What to Put On a Resume: Everything You Need to Include

What to put on a resume seems a question straightforward enough, but with so many guides and gurus out there, sometimes the simplest queries are the hardest to answer.

Let’s first remind ourselves what a resume is:

Pretty important, right? The resume is crucial in the hiring process, as it gives the first impression of you as a company fit. So, when you think about how to write yours, you should work strategically–add your experience and achievements that are most relevant to the job you're applying for.

In this article, we’ll break down the resume elements you should include in your application discussing each section’s merit.

What to put on your resume

Deciding what to put on your resume would depend on several factors. The biggest two of them are your experience level and your resume format.

If you’re just starting out, you’ll focus on additional sections and education over your experience, while for an experienced candidate, their career achievements will take precedence.

Depending on the resume format you choose, you’ll arrange your information in different ways:

• The reverse-chronological is the most popular format. It will focus on your experience, starting with the most recent one.
• The functional resume focuses on skills over experience, making it perfect for entry-level candidates.
• The hybrid resume strikes a balance between the other two and is preferred by career changers.

Other things you might factor in can include:

• Job relevancе
• Achievements and impact
• Skills (Technical and Soft)
• Industry standards
• Career goals and objectives

Either way, when you think about your resume outline, there are several essential resume sections you should include. Think of these as your resume’s staples: these are the standard components recruiters expect to see.

Essential resume sections

Resume header

Positioned at the prime real estate of your resume, your resume header is what recruiters first look at when they see your application. It should tell them who you are—literally, through your essential contact details and resume headline.

Start with your first and last name in a slightly larger font, followed by your headline. This could be your current job title or target position (e.g., ”Marketing Coordinator” or ”Aspiring Designer”). Use a professional email address and a reliable phone number. For address, your city and state are enough. You can also include your LinkedIn profile, portfolio link, or a GitHub if relevant and up-to-date.

Here’s what it could look like:

Professional summary or objective

Positioned just below your header, the resume profile is a brief but impactful introduction that captures your career goals and key qualifications.

If you’re an experienced professional, opt for a resume summary: three to five sentences outlining your skills, accomplishments, and what you bring to the role, tailored to the job you’re applying for.

For entry-level candidates or career changers, a concise objective works best—up to three sentences that highlight your abilities and career goals, focusing on your future potential. Whichever you choose, use strong action verbs and job-relevant keywords to enhance your profile’s appeal and increase your chances of passing initial screenings.

Work experience

Whether you’re a seasoned professional or just starting—perhaps seeking your first summer job—your resume is an opportunity to highlight your unique journey. Your experience section offers insights into your skills, achievements, and growth potential, making it the most prominent part of your document.

Each position you’ve held should be structured with clarity. Start with your job title to convey your role and level of responsibility, followed by the company name and location, and then the dates of employment (e.g., ”March 2021 – June 2023”, or use ”Present” if you’re still there).

For each entry, add a few bullet points that detail your responsibilities and specific accomplishments, but avoid generic tasks that don’t stand out. Use action verbs to create impact and include quantifiable achievements when possible to give a clear sense of your contributions (e.g., ”Increased sales by 20%,” ”Managed a team of 5”).

Finally, tailor your resume to the job you’re applying for by integrating keywords from the job posting. This quick adjustment will make your resume more relevant and highlight your alignment with the role.

Education

The education section on your resume is more than a list of degrees—it’s a showcase of the foundation for your expertise. For candidates with limited experience, this section carries even more weight, as it highlights the knowledge and skills you’ve developed academically.

If you’re wondering what to put on your college resume, display relevant courses, any honors, or extracurriculars that align with the job you’re aiming for. They can help tell a fuller story of your capabilities.

For seasoned professionals, a streamlined listing of your degree, major, and school is ideal. Tailoring this section shows recruiters how your academic background complements your professional strengths and career path.

Certifications and licenses

Along with degrees, include relevant certifications and licenses in your education section. Certifications demonstrate specialized skills, while licenses, such as a Registered Nurse (RN) license, show you meet industry standards. For some roles, certificates can even be more useful than a formal degree.

Skills

When we talk about a skills section, we usually mean your hard skills outlined in a separate component. This draws attention to abilities that are directly relevant to the job you’re applying for. These skills are often gained through formal education or training and can be measured or tested. Avoid exaggerating in this section—recruiters will appreciate an honest, focused list.

Soft skills

Soft skills demonstrate how you interact with others. These are honed throughout your personal and work life. To describe them, think of specific situations you applied your people skills, but make sure you don’t list super basic ones, such as communication and teamwork. These are expected of you everywhere, so they hardly deserve a special mention.

Here’s an example of integrating soft skills into your experience section:

What skills you put on your resume will vary depending on your industry, chosen role, and your personality. Still, here are our top picks for people skills you can include in your application:

With the core sections explained, let’s explore additional components that can show your unique strengths and experiences.

Additional resume sections to stand out

While a resume with just the essential sections is already strong, adding extra components can make it truly stand out. These provide opportunities to show your personality, creativity, and unique strengths. They’re particularly great for candidates with limited experience who want to shift the focus to their other strengths.

Awards & achievements

Featuring this section can make more sense on an entry-level resume, where accomplishments can shine on their own. For more experienced candidates, describing your achievements in the work experience can give them the proper perspective.

Either way, if you decide to highlight your special awards and accomplishments in a separate spot, make sure you include at least three, and provide a short bullet giving context.

Like so:

Volunteer experience

Any volunteering activities should stand prominently on your resume. Every employer would appreciate team members who want to help their community. The work you do for free pays off in numerous ways—it shows dedication and character and proves you’re motivated by more than a paycheck.

Here’s what a volunteer section could look like:

Hobbies & interests

You can make your hobbies relevant by highlighting skills they share with the job. For example, if you’re a project manager who also coaches a local football team, mention how both roles involve strategic planning, team motivation, and quick decision-making. Choosing hobbies that align with the role or company culture adds personality and reinforces qualities that make you a strong candidate.

Here’s an example:

Publications and presentations

For research-oriented or academic roles, this section is especially relevant and even expected. It allows you to display authored articles, research papers, or speaking engagements to highlight your expertise and contributions to the field, establishing credibility and thought leadership.

Structure your publications section like so:

Client testimonials or endorsements

If you’re a freelancer or work in a client-facing role, showing positive client feedback adds value to your resume. Briefly include testimonials highlighting your professionalism, reliability, or results, reinforcing your reputation with real-world examples.

Here’s what you can feature here:

Professional associations and memberships

Listing industry organizations, associations, or networks can demonstrate your commitment to ongoing learning and staying updated in the field. It also signals to employers that you’re engaged with the professional community.

This could be especially beneficial to candidates in fast-evolving fields like technology, marketing, or healthcare, where staying current with industry standards and innovations is crucial. Memberships in professional organizations demonstrate your proactive approach to professional growth and commitment to excellence in your field.

Languages

Language skills are a strong asset, especially for global companies or roles involving cross-cultural communication. They can also prove you’re dedicated to learning, and a good communicator with an interest in different cultures. In a language entry, show your proficiency level and/or any certificates you have.

Resume references (Optional)

Typically, references are provided only upon an employer’s request. So, ensure you’re prepared to send them promptly by having a list of contacts ready, along with each reference’s updated contact information and a brief note about your connection to them.

What to put on a resume with no experience

When you think about what to put on your resume if you’ve got little to no experience, the more pressing question isn’t what to include, but how to include it. In your first resume, you might give more weight to sections such as education, projects, and extracurricular activities, as opposed to experience.

A smart way to approach an entry-level application is through the right formatting and design:

• Choose a functional or a hybrid resume format, which offer a balance between your skills, achievements, and experience.
• Consider using a one-column resume template, which can make your resume appear more substantial, even if you don’t have much information to put on it.
• Use white space strategically–it helps draw attention to each section, even if the content is brief. Keep margins around one inch for a balanced look and align text to the left for easy readability.

Here are some more tips to keep in mind when approaching your entry-level resume:

Emphasize additional sections

Turn the optional into essential. Sections like volunteer work, hobbies, and internships show that you are active, engaged, and willing to learn. These activities often reveal transferable skills and demonstrate your commitment, even without direct job experience.

Skills section

Whether you choose a functional or a hybrid format, a skills section will be at focus. For entry-level resumes, it draws attention to how you developed your abilities through settings different from job duties, like college projects, personal endeavors, volunteering, sports, etc. Transferable skills show that you’re prepared to contribute even without extensive experience.

Education and relevant projects

In most resumes for junior candidates, the education section should go before the experience. That is because at this point in your life, it’s more recent, and probably more substantial. Employers value practical examples like research projects, group work, or specific coursework that apply directly to the job.

Personal projects and extracurricular activities

Highlighting self-driven projects or extracurricular activities shows initiative and passion, qualities that are highly attractive to employers. These projects often allow you to develop job-relevant skills, especially in problem-solving, leadership, and creativity, which can make you stand out as an ambitious candidate.

What not to put on a resume

When we create a resume, we might be tempted to put more things than needed, for fear of missing something relevant. In reality, there are things that are better left unsaid–at least when applying for a job. These include:

Personal and controversial beliefs

Avoid disclosing political views, as well as religious or other personal beliefs. While it’s important to respect others’ beliefs and viewpoints, these are sensitive topics that may lead to unintended conflicts, even in seemingly innocent discussions. For these reasons, they’re best left off your resume—and, ideally, out of your professional interactions.

Dishonesty or exaggerations

Don’t give in to the temptation to exaggerate your skills and knowledge, even slightly. While it’s common to hear that “everybody lies on their resume,” don’t fall into this trap—it rarely works out in your favor. Employers value honesty and transparency and would prefer someone who is less skilled but open to learning, over someone who exaggerates their abilities and creates confusion or errors on the job.

Confidential information

Depending on your previous role, you might have access to proprietary information or client details. Never disclose these in your resume, during interviews, or even after starting a new job. This is a breach of privacy that can lead to legal consequences and shows disloyalty to your previous employer.

Typos, grammar errors, and complex formats

Polishing your resume is critical, but even the best experience can be overshadowed by grammar or spelling mistakes. While occasional typos happen, they can easily be avoided—one reliable way is to use a tool like Enhancv’s free AI checker.

Irrelevant work experience or outdated skills

Although you might feel your internship from 2004 is still relevant, it’s better to leave out outdated experiences. Skills from decades ago, even if they were in a similar field, are often no longer relevant in today’s job market and technology landscape. Avoid listing irrelevant experience, as it can come across as “filling space” rather than targeting the specific job requirements.

Now that we’ve covered everything you might need on your resume, let’s discuss what to put on another integral part of your application—your cover letter.

What to put on a cover letter

A well-crafted cover letter can leave a lasting impression and enhance your job application. While it’s not always required, including one can help you stand out.

Here are some key tips to help you write an effective cover letter:

1. Keep it concise: Usually, 300–400 words are plenty for a cover letter.
2. Start with a clear heading: Just as on your resume, include a heading with your name and contact details. Add the date, and below that, include the recipient’s information—the person or organization you’re addressing.
3. Use a personalized greeting: Whenever possible, address the letter to the hiring manager by name. If you don’t know their name, start with a professional greeting, like “Dear Hiring Manager.”
4. Capture attention right away: Engage the reader from the start by sharing a specific example of a problem you solved, an achievement, or an award. Avoid a lengthy introduction that repeats your resume. This approach highlights your abilities and gives employers a clear sense of how you can contribute.
5. Show genuine interest in the position: Explain what draws you to this role and company. Mention a specific value, project, or attribute that resonates with your career goals or values.
6. End with a positive call to action: Conclude with enthusiasm for discussing how you can contribute. You might politely request an interview or, to show initiative, offer to follow up and specify when you’ll reach out.
7. Mention your attached resume: As a quick reminder, briefly note that you’ve attached your resume to the application.

Frequently asked questions

How often to update your resume?

It’s a good idea to update your resume every six months or whenever you have a new accomplishment, role, skill, or certification. Regular updates ensure that you’re always ready for new opportunities and that your achievements are fresh in your mind.

How to address a gap on your resume?

Be transparent about any gaps in employment, and use this section to briefly explain the reason for the time away, such as further education, family care, or personal projects. You can also mention any relevant skills or experiences gained during the gap, like volunteering, freelancing, or online courses. Emphasize how this period helped you grow professionally or personally to add value to your application.

What to put at the bottom of a resume?

The bottom of your resume is a good place for sections like “Languages,” “Professional Affiliations,” or “Interests,” depending on what’s most relevant to the job. You might also include “References Available Upon Request,” though it’s increasingly common to leave references off unless explicitly requested. Ending with these details rounds out your resume and provides additional insights into your qualifications and personality.

How far back should a resume go?

In general, your resume should cover the past 10–15 years, focusing on roles that are relevant to the position you’re applying for. If you have experience from earlier in your career that is directly relevant, consider including it briefly in a section like “Earlier Experience.” Keeping your resume concise and focused on recent, applicable roles helps make it easier for hiring managers to spot your qualifications.

How can I make my resume look fuller?

To make your resume look fuller without sacrificing relevance, consider using a one-column format, which can allow more room for detailed descriptions of your roles and achievements. You might also consider optional sections if they genuinely add value to your profile. However, keep in mind that the goal isn’t to artificially pad your resume–everything included should still be relevant and tailored to the role you’re applying for.

Should you include salary expectations?

Generally, it’s best not to include salary expectations on a resume unless the job listing specifically asks for it. Including salary expectations too early can limit your negotiation power and may lead to misunderstandings. A good place to specify salary ranges is in your cover letter.

Conclusion

Crafting a powerful resume isn’t just filling in the blanks—it’s about showing your unique story. By focusing on the essentials, from a sharp header to impactful achievements and relevant skills, you’ll create a compelling narrative that speaks to your strengths. With a clear, targeted approach, your resume won’t just get a glance—it’ll leave a lasting impression.