Knowing how to write a chronological resume is no doubt one of the most effective qualities you need to have as a job seeker that can help you land a job faster.
Why?
The chronological resume according to Jobvites Survey, is regarded as the favourite resume recruiters prefer.
The bottom line is that, having a new hire that has been consistent in the same industry will likely take less time and resources to be trained unlike a hire that is new to the industry.
Want to learn more about a chronological resume? When to use it and writing tips? We got you covered. In this guide, I’ll be showing everything you need to know about a chronological resume, plus a perfect chronological resume example.
What is a Chronological Resume?
A chronological resume also regarded as “reverse-chronological” is one of the major resume formats that emphasize more on a candidate’s industry related work experience, starting from the most recent to the first related work.
By using the word “emphasize” I meant that in a chronological resume, the work history or experience section is placed at the top of the resume immediately after the summary statement section.
When to Use a Chronological Resume?
As a professional, there are different resume formats that are meant to be used depending on your current professional situation. This can be either you have been off work for a long time, a recent school graduate, or someone who recently changed career.
If you fall under any of the below category, the chronological resume format is the best format to go with when writing your resume.
- When you have several years of experience in the particular career.
- When you have worked for several employers or clients in one industry
- You have minimal or no gaps in your employment history.
But when you don’t fall under the above category, one of the other resume formats is the best choice to go with. For examples
Functional resume format:
- When there is a big employment gap in your work history.
- When you are an entry-level candidate
- When you are a fresh graduate
- When you recently changed career
- When you have been away from work for some years.
Or
Combination resume format:
- You are new to the workforce with about 1-3 professional work experience
- You are a recent college or high school graduate with minimal work experience
- You have no gaps in your work history
- You are changing careers or industries
Combination Resume Writing Tips
Below are the important sections to include in the resume, including effective writing tips that will make the resume standout.
Contact information
In this section, you are to include your name, phone number, email address, and street address (optional). It is not compulsory for you to include your street address on the resume if you have personal reasons not to. Besides, recruiters can easily contact you via your phone or email address.
And your name should be formatted to be the boldest details in the resume. If possible, use a unique bold font to write your name on your resume.
If you want to go beyond, you can include your personal website or portfolio link, and LinkedIn profile too.
Summary Statement
The next section after you contact information is your resume profile. The resume profile section is made up of either a resume summary or a resume objective.
For someone who is writing a chronological resume, it means that you have no much employment gaps in your work history. Therefore, the summary section is the best option to include on your resume profile when writing a chronological resume.
The summary section summarizes your previous work experiences and skills. It should not be more than 2 sentences long.
While the objective statement highlights your skills and short-term goals, it is meant for entry-level applicants or recent college graduates.
Professional work history
This section is the main heart of a chronological resume, and the main reason why it is regarded as recruiter’s favourite.
Your professional work history should be listed in a reverse-chronological way. That is, from the most recent to the very first relevant work you had.
Follow the blow instructions on how to properly format your professional work history section.
- List the dates, job title, and also the name of the company for each of the job you listed.
- Use bullet points to highlight achievements from each position instead of responsibilities.
- Use action verbs to make it stand out (e.g. managed, maintained, boosted, etc.).
- Make sure the experiences listed are relevant to the job. Omit any information that is not relevant.
Education
Your education section should also be structured like the professional work history section. Include your most recent educational achievements first before others.
Once you have enough work experience to showcase in your work history section, there is no need to include your high school degree if you have a college degree. Your college degree, minor and/or major should do, and also relevant coursework can be included alongside the degree.
Apart from education, you can also include relevant training programs you took.
Remember, GPA of 3.5 and above is the ideal grade to include in your resume education section.
Skills
The skills section is also an important section to include in a chronological resume.
There is no need to list the skills in a chronological way, you can list it in an alphabetical order or based on similarities.
What you should keep in mind when listing skills in your resume skills section is to make sure it is relevant to the job you are applying. You can read through the job description to learn more about the skills (hard and soft skills) the hiring manager requires for the job.
Additional section
Although adding an additional section in your resume is optional, it can still earn you some extra points. Make sure that whatever you are adding to the resume should be relevant to the job you are applying.
Relevant sections from below are good ideas:
- Certifications
- Hobbies and interests
- Languages
- Volunteering
Chronological Resume Example
Frank Martins
080-3554-5555
Linkedin.com/frank.martins17
SUMMARY
Aggressive education consultant who has helped several school districts to adapt new methods for monitoring teachers and creating student programs. Adept at presenting new ideas to a large group, working with groups of professionals to create innovative programs and staying up to date on the latest education ideas.
PROFESSIONAL EXPEREINCE
March 2016 to January 2020
XYZ Education Consultants – Ikeja, Lagos
Education Consultant
- Helped to create the more innovative programs the company implemented to universities and large school districts.
- Responsible for developing the training materials that were used to help implement new programs.
- Acted as resource for teachers and administrators who had questions about a new program.
April 2010 to February 2015
XYZ Education – Maryland, Lagos
Education Consultant
- Responsible for developing programs for larger school districts that included special education needs.
- Worked closely with company management to develop marketing programs to bring in new clients.
- Part of a team that would go to new client locations and introduce the company to teachers and administrators.
July 2007 to April 2009
XTZ Educators – Festac, Lagos
Education Consultant
- Part of a team that gathered data on new clients and developed program ideas.
- Helped develop several marketing programs that regularly brought in new clients.
EDUCATION
2007 University of Lagos
Bachelor of Science, Education
ADDITIONAL SKILLS
- Typing skills (WPM: 85)
- Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint)
- Communication (written & verbal)
- Adaptability
- Problem-solving
- Organization
- Collaboration
Also read – Functional Resume Example and Effective Writing Tips
Conclusion
Whenever you make use of this resume format, reverse-chronological resume format, and if well written, your resume stands a chance of landing you the job, since the recruiter will be interested in going through every details in the resume.
That’s it on my chronological resume guide.
Hope you found the guide helpful
Is this resume format the perfect one for you? Why?
And what do you think makes the chronological resume exceptional?
Feel free to share with us via the comments below.
3 Comments
Wonderful
This is very important and helpful one.
Glad you found it helpful