Functional resumes are commonly used by people looking for jobs with gaps in employment record, and they are sometimes used by people who want to their change careers or those who’ve had a lot of different kinds of jobs. Periods of employment are included on functional resume, and hope for the employer to see past any gaps since the skills of the applicant match with the skills necessary for the open job position.
If you’re lacking enough work history to even complete a traditional resume, then using a functional style is going to be suitable for you.
Taking a big step into a new industry means that it is more important for you to emphasize on your relevant, manageable skills than the record of your work record. In fact, a functional resume is very ideal if you are looking to change your career.
Your Full Name
Street Address, City, State ZIP Telephone Number - Email Address
CAREER OBJECTIVE
Clear and concise explanation of what you offer and what you are looking for.
PROFESSIONAL SKILLS
This section has to support why you’d be perfect for the job position. In bulleted form, highlight your strong point like capabilities, key skills, personality traits, and community service.
PROFESSIONAL (AND/OR) VOLUNTEER SERVICE
List here the history of your employment history or volunteering experience.
Date, Job Title, Company, and Location
EDUCATION
If you have taken any recent ongoing education programs, put them on the list first. Then list other coursework or degrees you have. You can optionally add the date you graduated. Add any special awards you received.
Recent coursework and ongoing education programs you’ve attended
Major, Degree, Date of graduation, University or Collage, City, State
ACTIVITIES AND INTERESTS
Here you will flaunt any interests or activities that show how experienced you are. If you can speak more than one language, include that detail here.
A lot of resumes include a chronological list of your accomplishments. But there are cases where you might be better off highlighting your skills and accomplishments in order of importance, instead of in order of incident. That’s how functional resume works.
Step1
Think if you think a functional resume will develop your probabilities of getting an interview, and thus the job position you want. A functional resume should emphasize your skills and abilities and deemphasizes the chronology.
Step2
Take time to brainstorm. List down your skills and accomplishments you have. You don’t have to worry at this stage which ones are applicable.
Step3
Don’t forget to organize. Know what are good at, find out the most relevant selling point on your resume. Are you good when it comes to computer? Do you have a remarkable degree? Do you have a long experience at doing something? Sell yourself.
Step4
Arrange your resume by category and not by time. Instead of putting a section for every job, you have put a section for every sort of experience or skill that you have. Education, computer skills, and experience are the clear partitions.
When you are listing your experience, you can start every line using an active verb. It adds touch to the writing and offers the list a reliable structure and tone.
Step5
Put a summary. It’s not the commonly used "Objective" bit about gaining a permanent job. But it’s the best shortened version of what you can offer. Preferably, a busy hiring manager or recruiter must tell if it is worth reading more of your resume after reading the first line.
Step6
Don’t forget to add a brief timeline of your work history in the last part. They could be one-line descriptions which include just the name of the company, your position, and the year wherein you worked there.
The main difference between a Functional Resume and a Chronological Resume is that we’re splitting the Work Experience section in to 2 different sections. First section has the accomplishments and experience and the other simply has the places we’ve worked at.
Apparently, the Functional Resume gives you the flexibility to highlight your achievements and accomplishments anyway you want. Now, you’re no longer restricted to the inflexible chronological resume format, and you can focus on your awards, accomplishments, and problems you have solved in any way you want.
Ask the Community
Still get confused or have more suggestions? Leave your thoughts to Community Center and we will reply within 24 hours.