Create a Winning Combination Resume That Lands Interviews
When you’re preparing to write a resume, you have three options to choose from, including chronological, functional, and combination. A combination resume presents your skills and achievements before displaying your work history chronologically starting with your most recent experience.
We will explore what combination resumes are and how they benefit job seekers before showing you how to make one easily through actionable steps. When you want to display your talent and job history effectively use MaxeCV to build your resume.
What is a Combination Resume?
A combination resume format focuses on skills, accomplishments, and recent work history. It merges elements of the other two commonly used resume formats:
- Functional Resume Format: Highlights important workplace skills that make you stand out from job applicants.
- Chronological Resume Format: Display job information from the past few years starting with the most recent positions first.
The combination resume benefits people starting their career or at intermediate levels who can prove their job-relevant skills. If you worked after college you can easily show your skills through professional achievements.
Is a Combination Resume Right for You?
You may want to use a combination resume if:
- You recently started your professional career and performed work successfully for 1–3 years.
- You graduated recently from college with no substantial job history yet.
- You plan to move into a different professional field.
- You have been employed at a small number of companies but have remained continuously active at work.
- You kept working without any major breaks throughout your career.
A functional resume works best for new graduates because it shows skills and achievements. People who need to show their work history should opt for a chronological resume but new graduates with no experience should use a functional structure.
How to Write a Combination Resume
The combination resume format puts abilities first in front of work background sections despite customizing your resume for each job. Here’s how to structure it:
1. Name and Contact Information
Begin your resume with basic personal info including your name and ways to get in touch. Place your active contact information in this part of the document. Only incorporate your postal address and online portfolio links if they help your industry job search.
2. Summary
Introduce your readers to your primary skills and job history. Express your relevant skills in two lines while selecting words that inspire employers to read on. New job applicants should use a resume objective to describe both their quick-hire professional aims and their career growth plans.
3. Skills and Abilities
Include your summary and add a section about your abilities. Check the job posting to find the skill terms the employer wants to see before applying. Show your job skills for both professional expertise and personal social abilities. Show the employer how you used your skills while working in specific situations.
4. Professional Experience
Your work history shows that you have the skills needed to do the work. When showing sales experience use examples that display both people skills including teamwork and communication alongside technical skills including Salesforce platform and data analysis tools usage. List particular occasions that show how you put these abilities to work for your achievements.
5. Education
Based on your professional background this section carries specific importance. If you have minimal work experience include academic details such as coursework results for students who earned a 3.5 GPA or higher together with supporting information about leadership roles or community service.
Combination Resume Tips
Here are some tips to make your combination resume stand out:
- Integrate Key Skills into Your Work History
Embed your skills directly into your work descriptions to prove their real-world benefits. - Highlight Required Skills
Make sure your required certifications or training items appear clearly on top once you find them on the job description. - Include Transferable Skills
When changing careers focus on presenting soft skills that job seekers can easily take with them no matter the new work environment.
Combination Resume Example
Final Word
Switching from an early-stage career into a different industry makes the combination resume a smart choice to showcase qualifications and work background. When you match your job skills to descriptions and inject them into your work history you will produce an outstanding application for employers to consider.
Ready to build your perfect resume? Let’s start creating your ideal resume now. Use MaxeCV to choose your resume type and get expert design help to make your resume stand out.