When writing your resume, you are telling a story. The information you include and choose to leave out will provide a narrative of your experiences, qualifications, and achievements.
What to Include in the Experience Section of Your Resume
The experience section of your resume is very important. It provides detailed information about your work history. This is the core of your resume, and the longer you have worked, the more decisions you will make about what to include and what to leave out in this section.
What the Experience Section of Your Resume Includes
Employers expect to glance at this section of your resume to see the jobs and titles you have held in the past, which gives them an informative picture of your career path.
Ideally, you want the experience section of your resume to show growth. Over the years, you have developed skills, experiences, and responsibilities. This section will highlight how you have evolved as a candidate, in addition to demonstrating that you are an ambitious person who is always learning.
Note: If your career path has taken some twists and turns, don’t worry; even a winding path can show growth. Some of the strongest candidates are those who have picked up skills in other unrelated fields. It’s all about how you present the information. You can also leave out jobs that do not align with the story you are trying to tell to the hiring manager.
How to Write the Experience Section
List the companies you worked for, employment dates, job titles you held, and a brief description of your job responsibilities, optimizing it with keywords and enhancing it with bullet points for measurable achievements.
The work history is usually presented in reverse chronological order, starting with your current job and going back in time. Summer internships and temporary jobs can also be included in this section of your resume, along with permanent positions.
Note: You do not have to include every job you’ve ever had, especially if you have several years of experience or have worked in unrelated fields. New graduates without much work experience should include every possible job, focusing on skills that match the job listing. But once you have worked for over 10 years, you may find that some previous jobs are not relevant to your career. You can omit those positions or consolidate previous experiences into a very brief format at the end of your resume.
Here are two examples of how to list previous jobs on your resume:
Additional experience includes retail sales positions at Barry’s Store (20XX-20XX), Cindy’s Clothing Store (20XX-20XX), and working as a waitress at Muffins and More (20XX-20XX). Additional experience includes entry-level roles at ABC Company and XYZ Company.
How Much Experience to Include
A resume typically contains information about the last 10 to 15 years of experience. After that time, you are not required to include details unless the jobs are relevant to your current career path.
In some industries, including experience that dates back more than 10 or 15 years can hurt candidates. For example, in technology, including jobs focusing on outdated technologies may look old-fashioned, even if candidates have kept their current skills up to date.
Writing Job Descriptions for Your Resume
For each company you worked for, you will want to provide a job title, the company name and location, years worked, and a brief summary of your job responsibilities and achievements.
Avoid the mistake of listing tasks only. You want to use this section to highlight your capabilities and accomplishments. Use action words in your resume and focus on demonstrating how you helped the company solve its problems and achieve its goals. And if you can do that with the dollar sign attached, you will gain extra points. These standout achievements will show up well on the page if you separate them, using bullet points, from your job responsibilities.
Note:
It is also wise to distinguish financial figures, growth rates, or other key achievements.
Examples of Resume Experience Section
Here are two examples of how to write the experience sections of a resume:
Beginner Experience Section
This is for an entry-level job candidate. Here, instead of using the heading “Professional Experience,” the broader label “Experience Summary” can be used, allowing for the inclusion of a description of recent college training:
Experience Summary
University of Washington, Seattle, Washington
Student ~ Environmental Science (9/20XX to 6/20XX)
Successfully completed a comprehensive study program in Environmental Science, laying a strong foundation for a career in environmental restoration. Key courses included: Environmental Biology, Geology and Soil Science, Meteorology for Air Pollution, Waste Treatment Technology, and Ecology.
Practical Internships:
Environmental Consulting for Acme Inc. (Spring 20XX): Developed expertise in soil sampling, documentation, and client relations during an internship with a certified environmental consulting firm.
Hamilton Mine Rehabilitation Project (Fall 20XX, Winter 20XX): Under the supervision of Professor Sarah Rose, participated in a $1.4 million restoration project for a mercury-contaminated mining field.
Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, California
Park Guide / Trail Worker (Summer 20XX and 20XX)
Provided educational nature workshops and led tours in the park for visitors; ensured the timely maintenance of trails and park facilities. Rehired based on proven teamwork, professional ethics, and excellence in customer service. Played a key role in restoring an 18-mile wilderness trail destroyed during major wildfires.
Experienced Candidate Experience Section
This is a work experience section written for an IT professional. Note that it is enhanced with a brief description of the candidate’s technical competencies. You will also see how the candidate’s current position is written in the present tense, while the previous position uses the past tense.
Abgi Tech Innovations, Syracuse, New York
Software Developer (9/20XX to Present)
Core Technologies: Clarion, C++, Visual Basic, Windows Server
Act as a team lead for software application development in Clarion. Install and configure testing environments, troubleshoot design issues, and guide clients in system upgrade installations. Provide ongoing assessments of software functionality.
Key Achievements:
Coordinated and led development teams to launch new software programs on time during a challenging 3-month timeframe.
Designed and delivered training workshops for clients to effectively utilize the new software.
XYZ Technology Solutions, Syracuse, New York
C++ Developer (7/20XX to 8/20XX)
Core Technologies: Python, C++, Java, PHP
Hired to enhance platform performance and responsiveness and expand systems for client usage in a responsive programming environment.
Key Achievements:
Developed a new testing process that reduced software release time by 35%.
Selected by the development manager to train new employees on company work procedures.
How to Format the Experience Section
These are just two examples of effective strategies for formatting the “Experience” section of your resume: there are many ways you can present information about each job. A resume template can help you choose a design that suits you.
Regardless of the style and format you choose, make sure to be consistent. If you use bullet points to describe your current job, you should use bullet points to describe every job you’ve had. If you have the years of employment aligned to the left for one job, ensure you follow the same alignment for every job listed in the section.
Key Takeaways
The experience section of the resume provides detailed information about your work history, including jobs, job descriptions, and achievements. Clarify your achievements using figures, percentages, and dollar amounts earned or saved. Don’t hesitate to leave out irrelevant work experience if it does not fit the story you are trying to tell about your work experience.
Source:
https://www.thebalancemoney.com/what-to-include-in-a-resume-experience-section-2063320
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