When to use a Functional Resume

A functional resume illustrates work experiences and abilities by major skill area in order to highlight strengths rather than focus on specific jobs or dates of employment.

• Your work record does not justify a chronological resume
• Much of your work has been volunteer, free-lance, consulting, or temporary
• You have a variety of different, relatively disconnected work experiences
• Your career growth has been stagnant or you've had an extended absence from the workplace
• You are in the process of a career change
• You need to emphasize skills not used in recent work experience

• You can demonstrate career growth
• Listing specific employers is important, as in highly traditional fields
• Recent employers are highly prestigious

Setting up the Functional Resume

• Contact Information: 

- Name, address, phone

• Career Objective - Must be clear and concise OR
  
  Functional Summary -  Summarize experience and skills in a few sentences
  
  
• Functional Headings:
  

  - Four or five separate paragraphs
  - List in order of importance relative to objective
  - Stress your most significant abilities, skill, and accomplishments 
  - Use past-tense, action-oriented verbs

• Employment History:

- Brief synopsis of actual work experience including employers, titles, and dates
- If no or spotty work experience, leave this section out, but be ready to discuss it in the interview

• Education:

- If date of last attendance is three years or less, move this section to after the Contact Information
- If more than three years, or unrelated field, include education after work experience
- Indicate degree received, date, institution
- Grade point average can be included if it is above a 3.0

• References:
  
  - Use Chronological Resume format guidelines