:

• Could you tell me something about yourself and describe your background in brief? : Interviewers like to hear stories about candidates. Make sure your story has a great beginning, a riveting middle, and an end that makes the interviewer root for you to win the job.
• How do you deal with pressure or stressful situations? : Share an instance when you remained calm despite the turmoil. If it’s a skill you’re developing, acknowledge it and include the steps you’re taking to respond better to pressure in the future.
• What are your salary expectations? : Before you walk in for your first interview, you should already know what the salary is for the position you’re applying to. Check out websites such as Glassdoor, Fishbowl, or Vault.com for salary information. You could also ask people in the field by reaching out to your community on LinkedIn.

Where your work meets your life. See more from Ascend here .

Resignation numbers have remained abnormally high in the U.S. between July 2021 and October 2021, with millions of Americans quitting their jobs  — which also means there are millions of new openings up for grabs. If you’re entering the market for the first time, or just looking to make a change, use this guide to prepare for your next interview.

• Vicky Oliver is a leading career development expert and the multi-best-selling author of five books, including  301 Smart Answers to Tough Interview Questions , named in the top 10 list of “Best Books for HR Interview Prep.” She’s a sought-after speaker and seminar presenter and a popular media source, having made over 900 appearances in broadcast, print, and online outlets.    

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24 Resume Summary Examples That Get Interviews

By Biron Clark

Published: November 8, 2023

Biron Clark

Writer & Career Coach

A resume summary statement usually comes right after a job seeker’s contact info and before other resume sections such as skills and work experience. It provides employers with a brief overview of a candidate’s career accomplishments and qualifications before they read further. Because of how early it appears on the document, your resume summary statement (or your CV “profile” in the UK) is one of the first places recruiters and employers look. And without the right information, they’ll doubt that you’re qualified and may move to another resume.

So I got in touch with a select group of professional resume writers, coaches and career experts to get their best resume summary examples you can use and adapt to write a resume summary that stands out and gets interviews.

As a former recruiter myself, I’ll also share my best tips to write your resume summary effectively.

Why the Resume/CV Summary is Important

You may have heard that recruiters only spend 8-10 seconds looking at your resume. The truth is: they spend that long deciding whether to read more. They do glance that quickly at first and may move on if your background doesn’t look like a fit. However, if you grab their attention, they’ll read far more. Recruiters aren’t deciding to interview you in 8-10 seconds, but they are ruling people out in 8-10 seconds. And this is why your resume summary is so crucial. It appears high up on your resume (usually right after your header/contact info) and is one of the first sections employers see. So it’s part of what they’ll see in the first 8-10 seconds.

Your resume summary statement is one of your first (and one of very few) chances to get the employer to stop skimming through their pile of resumes and focus on YOU.

Watch: Resume Summary Examples That Get Interviews

10 resume summary examples:.

These career summary examples will help you at any experience level – whether you’re writing a professional summary after a long executive career, or writing your first resume summary without any experience! After you finish this article you’re NEVER going to have to send out a limp, weak resume summary statement again (and you’ll get far more interviews  because of it).

1. Healthcare Sales Executive Resume Summary Example:

Turnaround & Ground Up Leadership – Concept-to-execution strategies for untapped products, markets + solutions that yield 110% revenue growth – Negotiates partnerships with leading distributors + hospitals—Medline to Centara + Novant Health to Mayo Clinic –  Revitalizes underperforming sales organizations via scalable, sustainable infrastructures emulated as best practice –  C-Level networks of clinical + supply chain leadership acquired during tenures with XXX, XXX and XXX

Why this resume summary is good:

This resumes summary example’s strength lies in the detailed, unique information that has been included. By including revenue stats, names of past employers and partners, the reader right away sees that this person will bring to the role a strong networking ability with key players in his industry, and more importantly can build, grow and revitalize a sales organization, market or product.

By:  Virginia Franco, Founder of Virginia Franco Resumes  and Forbes contributor.

2. 15+ Year Business Owner Resume Summary Statement:

Dynamic and motivated marketing professional with a proven record of generating and building relationships, managing projects from concept to completion, designing educational strategies, and coaching individuals to success. Skilled in building cross-functional teams, demonstrating exceptional communication skills, and making critical decisions during challenges. Adaptable and transformational leader with an ability to work independently, creating effective presentations, and developing opportunities that further establish organizational goals.

Why this is a good summary section:

This is a resume summary statement that was for  a candidate returning to work after having her own business for 15+ years. Because of this, we needed to emphasize her soft skills and what she can bring to this potential position. In addition, we highlighted the skills she has honed as a business owner so that she can utilize these qualifications as a sales professional, account manager , and someone knowledgeable about nutrition, medicine, and the overall sales process.

By: Dr. Heather Rothbauer-Wanish. MBA, Ph.D., CPRW, and Founder of Feather Communications

3. Human Resources Generalist Resume Summary Example:

Human Resources Generalist with progressive experience managing employee benefits & compliance, employee hiring & onboarding, performance management processes, licensure tracking and HR records. Dependable and organized team player with the ability to communicate effectively and efficiently. Skilled at building relationships with employees across all levels of an organization. Proficient with HRIS, applicant tracking and benefits management.

Why this is a good resume summary:

The applicant highlights their experience across a wide range of HR functions from the very first sentence, and continues this pattern throughout the rest of the summary. They then use easily digestible langue to showcase their hard skills (in the first & fourth sentences) and soft skills (in the second & third sentences). They also integrate a variety of keywords to get past automated job application systems , without sounding spammy or without overdoing it.

By: Kyle Elliott, MPA/CHES,  Career Coach and Consultant

4. Social Media Marketing CV Profile Example (UK):

Social media expert with successes in the creation and management of social media strategies and campaigns for global retail organisations. Extensive experience in the commercial utilisation of multiple social media channels including Facebook, Twitter and YouTube; I build successful social strategies that increase brand awareness, promote customer engagement and ultimately drive web traffic and conversions.

Why this summary is good:

This summary is well-written, short, sharp, and gives recruiters a high-level explanation of the candidate’s core offerings in a persuasive and punchy style. A quick scan of this profile tells you the exact type of social media platforms the candidate is an expert in, as well as the campaigns they have experience running and types of organizations they have worked for. Most importantly, the summary is rounded off by showing the results that this person achieves for their employers, such as increased web traffic and conversions.

Editor’s note: This CV profile summary was written for the UK market… this is a great one to use/copy, but make sure you put it through a spell-checker if you’re applying for jobs in the US (utilisation vs. utilization, etc.)

By: Andrew Fennell, Director at StandOut CV , contributor for The Guardian and Business Insider

5. Marketing Manager Professional Summary Example:

Marketing Manager with over eight years of experience. Proven success in running email marketing campaigns and implementing marketing strategies that have pulled in a 20% increase in qualified leads. Proficient in content, social media and inbound marketing strategies. Skilled, creative and innovative.

This resume summary stands out because it gets straight to the point. By immediately introducing the number of years of experience the candidate has, the HR manager doesn’t need to spend time adding up years. The candidate also jumps right into his or her strongest skill, provides a statistic , then gives additional skills.

By: Sarah Landrum, career expert and contributor at Entrepreneur.com and Forbes

6. Warehouse Supervisor Resume Summary Example:

Warehouse Supervisor with Management, Customer Service, & Forklift Experience –  Dependable manager with 15+ years of experience in warehouse management and employee supervision. –  Skilled at managing inventory control, shipping & receiving, customer relations and safety & compliance. –  Certified Power Equipment Trainer, Forklift Operator and Reach Operator skilled at coaching other staff. –  Promoted to positions of increased responsibility given strong people and project management skills.

The applicant was applying for a warehouse supervisor position that required them to have demonstrated management, customer service and forklift experience. As such, the applicant showcased their experience in these areas with a few keywords in the title, followed by additional details in the accompanying bullet points. Their final bullet shows a record of promotions, while reinforcing the applicant’s customer service and project management skills.

7. IT Project Manager Resume Summary Example:

Experienced Project Manager with vast IT experience. Skills include computer networking, analytical thinking and creative problem solving. Able to apply customer service concepts to IT to improve user experience for clients, employees and administration.

Because this candidate is switching career paths, it’s important he or she take skills used for previous positions and apply those skills to the new job listing. This is a great example because the candidate makes it clear that his or her experience is not in the new field, but that they are still able to bring relevant experience to the table. When writing your resume summary, keep these tips in mind: Use writing that is straight to the point, clear and concise, you’ll have a higher chance of getting noticed by the hiring manager.

8. Career-Changer Resume Summary Example:

Earn trust, uncover key business drivers and find common ground as chief negotiator and identifier of revenue opportunities in sales, leadership and account management roles spanning e-Commerce, air travel and high-tech retail. Navigate cultural challenges while jumping time zones, lead international airline crews and manage corporate accounts to deliver an exceptional customer experience. A self-taught techie sought after as a go-to for complex billing systems and SaaS platforms alike—bridging the divide between technology and plain-speak. – Tenacious Quest for Success + Learning . Earned MBA and BS in just 3 years while working full-time – gaining hands-on experience in research- and data-driven product roadmap development, pricing and positioning. – Results-Driven Leadership. Whether leading Baby Boomers, Gen X or Millennials—figures out what makes teams tick, trains and transforms individuals into top-performers. – Challenger of Conventional Wisdom. Always ask the WHY. Improve the user experience through smart, strategic thinking that anticipates outcomes. Present cases that influence, and lead change that drives efficiency and profitability.

This client was eager for a career change and had moved from role to role and industry to industry. After completing her Master’s degree, she was eager to tie her skills together to land a role – which she did – as a Senior Technology Account Strategist for a global travel company. Although a bit longer than a traditional summary, its strength lies in the details. Without ever getting to the experience section, the reader gets a clear idea of the scope of responsibility, and hard and soft skills the candidate brings to the table.

By: Virginia Franco, Founder of Virginia Franco Resumes  and Forbes contributor.

9. Project Management Executive Professional Summary Example:

15+ years of initiating and delivering sustained results and effective change for Fortune 500 firms across a wide range of industries including enterprise software, digital marketing, advertising technology, e-commerce and government. Major experience lies in strategizing and leading cross-functional teams to bring about fundamental change and improvement in strategy, process, and profitability – both as a leader and expert consultant.

Why this resume summary is good:

“Project Manager” is one of those job titles that’s REALLY broad. You can find project managers earning $50K, and others earning $250K. The client I wrote this for was at the Director level, and had worked for some of the biggest and best tech companies in her city. So this resume profile section shows her level and experience, and the wide array of areas she has responsibility for in her current work. You can borrow or use some of the phrasing here to show that you’ve been responsible for many important areas in your past work.

By: Biron Clark, Founder of  CareerSidekick.com.

10. Startup And Finance Management Consultant Career Summary Example:

Experienced strategist, entrepreneur and startup enthusiast with a passion for building businesses and challenging the status quo. 8+ year track record of defining new business strategies, launching new ventures, and delivering operational impact, both as a co-founder and management consultant. 

Why this resume summary example is good:

This summary was for a highly-talented management consultant looking to break out of finance, and into trendier tech companies like Uber . His track record and educational background were great, so the goal of this summary section was to stand out and show he’s more than just the typical consultant with a finance background. So we emphasized his passion for startups, and his ability to think outside the box and challenge the status quo. That’s something that companies like Uber and other “disruptive” tech companies look for.

14 Resume Summary Examples for Various Industries

Compassionate and effective 5th-grade teacher with experience overseeing the classroom and preparing lessons. Extensive experience encouraging students through positive reinforcement and motivational techniques. Collaborate well with school administration and other members of the teaching team. Ensure all students meet learning requirements, including literacy, social, and arithmetic skills.

2. Teacher’s Assistant

Goal-oriented teacher’s assistant with ten years of experience working with elementary school children. Aid teachers with lesson planning, classroom settings, and group instruction. Model positive behavior and maintain order in the classroom. Willingness to take on additional responsibilities to meet learning objectives.

Tech Industry

3. computer programmer.

Innovative computer programmer with a proven track record of writing high-quality code and supporting team needs with subject matter expertise. Adept in multiple programming languages, including Python, JavaScript, and C++. Ability to troubleshoot complex programming issues with inventive solutions. 

4. Cybersecurity Analyst

Dedicated cybersecurity analyst with ten years of experience in online security research, execution, planning, and maintenance. Proven track record of identifying business risks and proactively resolving them. Experience designing and instituting layered network security for large-scale organizations. Train users and other staff members on IT safety procedures and preventive techniques.

Skilled healthcare professional with ten years of experience in patient care, diagnosis, and providing appropriate treatments and medical services. Manage medical staff and resolve complex medical cases with maximum efficiency. Communicate the patient’s condition and treatment plan in easily understood terminology. Remain current with the latest advancements in medicine and research to ensure patients receive proper care.

6. Registered Nurse

Seasoned registered nurse offering comprehensive patient care in emergency room settings. Experience handling diverse patient populations and caring for various conditions. Proven leadership managing nursing teams and other staff. Focus on enhancing patient care and satisfaction through empathetic communication and excellent customer service. 

7. Digital Marketing Manager

Forward-thinking digital marketing manager experienced in all facets of digital marketing, including social media management, PPC advertising, SEO, and email marketing. Proven experience creating comprehensive marketing plans that improve lead prospecting and enhance brand awareness. Up to date with the newest tools available for digital marketing campaigns.

8. Marketing Analyst

Industrious marketing analyst well-versed in analyzing marketing campaign analytics and making recommendations to improve performance. Collaborate with account managers and use KPI metrics to explain the results of marketing initiatives. Meticulous with a strong work ethic and robust communication skills.

Food and Service Industry

Experienced wait staff member capable of managing orders, processing payments, and upselling menu items. Ensure restaurant guests feel welcome with attentive service catered to their needs. Remain current on updates to the menu and assist guests with selecting orders to meet their dietary requirements. Maintain a positive attitude and focus during busy restaurant periods.

10. Hotel Receptionist

Friendly hotel receptionist with extensive experience handling guest check-ins, check-out, and payments. Facilitate a positive guest experience with polished customer service skills and a readiness to address common inquiries and complaints. Collaborate well with other hotel team members, including executive administration and on-site restaurant staff.

Business/Office Jobs

11. financial analyst.

Highly motivated financial analyst with a proven track record of recommending appropriate financial plans based on financial monitoring, data collection, and business strategizing. Experienced in qualitative and quantitative analysis, forecasting, and financial modeling. Excellent communication skills for building and fostering long-term business relationships across the organization.

12. Tax Accountant

Experienced tax accountant with ten years of experience preparing federal and state tax returns for corporations and partnerships. Monitor changes in laws to ensure the organization properly complies with reporting requirements. Assist with tax audits, ensuring the team receives proper supporting evidence for tax positions. Analyze and resolve complex tax issues. Look for available tax savings opportunities for corporations with an aggregate savings of $500K last year. Excellent analytical skills and attention to detail.

Sales and Customer Service

13. sales representative.

Enthusiastic sales representative with expertise in identifying prospects and converting qualified leads to paying customers. Provide quality customer service and contribute to team sales success. Offer exceptional communication skills and seek to understand client needs before making the appropriate product recommendations. Continually meet and exceed sales goals. Leverage extensive knowledge of available products to provide appropriate client solutions and enhance customer loyalty and retention.

14. Customer Service Associate

Knowledgeable customer service professional with extensive experience in the insurance industry. Known as a team player with a friendly demeanor and proven ability to develop positive rapport with clients. Maintain ongoing customer satisfaction that contributes to overall company success. Highly articulate, with a results-oriented approach that addresses client inquiries and issues while maintaining strong partnerships. Collaborate well with the customer service team while also engaging independent decision-making skills.

Now you have 24 professional resume summary statements and some explanations of why they’re effective. Next, I’ll share tips for how to write your own in case you’re still unsure how to begin based on these examples above.

How to Write a Resume Summary: Steps and Hints

We’ve looked at 10 great resume summary examples above. As you begin writing a resume summary for yourself, here are some helpful tips to keep in mind:

• Read the employer’s job description. Your career summary shouldn’t be a long list of everything you’ve done; it should be a refined list of skills and experiences that demonstrate you’re a fit for their job.
• Mention your current job title if relevant. One common way to begin your resume summary is to state your current job title.
• Explain how you can help employers achieve their goals or solve their problems.
• Consider using bold text to emphasize one or two key phrases.
• Include any relevant metrics and data like dollar amounts, years of experience, size of teams led, etc. This helps your resume stand out.
• Focus on making the employer want to read more. The goal of your resume summary isn’t to show everything you can do, but to grab their attention and show enough that they continue reading.

Creating a Customized Resume Summary

While general summaries are appropriate when applying for jobs requiring similar skills and experience, a customized resume summary can enhance your chances of moving on to the next step in the hiring process. 

That’s because most companies use automated tracking systems (ATS) to review submitted resumes for content directly related to the job posting. If you use keywords and natural language phrases in your summary that interlink to the job description, you’ll have a much higher chance of passing the ATS review.

Let’s look at an example of a resume summary that is customized for the specific job description below:

“Highly motivated social media specialist with strong project management skills. Creative marketer skilled in crafting innovative social media campaigns that resonate with a target audience. Regularly develop compelling copy and social media content to enhance lead generation and brand awareness. Detail-oriented with extensive project management skills that ensure proper prioritization of tasks and projects. Work with various social media management and analytics tools to examine results and make adjustments as necessary.”

This summary directly addresses the key points in the job description but rewrites them so the customization is natural and flows well. It’s personalized for the open role and uses similar terms with a few strategically placed keywords, such as “social media content” and “project management.”  

How Long Should a Resume Summary Be?

As you read the resume summaries above, you probably noticed there are some short single-paragraph resume summary examples and much longer career summaries that are two to three paragraphs plus bullet points. So how long should YOUR professional summary be? If you have relevant work experience, keep your summary to one or two paragraphs. The piece you really want the hiring manager to read is your most recent work experience (and you should make sure you tailored that info to fit the job description). The resume summary is just a “bridge” to get the hiring manager into your experience.

If I were writing my own career summary right now, I’d likely use one single paragraph packed with skills, accomplishments, and exactly why I’m ready to step into the job I’ve applied for and be successful!

Even for a manager resume summary, I recommend a very short length. However, if you’re changing careers, or you’re looking for jobs without any work experience , the summary section needs to stand on its own, and should be longer. That’s why some examples above are a bit longer.

Formatting Your Resume/CV Career Summary

You may have noticed a variety of different formats in the career summary examples above. There isn’t one “right” way to format this section on your resume or CV. However, I recommend either using one or two brief paragraphs, or combining a short sentence or paragraph with bullets. Avoid writing three or four long paragraphs with no special formatting like bullet points. That’s simply too much text for your summary section and will cause recruiters and hiring managers to skip over it in some cases.

Should You Include a Resume Objective?

You do not need to include an objective on your resume, and doing so can make your resume appear outdated. Use a resume summary instead of an objective. Follow the resume summary examples above and focus on discussing your skills, qualifications, and achievements, rather than stating your objective. Employers know that your objective is to obtain the position you’ve applied for, and the resume objective has no place on a modern resume/CV in today’s job market.

Examples of Bad Resume Summaries

Now that we’ve seen a few exemplary resume summaries, let’s look at some that you should avoid at all cost.

1. Typos and Grammatical Errors

“Experienced cashier who knows how to run the register cash. Responsible with the money and can talk with the customer. Knows when to stoc up the invenory and checks it all the time. Can count change and run credit card tranactions. Get the customer happy by good service. I am always cheerful and organized.”

Why this resume summary is bad:

If you read the summary carefully, you’ll notice several spelling errors. The words “stock,” “inventory,” and “transactions” are all spelled wrong. Grammatical errors make the summary choppy and difficult to follow (“Get the customer happy by good service”).  A summary like this probably won’t fly with a company looking for a detail-oriented cashier responsible for managing in-person sales.

2. Lacks Relevant Keywords

“Talented worker with experience managing a team of staff. Creative and responsible with knowledge of organizational processes. Can keep up with the busiest of environments. Stays focused when at work, ensuring prompt task completion. Dependable and willing to collaborate with a team to get things done.”  

In this example, the chef doesn’t use keywords relevant to cooking, restaurants, or kitchens. The summary is very generic and can apply to nearly any job. A manager who receives the application isn’t likely to understand what value the candidate can bring to the restaurant.  To fix the summary, the applicant must rewrite it to include relevant keywords and phrases. 

3. No Numbers to Quantify Achievements

“An experienced and hardworking manager ready to align procedures for maximum revenue and profits. Proven track record of streamlining and strengthening processes, resulting in higher sales and better customer satisfaction. Collaborate well with sales team members, ensuring they have the resources and knowledge to support customer purchases and inquiries. Develop strong rapport with clients and maintain ongoing relationships.”

This isn’t a terrible summary for a sales manager, but it has room for improvement. For one, the first two sentences essentially duplicate each other, mentioning an aptitude for improving processes with the objective of higher sales. The other issue is a lack of quantifying achievements. 

The applicant mentions they have a proven record of increasing sales, but they could strengthen the summary by quantifying their results. For example, they might say, “Proven track record of streamlining and strengthening processes, resulting in a 25% increase in sales over the past year.” The quantifier provides additional credibility. 

4. Not Targeting the Specific Job

“Looking for work in a role that requires great customer service, project management, and communication skills. Able to collaborate with people from diverse and varying backgrounds. Highly organized and reliable worker with a strong work ethic. Responsible and reliable worker you can count on.”

While the candidate lists various skills they have, including customer service and project management, there’s no indication of prior roles held or what position they’re applying for. The summary could apply to numerous positions in a variety of industries. To improve the resume summary, the applicant must specify the job they’re applying for and indicate their prior experience in a similar role, if they have any.

After You Start Getting Interviews, Make Sure to Take Advantage…

If you follow the advice above, you’ll have a great professional resume summary to make your qualifications stand out to employers. But landing the interview is only half the battle… So make sure you go into every interview ready to convince employers that they should hire you, too! If you write a great resume summary example that gets employers excited to interview you, they’re going to ask you questions like, “tell me about yourself” early in the interview to learn more about your background. So make sure you’re prepared with an answer.

I also recommend you review the top 20 interview questions and answers here.

Your resume caught their interest, so naturally, they’re going to follow up with a variety of questions to learn more about your professional background.

The bottom line is: A strong professional resume summary, followed up by other well-written resume sections will get you the interview, but your interview performance is what determines whether you get the job offer!

About the Author

Read more articles by Biron Clark

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I would recommend to customise the skills section of your resume, and ensure that it matches the job posting. The higher the number of phrases within the resume matching the job requirements the more are the chances that the recruiter will pick you for the job.

I just wanted to say, “thank you!”. This was very helpful. Instead of jumping from one website to the next there’s so much useful, relevant information right here.

Hi, I have been having trouble creating a resume as My old one is so long, I’ve worked for a government agency for the past 14 years and held multiple positions doing many different duties for each and now I have to relocate to another area where they do not have an agency like mine in my new area within a 3 hour drive, how can I squeeze all my experience and duties on one page and where do I even start, I’m so nervous, it’s been so long since I’ve attempted the job hunt. So I’m wondering, I do not want to cut anything out that may hurt my chances and I can’t afford to have my resume rewritten by a professional. Can you guide me as to where you think would be a good place to start, I’ve been staring at this laptop for weeks trying to decide on a resume template, there are so many. I thank you for your time and any input will help.

Hi, I am a new graduate and do not have any experience in my field which is Nursing. I want to apply for the jobs but I have no idea about what to mention in my resume.

Hi, this article should help with the resume summary, at least: https://careersidekick.com/summary-for-resume-no-experience/

Other than that, you need to put your academic experience. And internships/part-time jobs if you’ve had any.

Dear Biron,, Thanks for sharing the 10 examples of professional summaries in your article, and especially the reasons why they were considered to be good. However, as a HR professional, I would most likely skip over most of them and would not read much past the first or second sentence. The summaries were mostly too wordy and boring, and did not demonstrate ‘oomph’ at first cursory reading. Simply indicating certain skills or behaviors does not give an idea of the level of expertise, and could simply be wishful thinking on the part of the resume writer.

Just goes to show that there are many ways to see what makes a good summary.

I am a chemical engineer and project management professional with 15+years experience. My experience is between process engineering and project management . How can I marry the two in my profile summary?

It’s not about showing everything you’ve done. It’s about showing employers evidence you’ll succeed in their job. You can show a bit of both but focus heavily on what’s most relevant for the jobs you’re applying for right now. 80/20.

This was absolutely helpful and amazing! Thank you very much!

Hello, I am an active job seeker. I hold a law degree from a foreign country and currently in college for an associate degree. My question is, how do I blend both my foreign job experience with that of the United States in my resume. Thank you.

I’d put your work history in chronological order, starting with the most recent up top. That’s what I’d recommend for 95% of people actually. Then it doesn’t matter where you held each job.

And then in your Education section, I’d include your foreign degree and the current degree you’re pursuing in the US, too (for the US degree, you can say “in progress” or “graduating May 2019” for example).

I am 40 years old & B.A degree holder I have experience in many fields.I would like to join any one fields

I am a fresh graduate, who has five years teaching experience and some months customer service representative experience. Pls kindly assist me to put the resume summary together

I’m an active duty service member and finding in a little difficult creating a good transitional summary from 20 year profession in tactical communications to a drug and alcohol counselor. Do you have any recommendations how I should approach this? Any assistance would be helpful. Thanks

Great piece

How to write the CAREER ABSTRACT in resume for ware super visor retail business?

Just wanted to say thank you.Your advise and information was clear and easy to understand , sometimes there is nothing pertaining to what im looking fot in particular, buy you have sermed to cover everything I n a short quick easy to understand method.It will help tremendously.

Thanks! Glad to hear it helped :)

Very informational

What if you have work experience, but the job your going for(teachingeducation) has nothing to do with warehouse work? How should I build my resume?

In the summary, describe yourself and then say, “…looking to transition into ___” (the type of work you want to be doing now).

This is a bit like a resume “Objective”. I normally don’t recommend an Objective section (and I recommend a Summary section instead), however the one time an Objective does make sense is when you’re trying to change industries or make a big change in the type of role you have.

So that’s why my advice here might seem like I’m telling you to combine an Objective with your resume Summary.

Then “tailor” your previous work to be as relevant as possible. Even if you worked in a different industry you can still show things like leadership, accountability, progress/improvement, hard work, achieving goals, strong teamwork skills, etc. You can do all of that in your resume bullets and work history.

Don’t u have Resume Summary of legal secretary/legal assistant?

No, sorry about that. There are hundreds of different professions/job titles, and we aren’t able to include an example for every scenario out there. These resume summary examples are designed to give you a general idea of how to write yours.

The summaries listed are excellent example and have helped me develop a stand out summary for a new position.

Hello, I been trying to land the job of my dreams. I need help with my resume if i want the recruiters in airlines to notice me. I’ve applied before but haven’t had complete success to making it to a face-to Face Interview. It is a career change – yet i feel i am a great candidate bc i have had many customer service and I even attended an academy for that specific position. Can you please tell me what I am doing wrong on my resume ?

what if i never had a job experience?

Great question. If you don’t have any work experience, take one of the formats/examples above and put your accomplishments and qualifications from your academic studies.

Your headline could say: “Motivated Bio-Sciences Graduate With Expertise in ____”.

And then you might talk about accomplishments in school, group projects you worked on or led, etc.

Basically, when you have no work experience, your school/studies BECOMES your recent work. You should talk about that like it’s a job, because that’s the experience you do have.

really amazing article and too useful , thanks

Hi Mr. Clark, I have been out of the work force for about 18+years and I have been a small business owner for the same number of years. However, I want to go back to the work force. But my problem is that, I don’t know how to prepare my resume or resume summary statement. I had a degree in Communication,Arts and Sciences and a postgraduate degree in Public Administration. I’m a bit confused as to how to incorporate all these experiences into my resume. Please can you help?

Hi Dorothy, I can recommend a professional resume writer if you want. But they’re typically not cheap, so it’s something you’d have to be willing to invest in. If not, there’s a lot of free info online about how to “tailor” your resume for specific jobs. I can’t help one-on-one unfortunately, but I’d recommend thinking about which type of jobs you want, and think of what experience you have that is most relevant. that’s what to put on your resume. Your resume isn’t only about you, it’s about them – what do they want/need? (if you want to get a ton of interviews, that’s how to do it :) ).

Can I have a professional resume writer?

I use a similar format when writing my opening statement for my coverletter. How do you recommend differentiating the two? Or is it ok to use largely the same language?

I think it’s okay to use something similar. I might be more brief in the cover letter… it needs to be about them just as much as it’s about you. Whereas the resume is all about you, at least in the summary section. (The later sections should still be tailored to THEIR needs..)

Struggling to write a Summary Statement for a Secretary/Administrative Assistant position. I have 15 years government experience but have been away from the government since 9/1993 and have spent 15 years as a Substitute Teacher after taking off for 10 years to raise my children.

Hiya! I am a mother of three attempting to return to the workforce. I have been a stay at mom for about 13 years, so I have a (large) gap in my employment history; which doesn’t look great. I have a college education and have obtained a few certifications whilst not employed, plus many volunteer hours. I know that I should probably use a functional resume format. Would love some advice on what I should include in my summary statement.

Hi Juniper,

I rarely like functional resumes, but it might be worth trying. I’d “split-test” it (a marketing term). Create two resume styles, send out 50% one way, 50% the other way, and track results for a week.

I’d treat the resume summary statement just like any other resume. Highlight your skills and past wins/accomplishments.

how do i explain long term gaps in employment? leave them out?

Hi Paulette,

Don’t mention them on a resume summary. But do mention the gaps on a cover letter or lower down on the resume. Here’s an article on how to explain gaps in employment:

https://careersidekick.com/explaining-gaps-in-employment/

I am student in civil engineering field. Have 1.5 yrs of work ex. How should i structure my resume. Thanks.

Hello My name is Shataka and I’m a current job seeker trying to land my dream job as a Counselor. I have Master degree in Counseling Psychology and a Bachelor’s degree in Social Work. My experience lies in many different fields. I’m currently a Substance Abuse Counselor, with a teaching background and over 5 years of social service experience. I guess my question is how would I sum up all my experience to help me find a job as a Counselor.

Comments are closed.

35+ Job Interview Questions and Answers for 2024 [Full List]

The time has come!

After creating a killer resume and cover letter and passing the first round, it is time to face the final challenge:

Your job interview .

And that scares even to the best of us .

Being judged and evaluated by people who have your future in their hands is more anxiety-inducing than meeting the in-laws.

You’ve heard the interviewers and hiring managers say there are no right or wrong answers to calm you down before an interview.

But here’s the thing:

They are almost always looking for a specific way of answering .

Which brings us to this guide. We’re going to cover the most common interview questions and answers, turning you into a bona fide interview expert by the time you’re done reading.

So, let’s get started!

To make this guide as practical as possible, we covered just about every interview question out there. 

Don’t let that put you off, though. You don’t have to read the whole thing end-to-end. To get the most out of the guide, we’d recommend:

• Going through all the common interview questions
• Checking out the situational interview questions section and learning how to answer questions that are relevant for you
• Learning what’s the idea behind behavioral interview questions, so you’re prepared to answer whatever the HR manager shoots at you

Most Common Job Interview Questions:

• Tell me something about yourself .
• How did you hear about this position?
• Why do you want to work here?
• Why did you decide to apply for this position?
• What is your greatest strength?
• What are your strengths and weaknesses?
• What do you know about this company/organization?
• Why should we hire you?
• What is your greatest accomplishment?
• What are your salary requirements?
• Do you have any questions for us?
• What are you looking for from a new position?
• Are you considering other positions in other companies?
• What is the professional achievement you’re most proud of?
• What kind of working environment do you work best in?
• Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

Situational Job Interview Questions:

• Why haven’t you gotten your Bachelor’s Degree/Master’s Degree/Ph.D.?
• Why have you switched jobs so many times?
• Why did you change your career path?
• Why did you decide to leave your previous/current job?
• Why is there a gap in your work experience?
• Why were you fired?
• How do you feel about working weekends or late hours?
• How would your boss describe you?
• Do you have any serious medical conditions?
• What would your first 30, 60, or 90 days look like in this role?
• Are you a team player?
• Are you a risk-taker?
• How do you deal with pressure or stressful situation?
• Do you think there is a difference between hard work and smart work?
• How quickly do you adapt to new technology?
• Do you have any interests outside of work?
• What do you think our company/organization could do better?

Behavioral Questions in a Job Interview:

• Give an example of how you have handled a challenge in the workplace before.
• Give an example of when you performed well under pressure.
• Give an example of when you showed leadership qualities.

How to Answer 14 Most Common Job Interview Questions [+ Sample Answers]

These questions are the ones you’re bound to hear at just about any job interview - whether you’re an intern or a senior professional with a decade of work experience.

All of these questions are used to learn more about you, both as a person and a professional.

You might have heard the popular idea that there’s no right or wrong answers for job interview questions .

Well, while that might be true, there ARE a set of rules you need to follow when answering these questions.

If you understand what, exactly, the interviewer is looking for with each question, you’ll be able to give the right answer (and rock that interview!)

In this section, we’re going to go through 14 of the most common job interview questions and answers. We’re going to explain what the HR manager wants to see in you, as well as give you sample answers you could use.

So, let’s get started! 

1) Tell me something about yourself.

How hard can it be to talk about yourself? We do it on a daily basis without much thought to it.

However, recruitment managers are not looking for your whole life story, your third-grade achievements, or what you had for dinner last night. Instead, they are looking for a pitch . 

This is usually the first question asked in an interview, so it acts as your introduction. Make sure your answer is relevant to the position you are applying for. What you should be aiming for here is to present yourself as the ideal candidate for the job.

A good rule of thumb is to structure your talking points as follows:

• Briefly introduce yourself: What’s your name? How long have you been working as [profession]?
• What do you love about your job?
• What are your top 2-3 achievements that are relevant to the job you’re applying for?

Now, let’s go through some examples:

• Sample Answer 1:

Hey! So, my name is John Doe and I’ve worked as a business analyst for 5+ years in Company X and Company Y.

I have some background in data analysis, having studied Information Systems at [Made-Up] University.

Throughout my career, I’ve done some pretty impressive stuff (if I do say so myself, haha). 

For example, at Company X, I led a project for migrating all operations data to a new data warehousing system to cut down on costs. The new solution was a much better fit for our business, which eventually led to savings of up to $200,000 annually.

• Sample Answer 2:

I am Jane Doe, a recent college graduate from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. 

I have just graduated with honors in Biochemistry. I know my way around a lab and have had multiple opportunities to put my knowledge into practice as a chemistry research assistant.

The lab felt like home, which is why I’d love to work as a lab assistant. I am passionate, hard-working, and extremely responsible. I am also looking forward to putting to practice all the things I learned during my time at university.

2) How did you hear about this position?

Although at first glance this might seem like a straightforward question, you should grab any opportunity you can to show your interest in the company. 

Even if you haven’t been continuously refreshing the company’s website for job listings, make it seem like you have (in a professional way, of course). Show excitement and curiosity.

If someone inside the company told you about the position or recommended that you apply, definitely make sure to mention that.

You’ll have a much better chance at getting hired if someone credible can vouch for your skills.

So, mention his/her name and his/her position inside the company and give their reasoning for inviting or recommending you to apply for the position. Tell the hiring managers what excites you about the job opportunity or what exactly caught your eye.

• Sample answer 1:

“I’ve known about [MadeUpTechnologies] for a long time - I’m a big fan of your products. I even own one of your latest phone models!

I love the company’s passion for creating super intuitive, beautiful hardware, and I would love to be a part of it.

So, when I saw your job ad at [RandomJobBoardWebsite], even though I wasn’t actively looking for a job at the time, I couldn’t help but apply!”

• Sample answer 2:

“I heard from Jim Doe, my old colleague and college friend, that [Company X] was looking for a new sales director. He encouraged me to apply, saying that my experience managing a sales team at [Some Software Company] would be helpful for [Company X].

I’ve heard a lot about [Company X] from Jim, and I’m a big fan of the way you do things there. I’ve always wanted to work for a company with a flat organizational structure.”

3) Why did you decide to apply for this position?

Through this question, the interviewers want to assess how passionate you are for the position. And no, the answer isn’t:

“Well, I’m very passionate about not starving to death.”

“Well, I needed the money, and you guys tend to pay a lot.”

What the interviewer is looking for here is to see how passionate you are about the job or the company. After all, job performance is directly linked to job satisfaction. The happier you are about your position at the company, the more productive you’ll be.

And here’s the kicker - your passion will be very evident during the interview.

When you’re talking to a person that’s passionate about something, you can pretty much feel them glow as they talk. And if you’re an HR manager who’s interviewed hundreds of people, this is a very good sign to hire the candidate.

So, use this knowledge to your advantage. 

When asked this question, your answer should include 2 things:

• What motivated you to apply for this position, specifically .
• Why this company? Have you heard of them before?

I’m very passionate about sustainability and renewable energy . In fact, I minored in Environmental Science at [XYZ University].

I’ve always wanted to put my engineering degree to a good cause - and the position as a Sustainability Coordinator at [Company XYZ] is just the right thing.

I’ve been following your company for the past few years, and I love how you’re changing the renewable energy landscape in America. 

Keep in mind, though, that if you don’t know much about the company or the position - that’s OK too. Just be honest and show your passion for the job. However, it’s always better to do your homework before going to an interview..

I’ve always wanted to get into marketing. Having done promotional jobs here and there, I never had an opportunity to do something more serious.

I do believe, though, that I have just the right skills to get started: copywriting, basic photoshop, and of course, lots of creativity.

So, I thought that an internship at [Company X] would be an awesome start to my career in marketing.

Want to find more samples answers to this question? Check out our article on 10+ best answers to “ Why do you want to work here? ”

4) What are your biggest strengths?

There are two answers you could go for here: what your actual strengths are, and what you think the hiring manager or HR representative wants to hear. We would most certainly suggest you go with the first answer. 

For this question, you would want to narrow your answer down to at most three strengths . Pick 1 or 2 skills that would help you really excel at the job, and 1 or 2 personal (more or less unrelated) skills. 

Not sure which ones are your top strengths? Check out the table below to learn which one’s perfect for your field:

After picking your strengths, back it up with a situation or story that shows how you have used it to benefit you on the job. 

After all, words are just that - words. The HR can’t know whether your “natural leadership” is an actual strength, or just means that you were super active in your high school class.

As you probably already know, this is one of the most common interview questions out there, so make sure you’re prepared for it before facing the HR manager!

My biggest strength is that I’m good at picking up new skills. I’ve worked a variety of different odd jobs - things like working as a waiter, house-keeper, cook, and a lot more (as you’ve probably seen on my resume).

For most of those jobs, I ended up picking up all the needed skills within 1 or 2 weeks (with basically no previous experience). 

So, I’m pretty sure while I don’t have any experience as a bartender, I have the right certification , and I believe I can get good at it within a week or two.

• Possible answer 2:

My biggest strength is that I’m very efficient at working under pressure. No matter the crisis or stress, I can make the right decisions on-the-spot.

As an event manager at Company X, we were organizing an IT conference for a client. There were a ton of last-minute hiccups - some speakers canceled and the catering company said they’d be late for the lunch break. On top of that, we were understaffed because 2 of our volunteer organizers got sick and couldn’t show up.

At that point, things looked so bleak that we were considering canceling the event or postponing it. Instead, I took the initiative in my hands and sorted through the problems one by one.

5) What is your biggest weakness?

Ah, this is always a tricky one! 

After all, you don’t want to mention your flaws during an interview, so it’s guaranteed to be a tough question.

The trick to answering this one is realizing that the interviewers don’t expect you to be perfect. Everyone has flaws, weaknesses, and things to improve on.

When asking this question, the HR manager is actually seeking to learn:

• Whether you have the right skills for the job. If you’re applying for the position of a server in a busy restaurant, and you say your biggest weakness is performing under pressure, then you’re definitely not getting a callback.
• If you’re self-aware and really know what your sticking points are.

And NO: fake humble-brag weaknesses don’t count as weaknesses. You can’t just say that your biggest weakness is that you work too hard, or that you’re a perfectionist.

The key here is to mention a weakness that’s real , but not something that would get in the way of you doing your job. You wouldn’t want to say you’re bad at math if you’re applying for an accountant position, would you

It’s also good practice to mention how you are working towards overcoming this weakness and realizing how it affects you negatively. If you can, just balance it with a positive side effect: treat it like two sides of the same coin.

My biggest weakness has always been my communication skills. I’ve been pretty shy and anxious as a kid. Over the years, however, I’ve been really working on the issue.

At this stage, I’m much better than I’ve ever been, but I’m still far from perfect.

This, however, won’t have any impact on my job as a programmer. Despite lacking communication skills, I’m very good at working in a team.

Well, as a recent graduate, I’d say my biggest weakness is the lack of real-life work experience.

While I’ve worked on a dozen software projects in the university, I don’t have the experience of working in a fully agile environment with an experienced team.

I am, however, willing to do my best and catch up as fast as I can.

Looking for more samples answers about your strengths and weaknesses ? Check out our full guide!

6) What do you know about this company/organization?

A quick search in the “About” page of the company/organization you are applying for should be enough, right? Well, yes and no. 

Think of this as an open-ended question. There’s no real wrong answer here, other than:

I don’t know anything about this organization. In fact, how did I end up here? Can you guys call me a cab real quick?

However , the more you actually know about the company, the better your chances of getting hired.

Imagine 2 equally competent candidates:

• One who doesn’t particularly care much about your company, and is only applying because they know you pay good salaries
• Another who’s been following your company blog for ages, loves your product, and has several friends already working in the company

Which one would you pick? Exactly, the second one!

So, with this job interview question, you want to convince the recruiter that you’re the candidate #2.

Now, how do you do that? Well, a rule of thumb here is to do some Googling before the interview and learn the following about the company:

• What does their product or service do?
• What impact does the product / service have?
• What’s the company culture like?
• What are the latest news about the company? How are they performing?
• ...And pretty much whatever other type of info you can dig up.

I hadn’t heard about you until recently, actually. I found out about [Company X] through your job ad on RandomJobBoard.

After doing some brief research on you guys, I ended up falling in love with your software and your mission.

Now, I’ve worked with a ton of different project management software - Example Software 1, Example Software 2 - but none of them were as intuitive and as Example Software 3.

Well, I know that you’re one of the biggest investment banks in [town / state / country]. Company X pops up on news pretty often - I’ve read that you’ve invested in some of the hottest tech IPOs, and have several up-and-coming biotech companies in your portfolio.

I got particularly interested by your recent investment in [Startup X], I found that interesting because of [Y Reason].

7) Why should we hire you?

Ah, the ultimate humble-brag question. 

Now, the real question is, how do you sell yourself without trying to look arrogant, desperate, or needy? 

A good rule of thumb here is to stay away from the extremes. Think you’re a good fit for the job? Say that “you have the right experience.”

Whatever you do, don’t oversell yourself:

“I’m the best salesman you’ve ever met!”

Instead, make a general statement (I’m a great fit for the position because…) and talk about your experiences and achievements.

Here are 3 general points you can mention:

• How you’re super passionate about working for the company (and why).
• How your skills fit their requirements.
• How you’re going to help the company solve their existing problems. Improve a metric, setup a process, etc.

Well, as a start, I have all the skills and work experience required for the job. I’ve worked as a Sales Manager for 5+ years, and over the past 2, I’ve closed several deals totalling in 6-figures.

Oh, and on top of that, I have experience working with tech companies, so I’ll be able to pick up all the product specifics much faster than the other candidates.

I have just the right skill-set to excel as an executive assistant. While I haven’t previously worked as a personal assistant, I pretty much fit the bill for the role.

I’m extremely organized, having managed several project teams in my university. I led the organization of Event #1 and Event #2. This involved continuous communication with 12+ companies, 30 speakers, and 15+ sponsors.

I’m very meticulous and organized, and I’m more than capable of helping the CEO get the most our of their free time.

Looking for more sample answers? Check out these 10+ answers to “ Why should we hire you? ”

8) What are your salary requirements?

This is always a tricky question. You don’t want to lowball yourself, but at the same time, you don’t want to be told “No” because you gave such an outrageous number.

When answering, keep these 3 things in mind:

• What’s the average salary for someone of your skill-level?
• How much does the company pay employees of your skill level? GlassDoor should be super helpful here.
• Finally, how much are you getting paid in your current company? In most cases, you can probably negotiate a pay bump from what you’re currently getting.

The final number you tell them should incorporate all 3 of the points we just mentioned. Do you know for a fact that the company is doing well (and compensates employees accordingly)? You’d quote a higher salary.

Is your skill-level above average? This should be reflected in your salary.

As a rule of thumb, you can figure out 2 numbers: what’s the “good” scenario, and what’s the “best” scenario?

Answer the interviewer with your “best” pay, and worst case scenario, they’ll negotiate it down.

Or, you can also answer with a range, and chances are, they’ll pick the number somewhere in the middle.

My salary expectation is around $70,000 annually.

My salary requirement is in the $30,000 - $40,000 range annually.

9) Do you have any questions for us?

You’ll hear this question in every interview you will attend. 

While there isn’t a right answer, there IS a wrong answer:

Nope, all good! Thanks, I’ll go show myself out.

Instead, with this question, you want to show your enthusiasm about the company. Imagine they’ve already hired you and you’re starting tomorrow - what would you like to know about them?

Keep in mind, though, that the questions shouldn’t be too easy (So, what does your company do?).

Other than showing the recruiter that you’re really interested in working for them, this is your opportunity to really find out more about the ins and outs of the place. 

The answers you get from the interviewer could also be an indicator of whether you really want to work there or not . 

So, what kind of questions can you ask? Here are some of the most essential ones:

• What does a regular day in this company look like?
• What’s the best thing about working for the company?
• What’s the worst thing about working for the company?
• What would you say are the biggest challenges a person in this position might face?
• What are the most important skills and qualities one must have to succeed in this position?
• What do you like best about working in this company?
• What are the most pressing issues and projects that need to be addressed?
• Do you have training programs available to employees?
• What sort of budget is there for my department?
• What kind of opportunities do you have for future development?
• What are the performance expectations for someone in this position?
• Do departments usually collaborate with one another?
• Do you celebrate birthdays or retirements in the office?
• Do employees usually hang out with each other outside of work?
• Is there anything else I can help you with at this stage?
• What is the next step in the hiring process?

For the complete list of all the questions you can ask the interviewer , check out our article!

10) What are you looking for in a new position?

The easiest way to answer this question would be to simply say that you’re looking for whatever the company is offering.

Look at it from the point of view of the potential employer. Would they hire someone if they answered this question with:

A good salary. And uhh, well, that’s about it!

This answer pretty much says that the moment they get a higher paying offer, they’re going to jump ship!

Instead, explain to the interviewer that this job at this company is the perfect fit for you. Mention what your short-term and long-term career goals are, and how this position ties to them.

I’m looking to further apply my machine learning skills that I developed during my 2+ years of work at [Startup X]. There, I used to do programmatic ads model design.

Now, I’m looking for an opportunity to work on a larger scale project that involves setting up programmatic ads for audiences of more than 10 million people.

I believe that worked with such a large-scale project will allow me to progress significantly faster in my career .

11) Are you considering other positions in other companies?

Here’s a tricky one: How much does the HR manager need to know here? 

If you admit to having interviews with other companies, it might look like you’re not 100% dedicated to this one. 

On the other hand, if you say you are not considering other positions, it might make you seem like you don’t have other options (and the company has the upper hand in salary negotiations).

The right way to go about here is to find common ground between the two answers.

The interviewer is probably asking because they want to know whether they have competition in hiring you. They also want to know if you are serious about the industry and are legitimately looking to be employed in this field of work.

If you do have other interviews lined up for other companies, express that you are keeping your options open but that you favor this job in comparison to the others. 

Don’t have many other options? Stick to the same approach.

Whatever you do, don’t make it seem like you’re desperate or that you don’t have any other options.

I have had two interviews during the past week with companies in X and Y industries.

However, as I’m very passionate about both your industry and the work you have done during the past several years, I am more inclined toward working for you, if everything works out.

Not yet - I wasn’t really actively looking for a job until my friend, [name], recommended your company. I’m not looking for just any company - I’m interested in an interesting, engaging project such as yours.

12) What is the professional achievement you’re most proud of?

This is another version of the “Why should we hire you” question, but with a focus on one very specific achievement.

This one’s pretty straightforward, just mention your #1 professional achievement and you’re good to go.

As a given, the achievement has to be related to the job you’re applying for. Let’s say you’re applying for the position of Sales Manager :

• [Incorrect Example]

“I’m very good at underwater basket-weaving, having woven 20+ baskets in the past year.”

• [Correct Example]

“In my previous sales position, I managed to hit and exceed department KPIs by 50%+ for 6 months in a row”

Keep in mind, though, that you want to be very specific with your answer. To get this right, try using the STAR method . It goes something like this:

• S: Situation - Set the scene and context.
• T: Task - Describe what your challenge or responsibility was.
• A: Action - List and dwell on all the actions you took towards addressing the challenge or responsibility.
• R: Result - Explain what the outcomes were and how they fit with the overall goal of the project or company.

So, find a work-related achievement that showcases your contribution through your skills and experience to something that matters to the company. 

• Sample Answer 1: 

My biggest achievement is the fact that I went from being an intern to managing company X’s entire marketing over 2 years.

As an intern, I basically had 0 instructions on what to do - it went like “hey, go learn social media advertising and get it going.” The founders didn’t exactly expect me to achieve much, and didn’t particularly care, as they were 100% focused on making the product work.

Instead of just complaining about a lack of direction, I started reading up on digital marketing - pretty much anything I could get my hands on. I learned how to do content marketing for example, from Neil Patel’s blog, and started putting everything into practice.

My first success was getting an article to go viral, generating over $5,000 revenue in a single day. While that’s not much for a software company, it felt like a lot for an intern.

After that, the founding team gave me a lot more trust, and assigned me a small marketing budget of $1,000 per month. With a lot more confidence in my abilities, I started experimenting with other strategies.

Then, over the next 2 years, I got promoted to Head of Marketing. After making a couple of hires, I managed to scale up our marketing efforts, growing the company from $2,000 to $30,000 monthly recurring revenue.

• Sample Answer 2: 

My greatest accomplishment so far is graduating from [University X] within 4 years, with a GPA of 3.9. My family was unable to support me financially, so I had to take care of all the university bills on my own.

Through hard work and dedication, I ended up graduating with almost no student loans. I managed this through a combination of:

• Working part-time while studying
• Doing seasonal full-time work during the summer
• Maintaining a high CGPA and winning 2 scholarships over 4 years

13) What kind of work environment do you like best?

The aim of this question is to assess whether you’ll fit in the company’s working environment . 

For example, some organizations are pretty structured and hierarchical, they require tight organization and have a well-planned day filled with rules and guidelines on how to do things.

If you’re the creative, think-out-of-the-box type who likes to break the rules and innovate, this is probably not going to cut it for you.

On the other hand, some companies are more laid back, with a lot less bureaucracy. “Go get us more sales” can actually be your main duty for the week if you’re working in an early stage startup.

If you’re the type who prefers to have strict to-dos and objectives, you probably won’t enjoy such a job.

So, the takeaway? Different people work best in different environments, and that’s okay. 

Before you go to the interview, go through the company’s website and social media pages to get a sense of the general vibe and environment there. 

Look at employee reviews on GlassDoor, or if you know someone already working there, ask them. 

Depending on what you learn, answer accordingly.

I work best in smaller companies. I really dislike the corporate world - rules, guidelines, SOPs, and so on. I perform best when I have a certain level of freedom to do things. Want to find innovative solutions to problems you didn’t even know you had? I’m your guy.

Want someone to just blindly follow instructions and do what they’re told? Then we’d probably not be a good fit.

I love working in a youthful, energetic environment. You know, when you’re working on a common goal with a team of people who are as passionate as you are?

I like to think of my work as a second home, and my coworkers as family. 

The last company I worked at had such an environment, and I excelled at the job.

I get that exact feeling about Company X, since the moment I walked in here for the interview. So, I’m pretty excited to get to know how you guys work!

14) Where do you see yourself in five years?

Sometimes the honest answer to this is “Hopefully not doing this.” especially with entry-level jobs. 

Don’t think the hiring manager doesn’t know it, though. There are diplomatic ways to go around it. 

In general, the motivation behind this question is for the interviewer to assess whether you are an ambitious person or not and whether you have realistic expectations for your career. 

Make sure to avoid any of the cliche answers such as…

“In your seat!”

“As the big boss man”

Instead, think realistically about what the next step after this position is, and whether it is possible to reach it within the company you are applying at. 

Within the next 5 years, I’d like to reach the position of a Senior Business Consultant. During the time period, I would like to accomplish the following:

Help 20+ organizations improve their business

Create a personal network of highly specialized professionals

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As a start, I want to learn if accounting is the right field for me. While I loved what I studied at the university, I want to see if working in the field feels the same.

If I do end up enjoying it, I’d like to specialize in either internal auditing or forensic accounting, as I really like to discover and solve problems. From what I’ve seen from your job ads, you guys are hiring for both, so I hope it’s going to be possible to move up from the position of an “intern” within the next few months!

Still not sure how to answer this one? We don’t blame you! Sometimes, you might not know what you’re doing next week, let alone next year! Check out our guide to answering the “ Where do you see yourself in 5 years? ” job interview question to find more possible answers.

How to Answer 18 Situational Job Interview Questions

You’re past the hard part. 

You already know the most common job interview questions, and can probably deflect whatever the interviewer throws at you.

Depending on your specific situation, though, you might also need to learn how to answer these situational job interview questions...

1) Why haven’t you gotten your Master’s Degree/Ph.D.?

As a start, keep in mind that the interviewer isn’t judging you for your decision.

After all, if they were looking for someone with a better degree, they wouldn’t have invited you to an interview. The degree is not the dealbreaker here, but your answer to the question might be.

When asking this question, the interviewer is trying to see your reasoning for pursuing a career instead of getting another degree.

Heck, there’s a chance that if you give them the right answer, they’re even going to like you more than someone with 3 Phds!

So, simply explain why you didn’t think that another degree was the right thing for you at the time.

Don’t say you were lazy or didn’t feel like it, or that it’s a waste of money (even if that might be the case). 

Instead, give compelling arguments, such as…

• You wanted to see whether your field was the right one for you.
• You didn’t have the financial resources at the time.
• You wanted to get some practical work experience before committing to another degree.

At this stage of my life, I decided to pursue my career instead of further education. On the one hand, I want to make sure that Marketing is what I want to do with my life.

On the other hand, I believe that in my field, practical work experience is a lot more valuable than academic.

So far, my decision has paid off pretty well - I’ve already gotten a lot of experience doing online marketing for 3+ companies and delivering awesome results to boot.

I might eventually decide to pursue a masters, but at this point, I really don’t see the point in that.

Because it’s not in sync with my future career path. I believe that for software engineering, practical experience matters a lot more than having a degree.

I’ve already done an internship as a Junior Javascript Back-end Developer, and I believe that it gave me a lot more knowledge than my B.A. in Computer Science.

While I am eventually planning on getting a Masters, it’s going to be in a more theoretical field, such as Artificial Intelligence.

2) Why have you switched jobs so many times?

If you’ve switched jobs in a very short period of time (2 or more full-time positions in 1 year), the interviewer is bound to ask about it.

After all, job-hopping is one of the biggest red flags for HR managers.

True, you might have had a reasonable cause. Maybe the second company you got hired in just wasn’t a good culture fit for you.

Well, you’ll have to communicate that.

Companies tend to be skeptical because of the following reasons…

• You might be a job hopper . Some people tend to switch jobs the moment they get a better salary offer.
• You might be unqualified for the job and you quit because you couldn’t deliver.
• You get bored easily and your solution to that is quitting.

So, your job here is to convince the interviewer that you don’t belong to any of those 3 categories. 

You need to make them realize that you will not jump ship a few months after getting hired just because some recruiter PM’d you on LinkedIn with a better offer.

The best way to answer this question is to explain the reason you switched jobs. It could be one of the following:

• The company culture wasn’t a good fit. This happens to the best of us - sometimes, the company just isn’t the right one.
• The job description was misleading and you ended up doing something you either didn’t enjoy, or were not qualified for.
• You learned that you simply didn’t enjoy the job, and are not willing to try out something different. While this isn’t the best potential answer, it’s honest and chances are, the HR manager will understand.

The last company I got hired in just wasn’t what I expected. The hiring manager didn’t communicate the role well enough.

As you already know, I’m a copywriter - I write sales copy. I work with:

-Landing pages

-Email marketing

-And sales pages

Around a week after I started work at the company, I realized that they were actually looking for something completely different. They asked me to write generic blog and social media posts, which is pretty far off from what I do.

This was really not what I expected, and not something I find interesting.

Well, as a start, my first job was in a big corporation straight out of university. While I did learn a lot there about Software Engineering practices, I also learned that a huge company with lots of regulations, rules, and the like isn’t for me.

So, at the end of my internship there, I decided to try working at a startup. I enjoyed that job a LOT more, as it gave me a lot of freedom when it comes to problem-solving. I wasn't told HOW to do it. Rather, I was given the option of coming up with my own solution.

Unfortunately, the company went belly-up after failing to raise money, putting me back on the job market. 

And here we are - [Company X] is pretty much THE place I’ve always wanted to work in. I’ve heard a lot about your company culture, and thought I’d really belong there.

3) Why did you change your career path?

If you recently changed your career path , the interviewer is sure to ask about it.

Don’t worry - there’s nothing wrong with this. 

A lot of people go through a career change . Some even do it several times in their lifetime! 

As long as you’re good at what you do, no one cares if you were a pediatrician in one year, and a professional chef in another.

When asked this question, all you have to do is answer truthfully. Explain how your old job just wasn’t for you, and how the job you’re applying for is so much more interesting.

• Sample Answer

I realized that being a doctor is not for me. While I did enjoy my 3 years in med school, the 6 year study period was too much.

I wanted to start making money and help out my family way before that, so I dropped out of university and started taking online courses in accounting.

At this point, I’m pretty good at it, having done 2 internships so far in [Company X] and [Company Y].

• Sample Answer 2

Simply because I enjoy doing sales much more than accounting. After 5 years of working as an accountant for Firm X, I decided I wanted to try something new.

I asked my boss at the time to let me transition to the sales team, and I ended up liking it AND being pretty good at it.

4) Why did you decide to leave your previous/current job?

When asking this question, the interviewer wants to learn:

• Did you have a good reason for leaving your last job? The HR manager doesn’t want someone that just jumps ship the moment things go bad.

“Oh, well, the company started bleeding cash and was on its way to bankruptcy.”

“I felt like it was time - I got to a point where everything I was doing felt monotonous. I learned as much as I could at this position while delivering amazing results. It was, however, time to switch to something new.”

• Did you leave on good terms? Meaning, did you go through the offboarding process, instructing your coworkers on how to take up your responsibilities? Or did you just say “Adios” and stopped showing up at work?

“Things started to get really boring, and the boss man was kind of mean. I totally deserve better, so I just ghosted them and now I’m looking for a new company. Hi!”

“I didn’t feel like the company’s values coincide with mine. The management was too controlling and micromanaging. I prefer to have some control over my work, and being able to contribute by going above and beyond my requirements.”

Of course, I went through the off-boarding properly. Meaning, gave a timely resignation notice , and transferred all the essential company knowledge to my replacement.”

• Did you leave voluntarily, or were you fired?

“I got fired for missing work for a week without an excuse.”

“I was fired, actually. The fault was in my communication skills at the time. I misunderstood my supervisor’s instructions and ended ended up setting a higher monthly spend on ad account for the client. The losses were not more than 3-figures, but apparently, the relationship with the client was already strained, so they ended up leaving.

Of course, I really took this to heart and worked very hard on improving my communication skills, to ensure that I don’t make any mistakes of this nature ever again.”

5) Why is there a gap in your work experience?

In most cases, a gap in your work experience doesn’t really mean anything. You probably have a very good reason for it.

The interviewer, however, will definitely ask about it, and you should answer adequately.

There’s no secret sauce to answering this question, just let the recruiter know about your situation, whatever that may be:

• Maternity leave
• Health issues
• Caring for a sick family member
• Time off to pursue further education
• Relocating to a different city
• Working on a personal project

Whichever the case may be, just explain the situation in brief and move on.

One thing to keep in mind, however, is that if you were laid off at work, or you quit and had trouble getting a new job , you should be very subtle about it.

If the interviewer knows that you’re struggling to find a job , you’re going to give them the upper hand in salary negotiations.

“I had a baby and had to take maternity leave.”

“My father was sick, so I had to be the one to take care of him full-time over a few months.”

6) Why were you fired?

Now this is a tough one.

Getting fired is pretty much never good.

Keep in mind that we’re talking about getting fired, not getting laid off. There’s a huge difference between the two:

• Getting laid off means that you got let go for something that had nothing to do with your competence. I.e. budget cuts, company down-sizing, etc.
• Getting fired , on the other hand, means that you got let go for a reasonable cause. And chances are, it’s probably your fault.

If you got fired and the interviewer asks you about it, you should be honest. After all, they can easily check-in with your previous employer.

Your best shot here is to be critical about your mistakes, and explain what you’ve done to improve.

“None of it was my fault. My boss is a total tool, and he hates me for no real reason. He yelled at me for no real reason!”

In the example above, the interviewee gets defensive. That’s a pretty huge red flag for the HR manager.

Instead, try saying something that shows that you’re aware of your mistakes.”

“The main fault was in miscommunication. The interviewer was unclear about the job responsibilities - from what I understood, they were looking for a senior-level marketer to oversee their email marketing operations.

At the end of the day, though, it turned out that the company was looking to experiment with email marketing, and specifically for someone to set it up from scratch.

While I did my best to deliver, in the end it turned out that their niche doesn’t actually need email marketing. This was against the management’s vision, so that decided to let me go.”

7) How do you feel about working weekends or late hours?

You’re gonna get asked this question in one of the following 2 cases:

1) You’re applying for a job that requires working odd hours.

In this case, your answer is pretty straightforward - since you’re applying for such a job, you probably don’t have any problems working odd hours.

“Sure! I’m OK with working late hours or weekends, as long as you let me know about it at least a few days in advance.”

2) You’re applying for just about any other type of job.

Now, you should look at this as a red flag. Is the employer just checking your dedication, or are they looking for someone that’s going to work 24/7 with no overtime pay?

In this case, ask them to clarify what they mean.

“Given enough warning, sure. Is that something I’ll be required to do often? Do you offer overtime pay for this kind of situation?”

8) How would your boss or coworkers describe you?

This question is pretty much the same as “ what are your greatest strengths ,” the only difference is that it should be from the point of view from your boss or coworkers.

Here, you want to focus on your traits and achievements that you’ve previously been praised for (After all, the interviewer might ask for a reference!).

There are at least 2 ways to answer this question:

1) Describe a specific situation where you excelled at work (and received praise from your boss and coworkers)

“They’d say I’m super hard working. During my weekend-off, not one, but three of my coworkers got sick, and I had to spot for them.

The weekend was peak season in Nantucket, so the restaurant was getting seriously overwhelmed. All of a sudden, we went from being very prepared for the season, to complete panic.

Had to jump between serving, bussing, and line-cooking, but overall, managed to survive through the weekend successfully.”

2) Quote a performance review

If you’ve previously worked in an office job, you’re probably all too familiar with these.

Did your boss give you a glowing performance review? Make sure to mention it here!

“Well, in my last performance review in September, my boss described me as someone who takes initiative.

My position as a PR manager involves constantly keeping track of our clients brand reputation, and if something goes wrong, dealing with it as fast as possible.

In a lot of cases, you need to be very proactive - if you wait for your entire team to have a meeting on how to deal with the issue, it might already be too late.

There were 4-5 different situations where I had to take charge and react to problems literally the moment they arose, whether it was during my work hours, or not.”

9) Do you have any serious medical conditions?

When asking this question, the interviewer wants to learn if you have any medical conditions that could impair your ability to do the job correctly.

In most cases, you’re not obliged to give an answer. If you do have a health condition, and it doesn’t have anything to do with your career, you can simply choose not to answer, or to say “No.”

However, you might want to disclose anything that could potentially have an impact on how you perform.

For example, if the job requires you to lift heavy boxes, for example, and you’re not able to do so because of a condition, you should let the HR manager know.

• [Sample Answer 1]

“I don’t have any serious medical conditions”

• [Sample answer 2]

“I’m unable to lift heavy objects because of issues with my back, but it won’t have any impact on how I perform at an office job”

10) What would your first 30, 60, or 90 days look like in this role?

If you’re applying for a senior or leadership role, you’re probably going to get asked this question.

Chances are, at this stage of the interview, you already know a lot about your future position and the company.

Now, it’s time to show off your knowledge in your field, and explain how you’re going to start making things happen at the company.

So, here’s how to answer the question:

You’re probably going to need to get to know the company first. You’re going to be learning as much as possible, including information on:

• What does the company do?
• What are the key processes?
• What does your department do?
• What are the current problems and challenges?
• Where can you help?

You’ll start start making things happen. From all the info you gathered, suggest a handful (3 to 5) initiatives you could take on:

• You’d audit the company email marketing strategy and suggest improvements
• You’ll help come up with better ad copies for Facebook marketing
• You’ll help the team with their ongoing marketing initiatives

You’re already have started making an impact. Describe several things you think are going to be functioning better:

• Online ads are going to be performing better by 10-20%
• Email marketing operations are going to be more streamlined, taking significantly less manpower

11) Are you a team player?

Wherever you’re applying, the answer to this question should be a “Yes!”

Even if you’re applying for a completely solo role, chances are, you’re still going to have to work in a team occasionally . 

We’d recommend being very specific about your answer here - don’t just say yes. Give the interviewer an exact example of when you excelled at working with a team.

“I’m much better at working in a team than alone, actually. That’s what I love about working in advertising - everyone has their own specific type of a creative spark, and when you combine it all, magic happens!

I’m good at both leading and following in terms of creativity and brainstorming. I’m also super receptive to others ideas, and do my best to help them execute it without nay-saying or criticism.”

“Yep, definitely. I excel at team-work. 

This one time while working at [Company X], I was assigned to an existing team working on a web application for a business process management company.

They were working on a tight deadline, and needed help on the API side.

I optimised their development cycles and oversaw a team of three developers while collaborating with the other two dev teams.

Everything went pretty well, and we managed to finish the project on time.”

12) Are you a risk-taker?

This one’s pretty tricky, as the answer here depends on your profession and field.

Ask yourself - is risk-taking a valuable skill for the job?

If you’re a pilot, for example, the answer should be a strict “No!”

If, on the other hand, you’re a day trader, then risk is an essential part of your job.

So, depending on how valuable risk is for your job, answer accordingly.

You could also give a more strategic answer. Let’s say, for example, you work in investment banking. You need to be a risk taker to an extent, but being too risk-friendly might make the entire company go bankrupt.

The strategy in such a case would be to show that you’re all about calculated risk . You’re willing to take chances, but only when the odds are in your favor.

As with most interview questions, you should give examples of situations where you had to take risks, and what the end-results were.

“Yes, I’m a risk-taker. I believe that to achieve real results, you always need to be willing to take a certain level of risk.

Pretty much any marketing initiative you launch is tied to risk. You can plan everything from beginning till the end, but no matter how well you plan it out, things might just not work out.

It’s just part of the job - in order to succeed, you need to take launch risky campaigns on a regular basis, and hopefully, one in every 5 is going to bring you massive results.”

“I’m not a risk-taker, I’m more of a risk-manager. As someone who’s been in finance for years, I can say with a lot of confidence that there’s risk in everything.

The most important things are to one, minimize your risks, and two, minimize potential damages if everything goes very, very wrong.

While working at Investment Bank X, we had a very interesting policy for investing in new fintech projects. We used to avoid moon-shots, high-tech projects, as well as anything that had an experimental business model.

Our strategy was to invest in proven tech. As in, proven product-market fit, business model, etc. In most cases, these were runner up companies. We wouldn’t invest in that one innovative company that was all over the news - we’d instead invest in their latest competitor. More often than not, this ended up being more profitable, and significantly less risky.”

13) How do you deal with pressure or stressful situations?

If you’re applying for a high-stress job, you’re guaranteed to get asked this question.

The aim of this question is to see if you’re the type of person who’d survive working at the job, or fall through the cracks when the first signs of trouble show up.

Obviously, you wouldn’t answer with the following…

“Well, I end up having a panic attack, crying, and running away from work.”

Instead, answer as follows…

• Say that yes, you do tend to perform well during stressful situations
• Give 1-2 examples of a situation where you had to perform well under pressure

Now, let’s go through some real-life examples:

“Though I can’t particularly say I enjoy stressful situations, I AM very good at working under pressure.

During chaos and panic, I tend to take a step back, think, plan, and prioritize.

For example, there have been times I’ve had to juggle multiple university projects and assignments at the same time. I would break up large assignments into small, individual tasks, and prioritize based on:

• How fast I could complete each task
• Figuring out which task would take the longest
• Which project had the earliest deadline

This way, my work became a lot more manageable. The most times I had to experience such situations, the better I performed overall.”

“I actually prefer working under pressure. I look at it as a challenge - a situation where I really have to up my game to succeed.

As a cook, working under pressure is pretty much part of the job. I’ve been in several situations where the restaurant was understaffed for the occasion. Heck, it’s pretty much a constant thing during peak season.

When there’s a ton of orders coming in and we can barely keep up, I tend to get significantly more productive than usual.”

14) Do you prefer hard work, or smart work?

By definition, hard work is when you, well, work hard. It’s when you’re willing to put in a lot of work to get the job done.

Smart work on the other hand, means doing the work efficiently. If you manage to get the job done in 2 hours instead of 5, with the same end-result, you’re doing smart work.

Keep in mind, though, that by asking this question, the interviewer is looking to understand what your work ethic is like. Meaning, they’re looking for a healthy combination of both, not just one.

That is, they want you to be the candidate who not only thinks smartly but works hard as well. 

So, your answer here shouldn’t be one-sided...

“Oh, I looove smart work. That’s when you come up with what to do, and make other people do it, right?”

Instead, explain how you excel at both:

“I don’t particularly have a preference - I believe that both hard and smart work is important to get the best results.

Smart work, on one hand, lets you figure out the best and most efficient way to get things done.

Hard work, on the other hand, means that you’ll do the job right. Even if there’s no way to do it smart or efficiently, you’ll be willing to put in long hours of work to get it done.

I’m the type that does both. 

For an example of smart for, during my time at [Made Up Corporation], I was in charge of the sales department. As a process improvement initiative, I migrated from an outdated, in-house CRM, to Pipedrive. This improved the department’s productivity by around 20%.

On the other hand, the whole migration process took around 3 months of hard work. As the software we were using was outdated, trying to learn how to map and migrate our data was a lot more complicated than we’d expected.”

15) How quickly do you adapt to new technology?

Today, whether you’re applying for a software engineering job, or as a cashier in a supermarket, you’re going to need to use technology at least on some level.

It’s very common for a company to adopt new tech - new point of service system, self check-out kiosks, customer management software, and whatever else.

So, you should be able to pick up new tech ASAP . Any new change shouldn’t completely disrupt your work.

So, when answering this question, you should talk about how tech-savvy you are.

• Sample Answer: 

“I’m pretty tech-savvy. I’ve worked with a lot of different Point of Service systems so far, and have zero difficulties learning how to use new ones.”

As a given, I own a PC, have used Office 365, and all the usual stuff.”

“I’ve always been interested in tech. In fact, I’m the type of person to actively seek out new software to help solve business problems at work.

I’ve worked with 3 different Customer Management Software in the past, such as PipeDrive, SalesForce, and Zoho CRM.”

16) Do you have any interests outside of work?

If the interviewer asks you this question, take it as a good sign!

It means that they liked your professional background, and now they’re just trying to get to know you and see if you’re a good fit for the company culture.

It’s pretty hard to go wrong here, unless you’re going to answer something like:

“I have literally no hobbies.”

“All I do is play video games all day.”

Just talk about your hobbies and interests , and you’re all set!

Bonus points if you can mention something that’s also relevant to your job (creative writing if you’re applying for a copywriting job, for example).

• Sample Answer 1

“I’m a big fan of creative writing. I have my own personal short-story blog, and contribute actively to several online writing communities (such as Writing Prompts on Reddit).

Oh, and I’m also a huge fan of the New York Giants.”

“Well, I’m very interested in all sorts of sports. I like to keep active, as it really helps keep me productive. Over the past 2 years, I’ve done a bit of everything - fencing, archery, hiking, and several other things.”

17) What do you think our company/organization could do better?

Well, this one’s interesting!

While not too common for most organizations, it’s a favorite amongst tech companies.

How come? Well, answering this question shows a couple of things…

• That you’re really passionate about the organization, and have done your research
• Are not afraid of giving feedback

Obviously, you should be very political about your feedback. You can’t just say that:

“Well, a lot of things really. I’m not enjoying this interview right here, for example.

And your product kinda sucks, no offense. But hey, there’s always room for improvement, am I right?”

Instead, you want to show off the research you’ve done. Talk about anything that might seem off about their product or business:

“I actually went through your resume builder before coming to the interview, and found several things that seemed kinda counter-intuitive.

Not to say that it’s too hard to understand, or something, but it took me a while to figure out some stuff.

If you want, I can open up my laptop and show you what I mean.”

How to Answer 3 Most Common Behavioral Questions in an Interview [w/ Possible Answers] 

Finally, behavioral job interview questions are questions that focus on how you’ve performed in the past, or how you’d perform in a specific situation.

They’re used to understand your thinking patterns, and whether you can think on your feet.

Remember the STAR interview method we discussed all the way up? Well, it can be used to answer just about any behavioral interview questions.

To brush up your memory, the main idea behind the STAR method is that each answer should involve the following:

Here are 3 of the most common behavioral interview questions (with sample answers):

1) Give an example of how you have handled a challenge in the workplace before.

What the interviewers want to know in this case is how well you handle conflict and difficulties.

So, the answer here should be pretty straightforward. You should describe a challenge you faced at work, and explain how you solved it.

“During my last job as a Google Ads expert, one of the company clients had accidentally butchered their own ad account. I noticed this over the weekend and saw that they were basically wasting money on nothing.

I took the initiative and immediately got in touch with the client to let them know about the issue. Then, we set up an impromptu meeting on the same day, and fixed the account before any real damage could be done.”

“During my last job, I was managing the creative and web dev team in charge of creating an online store for a client. Two days before deploying, we found a major bug that messed up the whole front-end user experience.

Now, we could have pushed the deadline a bit, but that would have messed up the relationship with the client. The project was already postponed once because of unforeseen circumstances, so this one was a do or die.

I assembled a task force consisting of web developers from my team, as well as some software engineers from another department. We focused 100% of our time on fixing the issue, and actually managed to launch on time at the end.”

2) Give an example of when you performed well under pressure.

For any high-stress work environment, you’re guaranteed to get asked this question.

“I actually perform a lot better when under a lot of pressure. The sense of urgency and importance really motivates me to up my game and make sure everything works out right.

When I worked as a Financial Analyst at [MadeUpFinanceCompanyInc], most of the work was very high pressure. I had to go above and beyond the line of duty to make sure we met the tight deadlines set by our clients. This often meant working 12 hour work days, and sometimes, working over the weekend.”

“As a seasonal worker, my entire career is high-pressure, haha... My last position was as a line cook during the summer at the SomeRestaurant in JacksonHole, Wyoming.

Around 3 out of 4 of the months were super high stress - there was a LOT of work, and the restaurant was pretty much always full. Heck, I’ve even had to skip breaks just to make sure we wouldn’t be understaffed.”

3) Give an example of when you showed leadership qualities.

Applying for a leadership position? You’ll definitely get asked this behavioral interview question.

Keep in mind, though, that this question doesn’t necessarily mean that you should have held a managerial position.

What the interviewer is asking for is a situation when you took the initiative and led a project or an initiative.

“As an entry-level marketer, there was not much expected of me at SoftwareCompanyInc.. My main to-dos involved doing research, and completing whatever tasks were assigned to me.

During a content marketing brainstorming session, I came up with an awesome idea to market the company. The gist of it was, we’d interview company clients who were very successful at using the software, create case studies on what exactly they’re doing, and include it in our email marketing strategy.

The Chief Marketing Officer loved the idea and put me in charge of executing the project, which I did with flying colors.”

[BONUS] Job Interview Infographic

Now, it’s time for a quick recap! Check our our new infographic on some of the most common job interview questions (and how to answer them):

Additional Interview Preparation Tips

And we’re finally here!

If you managed to get to this point, you definitely deserve a high-five!

Now, before we wrap up the article, let’s go through a couple of essential tips on acing your interview…

• Make sure you’re prepared to answer all the common job interview questions. Wherever you’re applying, you’ll likely be asked several of these questions.
• Think of the answers you’ll give for the situational interview questions (whichever ones apply to you). I.e. gap in your work experience, why were you fired, etc.
• Understand how to answer behavioral job interview questions. If you know how the STAR method works, this shouldn’t be difficult at all.
• Follow basic interview etiquette. Make eye-contact with the interviewer, but polite, and so on.

And finally, good luck on the interview! You got this!

Suggested readings:

• How to Make a Resume & Land That Job
• How to Make a Cover Letter
• How to Ace a Video Interview
• Thank You Email After Interview
• Phone Interview Questions & Tips

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Resume Format

Please click below to download the template.

• Types of resume format
• 1. Chronological Resume Format
• 2. Skills-Based Resume Format
• 3. Combination/Hybrid Resume Format
• How to choose the right resume format fresher?
• Additional formatting tips

Chronological Resume Format

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This is the most widely used and accepted type of resume format. Due to it being so popular, it makes it easy for the recruiter to spot all the relevant and important information in this format. Not just that, this resume format download is easier to use as you just need to put relevant information in place.

The structure of reverse-chronological resume

• Contact Information/ Contact Details
• Resume Headline/Resume Summary/ Career Summary
• Work Experience
• Educational Qualifications
• Skills/Certifications
• Any additional sections (Like: Hobbies, Extra-Curriculum)

This resume format puts emphasis on your work experience because that is the most important thing for the recruiter. Being the highlight of your job resume, here is how you should write it -

• Start with your most current job and follow it with your previous works
• Make sure you mention your position, name of the company and dates
• Mention all the details in bullet points as it makes it easier for the recruiter to skim through it without overlooking any important detail
• Try to use industry-related keywords like supervised, achieved, accomplished, managed
• When mentioning your achievement, try to quantify them
• If you have an ample amount of work experience, then only mention experiences that are relevant to that particular position

To better understand the advantages and disadvantages of the reverse-chronological resume format, please consult the differential table below.

• Makes it easier for the recruiters to spot important information because they are familiar with it.
• It will go through the ATS (Application Tracking Software) without any problem.
• This resume format highlights your work experience.
• You need to put extra efforts to catch the recruiter’s eye because this resume format is widely used.
• If you have a large employment gap then the recruiter will notice them immediately.
• Not the ideal choice for those looking for a career change.

Functional/Skills-Based Resume Format

Unlike the reverse-chronological resume format, a functional resume highlights your skills and abilities. If you have employment gaps, then this resume is for you. This is also one of the resume formats for freshers as it highlights their skills and projects. Resume Buddy can easily help you create an impeccable resume using this format and then you can download a fully composed resume using the right resume format for freshers’ pdf from there.

The structure of Functional/ Skill-based resume format

• Contact Information
• Resume Summary/Resume Objective
• Skills Summary
• Additional Skills/ Certifications

The 2 important parts of a functional resume are; resume summary/resume objective and skills summary. Here are some tips that will help you to write them.

• When writing your resume summary/resume objective, make sure that it is short and to the point. Only mention and discuss the most important skills
• If possible, add links of your online portfolio, blogs, and websites to your resume objective
• Choose only 4-5 relevant skills and give examples of when and how you used that skill and the outcomes
• Use bullet points rather than paragraphs when working on the resume format in word

To further understand whether or not a functional job resume is for you, take a look at the table below.

• Takes the focus off the employment gaps and highlight your skills.
• For non-traditional industries, it’s the perfect creative resume format.
• Makes it easier to shift your career to a totally different work field.
• Not easy to scan hence, not preferred by recruiters.
• Using this resume format raises a few red flags to the recruiter that you are hiding something of importance.
• More likely to fail the ATS resume scan and some job boards don’t accept them.

Combination/Hybrid Resume Format

As the title suggests, the combination resume format brings the best of reverse-chronological resume format and functional resume format. It highlights your work experience as well as your skills and abilities. If you want to choose the best resume format for a job interview, then this is the one you should go for. This is one of the most bankable resume formats and you can easily create it on Resume Buddy and save your file through the resume format for word download option.

The structure of Combination/Hybrid resume format

• Resume Headline
• Educational Experience

This resume format will put the focus on your skills summary. All the listed skills should be relevant to the job post and validated with appropriate examples. If possible, try to quantify your achievements as numbers will pop out on your resume. In addition to that, here are some pointers that you should keep in mind -

• Start listing your skills with the most relevant skill being on the top. If you have certifications to validate your skills, then you should mention them under the skills’ section
• Add up to 4 bullet points describing your achievements and highlight your skills and abilities
• Try to quantity and measure your skills rather than being vague
• Go through all the pointers and re-check the grammar before finalizing things and choosing resume format download in MS word option

Here is a table on the Pros and Cons of a Combination/Hybrid resume format to clear your doubts.

• Puts focus on your most important skills such as transferable skills.
• Perfect for those with employment gaps but have relevant work experience.
• Easier for the recruiter to find highlighted skills and abilities.
• Candidates with a lot of work experience can use this resume format. Only for senior executive positions that require specific skills.
• Most difficult resume format to create.
• The resume will be longer and repetition of information might create problems.

Resume Buddy

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Create a professional skill based resume with AMCAT's Resume Buddy.

Combination/Hybrid Resume Format Resume Format

A fresher resume format should be focused around the skills of the candidates. Since you wouldn’t have a lot of experience, your fresher resume format can highlight the projects you undertook, the internships you were a part of, and the things you learned during this time. Also, adding your hobbies in your resume, especially if they can be tied back to the job profile you are applying for can be a good idea. Both reverse chronological resume format and functional resume format work great for freshers. A reverse chronological resume is easier to execute and more common. On the other hand, a functional resume requires expert help (like Resume Buddy), it can be more beneficial in the long run and highlight your skills better. Example: - If you are an engineering fresher, then the hero of your resume will be the internships you did in college and the projects you undertook. Furthermore, skills and certifications that you might have acquired over this period will also be highlighted so that recruiters see those qualities in the first glance.

By now, you already have an idea about which resume format is suitable for you and your job search. Here are a few additional pointers that you should know before you start working on your resume format.

• Put a one-inch margin on all four sides of the paper
• Make sure that the text of your resume is clear and readable. Use the 11 or 12 point resume font and use the same resume font throughout your resume. Keep it consistent
• Divide your resume into sections
• Mention every relevant detail in bullet points. Avoid paragraphs
• Don’t make your resume too long or too short
• Don’t put your photo or mention any personal detail (Unless asked for)
• Proof-read your job resume and make sure there are no spelling or grammatical mistakes
• Save your resume in a pdf file

When choosing a resume format for job freshers, choose a format that highlights your skills and certifications while when composing a resume for experienced candidates, the focus should be on your job, what you did there and what you learned in the process.

That was everything that you needed to know about the different resume formats and the kind of formats that you can choose from. So, which resume format should you choose depends on the career path that you want to pursue.

• Choose reverse-chronological resume format, if you want a job in the industry in which you have experience
• Go for functional resume format, if you are looking for a creative job where your skills are more important than your work experience
• Pick combination resume format, if you are applying for a high-level senior job which requires special skills and abilities

So, understand what is it that you want your resume to say and how you want your message to be delivered across to the recruiters and then choose your resume format accordingly.

For a fresher, we would recommend a resume to a maximum of 1 page displaying all the important skill set & capabilities as per the job requirements.

Follow the above tips to create resume for a fresher job.

Selecting a good format for a resume might be tricky sometimes on the basis of the job you’re applying for & the kind of position you hold.

Best resume format preferred by employers should contain Summary, Core Competencies, Internships/Trainings/Work Experience, Qualifications, Skills.

You also need to make sure that the formats are ATS (Applicant Tracking System) optimized, so that the resumes have higher chances of getting shortlisted during ATS screening.

You can create a free resume using the Resume builder tool having 50+ Resume templates with different formats to choose for graduates.

• Communication skills - These can include social skills, non-verbal communication, listening skills, and interpersonal skills.
• Technical skills - Knowledge required to perform specific tasks, like computer skills or clerical skills.
• Job-specific skills - Particular prowess the company specifically requires.
• Leadership and management skills
• Critical thinking skills - Ability to make your own, thought-based decisions and take initiative. Includes analytical skills, decision-making, and problem-solving. 
• Create a resume using Resume Builder – A professional Resume builder tool
• Choose a suitable template from 50+ professional resume temlates
• Fill all the relevant information like Summary, Work Experience, Projects, Education, Skills etc.
• Preview and Publish your resume
• Download the resume as PDF
• Step 1: The first step to create your resume is to visit the Resume builder page and click on Create Resume.
• Step 2: Fill up your information and Choose a Resume Template from 50+ templates
• Step 3: Choose Experience Level
• Step 4: Mention the current details
• Step 5: Verify / finalise details by clicking on the save and next
• Step 6: Preview and Publish Resume. Your free resume is created.
• Give your strongest asset a place of honor up at the top of your resume
• You can select reverse chronology and follow the below: 1. Contact Information 2. Resume Summary 3. Education 4. Professional Title 5. Work Experience (bulk of content) 6. Skills 7. Additional / Custom sections

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