How to organize your resume?

In this article, we’ll give you some advice when it comes to the format and content of your CV, which will be your “personal marketing” tool to present to recruiters.

Don’t forget:
Your resume is a very personal presentation and should be built in order to highlight your qualities and skills, while being tailored to each specific job application. If you know yourself well and you know what your strengths are, you can create a CV that showcases you in the best light!

Structural elements of the CV:

 

• Document header

You can choose to create a title header for your CV with your name and surname and the name of the area for which you are applying, or the name of the document itself (e.g. “Curriculum Vitae”).

Whether it’s a title at the top of the page or a column on the left side of the sheet, it’s up to you! Make the best use of your imagination and build the beginning of the document in a way that you think best represents you.

• Personal details and photo

(Name and surname, phone and email contacts, nationality, city of residence, date of birth). This informative “framework” allows the recruiter to get in touch with you and get to know your basic information.

Choose a nice looking updated photo, in a 3x4cm format (preferably).

• Academic background

In this area you will add the academic titles you’ve achieved, starting from the most recent degrees to the oldest ones. This means that if a Master’s degree is the last degree you attended, it will be the first one to be presented in the area dedicated to studies, then your undergraduate, and so on;

The name of the degree must be accompanied by:

– the variant or specialization of the degree you attended, if applicable;
– the name of the college, university or school;
– the city of the institute where you studied;
– the start and end date of the degree;
– your final grade average is something personal and you must consider whether it’s pertinent to reveal that in the context of the application in question;
– the class, project or university competition that has relevance or added value for the job or area to which you are applying.

• Extracurricular activities

In this area you must add your complementary training besides your academic studies and professional experience. It’s the right place to reference workshops, social or entrepreneurship projects, volunteering, training or seminars, that is, the experiences you’ve had and that have offered you teachings that you can share. It’s meant to present experiences that highlight your qualities, especially those most pertinent to the functions that you will perform or that may indicate other important personal skills for that new professional challenge.

In terms of content organization, you must also reference the name of the experience, the entity that certified you, the date and the place, and you can talk about your achievements there.

Imagine that you are applying for your first job or internship, with no professional experience to add to your CV yet. This is undoubtedly the area of your CV in which you must invest to present your soft skills and differentiating qualities.

• Professional experience

In this section, you will present your professional experience: internships, jobs, freelance work, etc.
The section about your professional experiences should contain:
– the name of the company;
– the name of the position and the functions you performed (try as much as possible to find details that relate to the new position);
– the start and end date of that job experience;
– the results or achievements you obtained;
– the skills you developed.

This section should also indicate the projects in which you were involved, from the most recent to the oldest, and, once again, you should focus on highlighting the most appealing information for the recruiter, considering that particular job offer.

• Skills

It’s very important to have a space in your CV that is dedicated to your skills in different areas. Here you can include your fluency level regarding the languages you speak (reference the certificate, if you have one), your computer skills (programs, software, etc.), among other skills that will better demonstrate your profile.

• Interests

This section of the CV usually has something more personal, like your interests and hobbies or extracurricular activities. Like in the rest of your resume, you should highlight your interests that contribute relevant information and that can increase the value of your resume. Try to keep this area clean, well organized, short and direct to facilitate comprehension. You can separate the themes by bullet points (for example: sports, activities, etc.) or unleash your imagination and go for something more creative.

Other tips for your job application

In addition to your resume, you can also choose to send a motivation or presentation letter that will allow you to give the recruiter more information. They’re an excellent tool and can be fully adapted to the challenge you are applying for.

To make the most out of customizing your CV, concentrate on doing a proper research and analysis of the offer!

We leave you with Canva, a platform that can help you design your resume. In addition to content, information organization and design should be appealing in ways that enhance the recruiter’s experience when selecting candidates.

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