500+ Resume Examples
for Any Job or Industry in 2025

Here are step-by-step instructions on how you can use our professional resume templates and examples to craft a job-winning document.

Step 1: Choose a resume example that s

uits you

When choosing a resume example, you want to pick the one that matches your industry and career level. For instance, an entry-level nurse resume will look significantly different than a senior business analyst resume. Therefore, we offer numerous career-specific resume samples to help you convey relevant information about your skills and experience.

Step 2: Personalize the content to reflect your skills and achievements

Choosing the right resume example is only half the battle, as you then need to personalize each section to optimally reflect your competence. So, you should prioritize customizing your summary or objective, work experience, and resume skills section. The abilities and accomplishments you include should be impactful and strictly relevant to the role you’re applying for.

Step 3: Use action verbs and show quantifiable results

Use memorable and industry-specific action verbs to make your accomplishments stand out in the eyes of recruiters. For example, terms like “conceptualized” and “implemented” can be rather catchy and engaging when used in moderation.

Furthermore, adding numbers and statistics to quantify your efforts will make them more concrete, turning unsubstantiated claims into proof of competence.

Step 4: Format and proofread your resume

While our resume samples are preformatted and you can use them without further customization, you can still follow our resume formatting guide to make adjustments if needed. Moreover, you need to carefully proofread the document before submitting it to correct any typos or mistakes, polish your writing, and demonstrate exceptional attention to detail.

Which Format Should You Use for Your Resume?

Which resume format you should use depends on your situation and qualifications. There are three established options that provide optimal information arrangement and structure to your document, and they are:

#1. Functional Format

The functional resume format is designed for job seekers with no professional experience. It’s a skill-focused format that is great for student resumes, recent college graduates, and other entry-level professionals, and many of our entry-level resume samples feature it.

By making skills the main section of the document, functional resumes allow candidates with no work history to present their key strengths. Keep in mind that some applicant tracking systems (ATS) can run into issues when scanning this format, and that it becomes less effective if you have a career history to showcase.

#2. Reverse-Chronological Format

The reverse-chronological resume format is the most common across the majority of industries and career levels, perfect for paralegal resumes and digital marketing resumes alike. It focuses on your work history to present your past jobs in the reverse-chronological order starting with your latest employment.

This creates a well-established resume structure that recruiters are used to. It shows them your career progress in an orderly fashion, giving them a good idea of your current skill level and experience. Additionally, most ATS-friendly resumes follow this format and it’s the most prevalent format in our experienced resume examples.

#3. Hybrid Format

The hybrid resume format combines the features of functional and reverse-chronological formats. It makes your skills the main section of the document, but it backs up each skill with work-related accomplishments listed as resume bullet points in reverse-chronological order.

This makes it perfect for experienced professionals who have gaps in their employment. It allows you to highlight your accomplishments and demonstrate your competence without emphasizing periods of unemployment.

Besides this, the hybrid format is great for resumes for a career change, helping emphasize transferable skills and accomplishments.

How to Optimize Your Resume for ATS

Here are five things you can do to optimize your resume for ATS and maximize your chances of passing the initial screening:

1. Follow a proven format. Stick to the established formats, like the reverse-chronological one. Otherwise, ATS might run into issues parsing your resume.
2. Don’t overuse graphics. ATS might be unable to extract information from complex graphical elements, like charts or tables. That’s why it’s better to have a text-focused resume design.
3. Include relevant keywords. Your skills, accomplishments, and job title (among other information) act as resume keywords for the ATS. As a result, you should make sure that they match the requirements posted in the job description to ensure a successful scan.
4. Submit the correct file type. Not every file type is compatible with the ATS. For instance, PDF resumes are commonly used as they preserve their formatting across different devices. However, you should check the employer’s instructions, as they can explicitly ask for other formats, like DOC or DOCX.
5. Use both acronyms and full forms. Some words and phrases (e.g., job titles or certifications), are often used as both acronyms and full forms. You should include both in your resume to ensure the ATS recognizes your writing regardless of how it’s set up.

5 Critical Mistakes to Avoid When Creating Your Resume

Some of the most important resume writing tips are about what not to do and what mistakes to avoid. Here are the most critical mistakes to avoid:

• Not following a standard format. Using a standard format is imperative to help your resume pass the software screening. Moreover, HR professionals often skim through multiple resumes until one grabs their attention. If they don’t find what they want due to a bad format, they’ll move on to the next candidate.
• Not having a proper layout. The best resume layouts are clean, professional, and make the document easy to read. Having a visually busy resume with unnecessary graphics, an inappropriate font, or insufficient white space and margins can deter recruiters and make your document hard to scan.
• Not including all the mandatory sections. Contact information, resume summary or objective, work experience, education, and skills are must-have resume sections. They give recruiters the minimum necessary information they need to make a decision about your application, so you don’t want to omit any of them.
• Not matching your resume to the job description. Job-winning resumes highlight skills and experiences relevant to the job to present you as the most suitable candidate. A generic resume with irrelevant qualifications is not nearly as good at demonstrating that you’re the right person for the job.

Making your resume too long. Unless you have decades of experience or the employer explicitly asks for a longer document, your resume should be one page long. Otherwise, you risk recruiters skipping your application and moving on to candidates who presented their qualifications more succinctly.