What is a Functional Resume

Read the following article on What is a Functional Resume.

A functional resume is a resume type that focuses on your skills and experiences and is often used by people who are constantly changing career paths or those who have gaps in their employment history. Because it focuses more on the skills of individuals during their previous work experiences, it may or may not work well for individuals / students who just got out of school having less or no experience at all. If you have a particular skill that is needed for a certain field or job vacancy, a functional resume would be the best way to go.

Jobseekers that are looking to use this type of resume (functional resume) are:

1. Individuals who wish to make a career change and wish to explore a field that is different from their previous job experiences.
2. College students / recent graduates who have minimal experience or have experiences unrelated to their chosen field of expertise.
3. Workers who want to put less emphasis on their long job history and just want to highlight certain skills needed for the job they are applying for.
4. Jobseekers who want to avoid looking overqualified for the position / job vacancy.
5. Individuals who have relevant experience but were engaged in voluntary work or college activities (organizations, class projects, etc.)
6. Individuals with gaps in their employment history (i.e. parents or homemakers who have taken some time off to raise a family, or those who took care of a family member and now wish to return to the corporate world.
7. Individuals with very diverse work history & skills who need to have a clear and direct resume to highlight their skills.

For college students who want to make use of the functional format, they can make this work to their advantage if they can highlight skills they have attained from their experiences (i.e. students can list leadership as a skill cluster and underneath that list some more of their supporting experiences for that cluster in a non-paid employment).

Example:

Leadership

• Elected as President for the student council for SY 2009, College of Engineering
• Initiated programs to help students get acquainted with campus rules
• Served as treasurer for the Association of College of Engineering Students (ACES) for SY 2008.

One thing you will need to consider before deciding on your resume type will be who your employers are and what the job in question is going to be. Most employers prefer to know what you did in each job and what your responsibilities were. The best way to go about this is to make sure you structure your resume in a mostly functional way and mix in some work history in a reverse chronological order. This is also known as the chrono-functional or combination format.

To produce an effective functional resume, make it as reader-friendly as possible for the employers. This way, you are giving the employer better idea about your skills for each individual job type.

If you’re still unsure of which resume format to use, it would be best to try different types and ask advice from friends or from someone you trust. This way, you will get a feel of how others view your resume. Be as open minded as you can be and be open to suggestions. Remember, when you are getting ready to nail that job you’ve been eyeing on, you need all the help you can get. So, make use of all the help that comes your way!