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Combination CVs could be a good choice for career changers.
Note: More on how to match the CV outline to your needs in the next section.
Basic CV Outline—Chronological CV Outline
Personal Information
[Name]
[Position]
[Phone]
[Email]
[LinkedIn]
CV Profile
[CV Objective] or [CV Summary]
Experience
[Dates Worked]
[Position]
[Company Name]
[Responsibility 1]
[Responsibility 2]
[Responsibility 3]
Key achievements:
[Achievement 1]
[Achievement 2]
Education
[Graduation Date] or [Attendance Dates]
[School Name]
[School Address]
[Degree]
Certifications
[Certification]
Associations
[Association]
Skills
[Skill]
Languages
[Language]
Interests
[Hobby]
Remember:
It’s not enough to copy-paste this CV outline, though. You must know what information each CV section should contain, and how to present it in the best way possible.
And this is what chapter two of this article is about.
But—
Before we move on, here come two more CV outline examples: a functional CV outline, and a combination CV outline:
Functional CV Outline
Personal Info
[Full Name]
[Position]
[Mobile]
[Email]
[LinkedIn Profile]
Objective
[CV Objective]
Skills Summary
[Skill 1]
[Summary]
[Skill 2]
[Summary]
[Skill 3]
[Summary]
Experience
[Position]
[Company]
[Optional: Dates]
Education
[School Name]
[Address]
[Degree]
[Optional: Dates]
Functional CVs are relatively easy to outline, but it’s notoriously hard it is to get them right in terms of content.
A combination CV outline is supposed to have the best of both worlds.
But—
If you don’t know how to use the full potential of this kind of a CV outline, it may turn out to be more of a curse than a blessing.
With our dedicated guide on how to write a combination CV, it’s a walk in the park.
You can easily copy any of the CV outlines above, paste them into a blank document, and start filling in the information.
Once you're done, simply format the CV outline to make it look just the way you want.
In the next section, you'll learn how to choose the best outline for your needs and how to personalise it.
Expert Hint: If you’re having mixed feelings about whether to save your CV as DOC or PDF, our guide sheds light on the advantages and disadvantages of each format.
The ResumeLab builder is more than looks. Get specific content to boost your chances of getting the job. Add job descriptions, bullet points, and skills. Easy. Improve your CV in our CV builder now.
In the vast majority of cases, the chronological CV outline is the best choice. The functional CV outline may be good for you if you want to hide gaps in employment. If you're a career changer, the combination CV outline may be worth giving a thought.
Now—
Here’s a brief guide to writing each section of your CV outline of choice:
Add Personal Information
Regardless of which CV outline for a CV you use, the personal information section needs to look professional and contain up-to-date information.
Typically, you’d include:
Your name
Email address
Phone number
LinkedIn URL
Just make sure there are no typos there and your email looks professional.
Your personal details are usually placed at the top of your CV in the CV header.
The CV profile refers to a short paragraph that tops your CV outline.
It serves as a short version of your entire CV, and it’s supposed to hook the reader enough to read the entire document. As such, it serves as a sales pitch of a sort.
The basic difference between the two is that a summary highlights your professional experience, whereas the objective focuses on the skills you can bring into the company.
That’s why you’d rather go for the latter when outlining an entry-level CV, and the former when you already have a couple of years of experience behind the belt.
Expert Hint: If you’re making a CV outline for high-school students, consider putting the education section first. Especially if you have serious academic achievements to boast about.
Consider Adding Extra CV Sections
All the CV outline sections above are something you’d see on any CV.
But—
There’s still quite a bunch of other sections you might want to include in your CV outline format.
Here’s all you need to remember about making a CV outline:
There are three basic CV outline formats you can use: chronological, functional, and combination.
Your success depends as much on choosing the right CV outline as on tailoring it to the job offer.
In the vast majority of cases, a chronological outline works best.
Each part of your CV outline needs to be tailored to achieve the best effect.
Do you have any questions about making the best job CV outline? Would you like to share your advice on how to make an outline for a CV? We’re always happy to hear from you. Give us a shout out in the comments below!
Maciej Duszynski is a career advice writer and a resume expert at ResumeLab. With over 8 years of experience in recruitment, hiring, and training, Maciej shares insider HR knowledge to equip every job seeker with professional advice to nail the job hunt. His insights have been featured by the Chicago Tribune, SparkPeople, Toggl, Referral Rock, and Databox, among others. Maciej has helped job candidates at all stages of their career paths, from interns to directors to C-suite members, to thrive in their job. His mission is to help you find the right opportunity and create a job application that gets you the career you deserve. Maciej holds a Master’s degree in English with a specialization in communication and education management.
A CV job description is a CV section where you list your professional experience, usually in reverse-chronological order. It means you start with your most recent position and proceed backwards. Each entry should contain 3-6 bullet points. It is recommended to include 10-15 years of work history on your CV.