A Resume Template for Employees with Experience

A Resume Template for Employees with ExperienceA Resume Template for Employees with ExperienceExperienced employees- those with three or more years in the workforce- should tailor their resumes to highlight the skills, knowledge, and accomplishments that less experienced candidates may elendlagehave gained yet. You can include this information in five basic sections that include your skills, any achievements or awards youve earned, education, work history, and miscellaneous information.Your Skill SetTheskills sectionof your resume should include any special abilities that are necessary to succeed in the position for which youre applying. They might include computer skills, job-specific abilities, legal skills, foreign language fluency, writing skills, or legal research platforms.Achievements, Honors, and AwardsYour resume should also include any achievements, honors, and awards that youvereceived throughout your career. These might include publications, court victories, writing award s, speaking engagements, and employment-related awards.Your EducationList theeducational institutionsyou attended, along with the city and state of the school and the degree or degrees you earned. The date you graduated is optional if youre over 40.Cite any academic distinctions youve earned, such as cum laude, magna cum laude, summa cum laude or Deans List. You might also list your grade point average if it was very good, generally 3.5 or higher. You can also list a high class rank or law review membership ifyou attended law school. Your Work HistoryYou should present your job listings in reverse chronological order, beginning with the most recent position you held. If some of your jobs are relevant but others are not, you can divide this section into two parts Relevant and Other.You can also emphasize your skills in this sectionif youve worked predominantly in fields that are different from the job youre now applying for, particularly if theyre valuable transferable skillsand may set you exotisch in theworkplace.Miscellaneous InformationFinally, list any other information that helps to set you apart from other candidates, such as legal practice specialties, continuing legal education credits, software certifications, professional association memberships, community service, pro bono work, bar admissions, and press mentions.A Sample Resume TemplateYou can use this resume template as a guide to make your own custom resume. (Astudent or recent graduate resume templatemight be more useful for those with less than three years of experience in the workforce.)Contact InformationPlace your contact information at the top of your resume.First and Last NameStreet AddressCity, State, Zip CodePhone NumberE-mail AddressWebsiteObjective (Optional)Your resume can include a short statement summarizing your job-hunting objectives, career goals and what you have to offer to the employer. Be sure to customize your objective to each job to which you are applying. The resume objec tive should highlight why youre the perfect candidate for the job. An objective is not required in a resume and, if space if tight, you can eliminate this section.Career HighlightsThe career highlights section of your resume outlines key skills, abilities, achievements and experience relevant to the position you seek. This section might include your practice areas, bar admissions, court victories, awards, technology skills, and other information that helps you stand out from the competition and demonstrates how you are the perfect candidate for the position.Work HistoryThis section of your resume outlines your work experience. In reverse chronological order (most recent first), list your job title, the organizations you worked for, the location of each employer and your dates of employment. Under each employer, you should list a minimum of three bullet points describing your work duties and achievements. It is best to frame each job responsibility as a result or accomplishment. For example, instead of developed new client relationships, you might say, brought in two of the firms top ten clients, increasing revenues by 10 percent.?Company Name, City, StateJob Title 1 (Most Recent)Dates of EmploymentJob Responsibility/AchievementJob Responsibility/AchievementJob Responsibility/AchievementJob Responsibility/AchievementCompany Name, City, StateJob Title 2Dates of EmploymentJob Responsibility/AchievementJob Responsibility/AchievementJob Responsibility/AchievementJob Responsibility/AchievementCompany Name, City, StateJob Title 3Dates of EmploymentJob Responsibility/AchievementJob Responsibility/AchievementJob Responsibility/AchievementJob Responsibility/AchievementSchool Name, City, StateGraduate or Law DegreeDate of GraduationAcademic distinctionsGPA (optional)School Name, City, StateUndergraduate DegreeDate of GraduationAcademic distinctionsGPA (optional)Other TipsYoure not writing your entire biography. Keep your resume as short and succinct as possible without l eaving out anything pertinent. One page should do it if you have less than 15 years of experience. Otherwise, stay within two pages.Keep the font simple and dont try to squeeze information into two pages by shrinking it- you dont want to go any smaller than 12 pt.Also dont forget to proofread your resume. In fact, you might want to ask someone else to read your resume over for you with fresh eyes before you submit it.