A Chronological Resume is perhaps the most common structure for a resume. It focuses on work experience listed in reverse chronological order (most recent first). Education is also listed in reverse chronological order and may come before or after the work experience section, depending on the type of job being applied for and which section will be valued more by the employer. Skills and accomplishments are listed in the experience section under each job or position. A Functional Resume places the skills and accomplishments in a separate section above the employment history (not necessarily in chronological order).

Advantages of a Chronological Resume

A chronological resume is the most traditional type and may be preferred by some employers and industries, especially conservative fields that place a high value on work experience and prestigious places of employment. A chronological resume tends to highlight jobs and positions held.

A chronological resume may work well for someone with a strong employment history, someone seeking a job in a conservative or scientific field, or someone applying for the same type of job or position. A person making a career change should consider using a functional resume.

There is no rigidly defined structure for a chronological resume beyond listing experience, jobs, and activities in reverse chronological order. A resume that combines features of both a functional and chronological resume is called a Combination Resume.

Disadvantages

A hiring manager looking for specific skills may have a hard time finding them scattered through your work experience.

Due to its emphasis on the employment history, a chronological resume will make gaps in employment very obvious.

A chronological resume is often too general or not targeted enough to a specific job posting. A good Objective and Summary of Qualification section at the beginning may help alleviate this problem.

Sample Chronological Resume

Below are two sample chronological resumes created using our main resume template. The dates are aligned on the right-hand side of the resume using right-aligned tabs.

Remember that a resume is an advertisement - you want your employer to see your skills, accomplishments, and positions. Dates are secondary information.

Chronological Resume Sample (PDF) at writing.colostate.edu - This resume uses a combination of an outline and table format with the left-hand column containing dates of employment or experience. This isn't necessarily a bad resume, but it does tend to over-emphasize the dates rather than the experience.

References

Disclaimer: The information on this page is for educational purposes only.