PROFESSIONAL

RESUME WRITING
Lecturer: Farheen Asim
 CONTENTS

• introduction

• CV vs Resume

• Resume and Cover letter

• Types of Resume

• Adding a logo

• Resume samples

• Dos and Don'ts of resume writing

• References

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INTRODUCTION
What is a resume?
Also known a as job resume, a resume is a brief written
summary of a job applicant’s past employment history,
education, and other pertinent information. The term
resume is used primarily in America, where it has taken
the place of the Latin expression curriculum vitae, or CV.

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Why is a resume important?
Without a favorable initial impression, a prospective
employer is likely to stop considering you as a suitable
candidate for the job on offer and move on to other
candidates who have provided better resumes.
Think of a resume as a tool for marketing yourself. It’s
more than just a document: It outlines your background,
your skills, and your education so that a potential
employer is quickly and easily able to see how your
individual experiences can contribute to a company’s
success.

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CV VS RESUME: KEY DIFFERENCES
TO CHOOSE BETWEEN THE TWO

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A resume is a one- to two-page document
presenting key facts about your professional
experience, educational background, and skills.
A CV (Curriculum Vitae) is a longer document
that details the whole course of your career. A
resume is used for job search, a CV—for
academic purposes.

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 CV

What is a CV?

A CV (full form Curriculum Vitae which is Latin for “course of life”) is an in-depth document
which describes the whole course of your career in full detail. It’s usually two- or three-page
long but can just as well be laid out over 10+ pages, if necessary. A Curriculum Vitae contains
details about your education, professional career, publications, awards, honors, and other
achievements. In the USA and Canada, a CV is used only for academic applications: academic
jobs, grants, research fellowships, etc.

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RESUME

A resume (or résumé, from French “to sum up”) is a short, concise document used for
job applications in the US and Canada. The purpose of a resume is to provide recruiters
with a brief overview of the candidate’s work history. A good resume should be
targeted at a specific job and one to two pages long.

Have a look at the below example made with our builder in US resume format. The
difference between a resume and a CV is clear, isn’t it?

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20XX PRESENTATION TITLE 10
RESUME AND COVER LETTER

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Found a job opening that fits your career goals, skills, and experience? Now it's time to prove to the employer that you're
qualified.
Some employers will ask you to complete a job application. Others want resumes and cover letters. Learn how to write a
resume and cover letter to successfully advertise yourself for a job.

Resumes
A well-prepared resume will give an employer a reason to want to interview you. Find resume writing advice and samples.
Cover Letters
The cover letter is your chance to demonstrate your writing skills, highlight your work-related skills, and personalize your
resume.
How to Showcase Your Work
Learn how to illustrate your skills and accomplishments using a portfolio and work samples.
References
Calling references is often the last stage in the hiring process. It can make the difference between getting hired or getting
passed over. Learn how to select the best references.

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COVER LETTER
What’s a Cover Letter?

Usually, a cover letter is no longer than an A4/Letter document that you enclose with
your resume to give extra details about your skills and experience.

A cover letter…

• Allows you a little more space to write about how you’re excited about landing the
job.

• Gives the hiring manager more specifics about exactly why they need to interview
you.

This isn’t where you repeat everything you said on your resume.

Instead, a cover letter should add to your resume and show that you’ve put in a little
more effort than others to get the job you want.

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TYPES OF RESUME

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There are three common resume formats: chronological, functional, and combination. The
table below describes and gives the pros and cons of each. Use it to decide which is best for
you.

Functional or Skills-
Resume Formats Chronological Resume based Resume Combination Resume

Overview Focuses on skills and

Lists your work history
strengths important to
in reverse order, Blends the flexibility
employers. Omits
starting with your and strength of the
specific dates, names,
current or most recent other two types of
and places. De-
job and working resumes.
emphasizes a spotty
backwards.
work history.

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 Functional or Skills-based
Resume Formats Chronological Resume Resume Combination Resume

Advantage Shows off a strong

De-emphasizes a spotty
Easy to write. Emphasizes employment record
work history. Allows you to
steady employment record. with upward mobility.
highlight specific strengths
Employers like to see job Show how the skills you
and transferable skills that
titles, level of have used in the past
might not be obvious when
responsibility, and dates of apply to the job you are
outlined in purely
your work history. seeking. Emphasizes
chronological order.
transferable skills.

Disadvantage
No detailed work history.
Content may appear to
lack depth. Disliked by
Calls attention to
many employers. It makes Work history is often on
employment gaps. Skills
them think you may be the second page, and
can be difficult to spot
trying to hide your age, employer may not read
unless they are listed in the
employment gaps, lack of that far.
most recent job.
relevant experience, lack of
career progression, or
underemployment.
20XX PRESENTATION TITLE 17
 Functional or Skills-
Resume Formats Chronological Resume based Resume Combination Resume

Best used To emphasize

transferable skills you
To show off your skills
have used in volunteer
developed throughout
To emphasize past work, paid work, or
your work history
career growth and coursework. Use this or
instead of the specific
development in the a combination resume
positions you have
same career. Or when if you are a new
held. Use when you are
the name of a former graduate, have limited
making a career
employer may be work experience, are
change and names of
significant to changing careers or
former employers may
prospective employer. doing freelance work,
not be obvious to
or you do not want to
prospective employer.
call attention to your
age.

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 Functional or Skills-
Resume Formats Chronological Resume based Resume Combination Resume

Don't use if There are gaps in your

work history, when
calling attention to You want to emphasize
your age could be a growth or development Your experience is
problem, you have or if your duties and limited, or there are
changed jobs often, or responsibilities in wide gaps in your work
you are entering the recent jobs were history.
job market for first limited.
time or after a long
absence.

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RESUME VARIATION

Targeted Resume

Overview Highly focused document aimed at a particular job; a "capsule" of work

experience

Advantage
Brief and direct. Easy to read.

Disadvantage
May focus too tightly on one particular job. Content may appear sparse.

Best used When job target is specific, or you need separate resumes for different
career paths.

Don't use if
You aren't prepared to put the effort into writing an excellent resume.

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ADDING A LOGO
 WHAT IS A PERSONAL LOGO?

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A personal logo defines and reinforces your personal brand—especially the way you interact with
your audience in speech and the written word.

Your logo should make a memorable impression, so your followers, viewers, readers or students
easily recognize it.

A personal logo might involve the usage of your name, your business name, the name of your
website, newsletter or product. It should bring together all of these elements to create a brand
identity.

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How Do I Create a Personal Brand Logo?
1.Decide On Your Name Versus a Business Name. ...
2.List Your Values. ...
3.Create a Mood Board. ...
4.Pick the Right Color Scheme. ...
5.Select the Right Typography. ...
6.Experiment with Logo Styles. ...
7.Hire a Designer or Try Logo Design Software.

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Adding a logo visually and automatically sets
you apart from other applicants. Your job
experience and educational background are
already excellent. Adding a logo and making
your resume more eye-catching can help your
resume get a closer look rather than a 6-second
dismissive glance

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RESUME SAMPLES
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DOS AND DON'TS OF RESUME
WRITING

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Dos

1.Use 10-12 point font depending on length.

2.Use a simple, standard font.
3.Use proper margins. 1 inch is fine.
4.Use a professional/executive summary to pinpoint skills and objectives.
5.Use resume paper to print copies. This paper is different than the standard printer type and will make your
copy stand out over others.

DON’Ts

1.Use a lot of colors or overuse italics.

2.Ever use more than 3 pages or fill in less than 1.
3.Submit the same resume for every job. Tailor it to the specific requirements needed.
4.Submit a resume without a cover letter. The cover letter is an introduction and a manager will look at
candidates who write one with more interest than ones who don’t.
5.Lie, embellish, stretch, add, fluff, fudge, or put anything else deceiving in a resume. It will come out during
the interview or worse yet on the job.
Some may disagree with me, but I would advise against listing your high school under education. As a guy
who’s been out of college a few years, I would never list my high school on my resume, and if I were to see
that on a potential hire’s resume I would know immediately this candidate doesn’t have a lot of experience.
Highlight impressive or do-well extracurricular activities if need be.
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https://youtu.be/klmCAV9zFKo
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 Reference Links

• https://zety.com/blog/cv-vs-resume-
difference?utm_source=google&utm_medium=&utm_campaign=16709351210&utm_term=&network=x&devi
ce=c&adposition=&adgroupid=&placement=&utm_source=google&utm_medium=permax&utm_campaign=1
6709351210&utm_term=&network=x&device=c&adposition=&adgroupid=&placement=&gclid=Cj0KCQiA1ZGc
BhCoARIsAGQ0kkq-cyPu1Rd32g73aIewC0cJEDMc3Ckg36yNIUrKcYS0WGiipQu_IZEaAtUBEALw_wcB
• https://www.gingersoftware.com/content/writing-center/resume/
• https://novoresume.com/career-blog/architect-resume-example
• https://sweetcv.com/blog/winning-cover-letter-guide

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