Work experience is one of the most important information given on a resume. Ultimately, recruiters and hiring authorities are interested in how you performed at previous workplaces. Therefore, this section of information should be the central one on your resume or CV since most people who will review your application will pay special attention to your employment history. That is why we decided to list some of the recommendations on how you can organize this section as many people ask about how this section should look like. The tips given below are based on years of experience in the resume writing industry as well as in the field of human resources. We are not saying that if you follow our advice you are going to get hired immediately but we are confident that you will have a much better chance at receiving interview calls.
Professional Experience on a Resume
It doesn't matter how you name this section: "Work Experience", "Professional Experience" or even "Employment History". The content of this section is what matters the most. Employers are interested first of all in most recent jobs that you had so it would make sense to start from those positions you help recently. In other words, use reverse-chronological order for listing your jobs. Employers would naturally expect you to focus on the most recent experience leaving out unnecessary details of jobs that you had 10 years ago. More than that, you can actually leave out the employments that go 15 or more years back into your career history. No one is interested in what you did so many years ago. What is important is what you can do today. Keep this in mind when choosing what kind of jobs you have to put on your resume or CV. This section would contain blocks of information where each block will correspond to one job. Here is what employers want to know about your past employments: positions held, employment dates, names of the companies you worked for, and accomplishments/responsibilities.
So this is something you have to list for every employment you had in the past. The most common mistake job seekers make is they provide generic job description under every employment which is not something recruiters look for. No one really cares what you used to do at your jobs; what matters is what you accomplished. The results of your job should be in the core of every job description, not simply routine responsibilities. Lastly, the professional experience section should contain keywords for the job opening you are applying. The content of this part of your resume should be relevant which means it should help employers understand how you match the requirements for the position. We recommend using a bulleted list for providing your accomplishments or responsibilities for each position. Try to keep it concise and don't list over 5-6 statements for every job. This will help to keep your resume up to the point avoiding unnecessary details.
