Career Juice: Getting back in the game of job-hunting

The first thing you need is a resume, also known as a CV (curriculum vitae). It tells your prospective employer or hirer about you. Your education, work experience and skills should be listed so as to attract a reader who may have hundreds to choose from.

So it's important to know the different ways of writing a resume. Here are the top three.

1 Chronological

This is widely used and preferred by most employers. It lists your work experience, with the current or latest position first. This is the style for those who have some work experience and know what position they're looking for. It works best for positions similar to the one you currently have. Employers like it because it lets them browse through your past work easily.

Caution: this is not for applicants with little work experience, new graduates or those who have not been working for a while.

2 Functional

This emphasises your accomplishments, which occupy the first section, followed by a shorter section summing up work experience.

This is great if you have worked in a position similar to the one applied for, because it highlights your skills. It is also recommended for new graduates and those with little work experience.

Caution: most employers think this does not give complete work-experience information.

3 Combination

The advantage of this is that it combines the strong points of the first and second styles. It starts with skills and accomplishments then gives a full account of work experience, setting off the former to good advantage while providing the work-experience information that most employers think essential.

So much for style. Next time I'll show you how to write a resume that will catch the employer's eye.

Wannaporn Srivatthanangkoon is marketing-communication manager at the employment agency Manpower. She may be contacted at hrrecruitment@manpower.th.com