What detail should I include to describe my experience?

If you are using a chronological resume then this summary of your job history should form the bulk of your resume.

For each position include:

• Job title.
• Company name, city and country. Include a brief description of the company if it is not well known.
• Dates of employment.
• A summary of your general responsibilities (the things that you needed to do in order to succeed at the job).
• Highlights of your achievements (those things that you feel made a difference above and beyond the call of duty, things that you overcame, things that show you have the ability to succeed in the job).

Should company name or job title come first when describing my experience?

It depends on what you want to emphasise. If you have big company experience which shows you have worked for a market leader in the field in which you are applying then list the company first. If you want to highlight the level of responsibility you have achieved, then list the job title first. You should be consistent throughout the resume.

Should I include days and months in the date section?

The general standard is to highlight the month and the year in the dates you give. However, if you have worked for more than 3 years in a company, it is generally acceptable just to include the years.

How should I describe my educational background?

The education section should draw attention to only the most relevant aspects of your education. The depth of detail you include depends on how recent and how relevant the education is. The more experience you have, the less emphasis you need to place on your education. In particular, if you have more than 5 years' experience, it is likely that recruiters will pay more attention to your experience than your qualifications, you can therefore put your education summary at the end of your resume.

• Mention the most recent education first.
• Highlight the nature of your qualification over the institute of study, unless the institute is exceptionally well regarded.
• Only include details of your major of study if it is relevant to the position.
• Only include grades if you are a recent graduate or if your grades were exceptionally good.
• Do not include details of study for your secondary education unless you are a recent graduate

Do I need to include many personal details?

Recruiters are no longer able to discriminate on marital status, sex, age or disability. There is increasing pressure for additional legislation against race discrimination. Fewer employers therefore expect to see these details on your resume.

In practical terms, discrimination still takes place and you should draw attention away from any information that might work against you. For example if you are a mature worker, you might want to put your personal details at the end of your r resume and leave the front page to focus on all the things you do well.

My teacher taught me how to prepare a resume, and she listed all of my personal information on the front page. This section took up at least half a page, and was then followed with details of my education. Is this format a good one?

You describe a traditional resume format. These may still be useful for very traditional employers. However, to make your resume more effective, you will need to use the first page to highlight your key features and benefits. Personal details and education may form part of these features and benefits, however it is unlikely that a full page of details will help to sell you to the employer. Personal details can be summarised in a short header under your name. This leaves much more space in the resume for selling yourself.

Should I include details of my hobbies and interests?

As a general rule, details of hobbies and interests are most useful in graduate recruitment, where these details can provide valuable extra information about character, motivations and personality. However, you should only include hobbies and interests that relate to the job for which you are applying. For example, if you are applying to be a sales executive, you should highlight dynamic, demanding and extraverted activities, such as competitive team sports rather than solitary pastimes like reading and going to the movies. Do not be tempted to lie, you never know when you might get caught out.

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