How to Make a Resume?｜Step-by-step Resume Building Guide

Resume is the summary of an applicant’s background, relevant experience and qualification. It usually comes in handy during the process of job application and college application (bachelor, master & PhD degrees).

A good resume should clearly present the value and profession of a candidate on a limited length. Almost every company requires resumes from job seekers during recruitment, and it is the major selection criteria for the candidate's next step of job search - Interview.

As time passed, resumes have been evolved from a few pieces of papers to online documents, web-pages, and even multimedia formats like videos. As one of the most important factor during job/college application process, everyone should learn how to prepare a professional resume, and also how to keep it updated.

According to Glassdoor’s statistics, each job opening attracts 250 applications from job seekers on average. Among these applicants, around 4 to 6 of them (nearly 2%) will go through interview process and only ONE will receive the job offer.

Another crucial fact, it takes no more than 6 seconds for a hiring manager/recruiter to review a resume. Under intense competition, how to catch a hiring manager’s attention in a split-second becomes a vital issue for job seekers.

A well-designed and professionally-tailored resume is the key in all job application. Keep in mind that an eye-catching resume doesn’t necessarily involve fancy format or word usage, wisely-composed content and legible structure is the core.

What is a CV? CV stands for “Curriculum Vitae” (“course of life” in Latin). It is a comprehensive and thorough collection of a person’s professional experience, including career achievements (work history), and education accomplishments (publications, certifications, awards).

There are 4 main differences between a CV and a resume :

1. Content 

2. Purpose 

3. Length 

4. Design 

Regardless of the comparison above, it was noticed that the word usage of “resume” is generally-preferred in some countries, while “CV” is in the others.
For instance, in U.S, Canada, India and Australia, “resume” is more commonly used, while in most of the European, South American and African countries, “CV” is more prevalent.

Offline Resume

Paper type :
The most traditional and original type of resume is printed out as 1 - 2 pages of paper. It usually comes in handy during offline job interviews (or walkin interviews) and school admission interviews.
Note that it is recommended to convert the document to PDF files before printing it, to avoid format inconsistencies.

Online Resume

1. PDF/Word type :
One of the most common type of resume is in PDF or Word formats. PDF & Word resumes can be attached to emails while applicants send out application, or any other online application channels like WhatsApp, Messenger, LinkedIn, and etc.. It can also be printed out as paper-type resume.

Note that it is recommended to send resumes in PDF format instead of Doc, if there is no specific requirement.
Here are 2 major reasons why sending a PDF resume is suggested :

2. Website type :
It is getting more and more popular to build a personal website/web-page, especially for professions required to maintain portfolio and side projects, like software engineers and designers.
With the generalization of website builder software, it is getting much easier to build a website with low cost and effort. A single web-page to manage and demonstrate portfolios and personal achievements is a good way to build a personal brand and display individual creativity.

3. Video type :
A video resume is not common during general job application process. It is occasionally required during application process of internship or extracurricular activities. A video resume can also be useful for occupations that require video editing techniques or certain interpersonal skills, like video editors, entertainers, live streamers, and etc..

There are 5 constructive steps below for people who are going to build a new resume or to refresh an out-dated one. Some of the preparatory acts also give students/freshers a chance to ponder on their future career path.

Step 1 : Ask yourself questions to figure out your goal and career aspiration.

◇ For students/freshers :

 ◇ For general job seekers (career change) :

Step 2 : Perform research on companies and occupations that you are interested in.

◇ There are 2 effective ways to gather information on Companies :

◇ There are 2 main reasons why you should research on Occupations :

Step 3 : List down all past experiences, accomplishments and skills.

It is highly suggested to make a habit of keeping track of personal experiences & accomplishments that can be potentially utilized on resumes. By noting down these information in one place, it can be easily turned into a CV or made use of as resume writing materials.

If you are starting fresh on preparing a resume, begin with experiences that happened within 5 years (If you are a fresh college graduate, it is not recommended to include high school experiences.). You can follow the list below.

◇ For freshers :

◇ For general job seekers :

Step 4 : Choose/Make a resume format

There are 4 main types of resume formats, which are chronological resume, functional resume, hybrid (combination) resume, and targeted resume. Each resume format can be utilized under different circumstances. The strength and weakness of each resume format will be further elaborate in 4 Best Resume Formats.

Step 5 : Select suitable information to put on the resume

Cross match job responsibility research (Step 2) and past experiences/accomplishments/skills list (Step 3) to locate the intersection. Select 3 to 5 core skills of yours that can make you the right fit for the position and stand out from other candidates. Utilize your past experiences and accomplishments to support your statements and build a professional image. Remember to choose the most relevant and eye-catching information to include.