A resume is a summary of your life to date and includes details of your education and work experience. A resume is also called a CV (Latin: Curriculum vitae) in some countries, especially in the UK.

The rule to resume writing is: there is no hard and fast rule! You can choose to list your career history in chronological order, to highlight your skills, or even to target your resume to one particular job. However, always include a cover letter with your resume.

Make sure your resume is up-to-date. Always use a PC to compile it, and try not to clutter it up with different font styles or clip-art. Sober and simple is best for most jobs, although, there is more flexibility for jobs that call for creativity. Keeping it simple also helps you to edit and personalize your resume for each future job that you apply to. If possible, use the company's language ?reflect the qualities that they emphasize in advertisements and pamphlets etc.

A resume should always include:

Contact details

An educational history

An employment history

Your skills, talents and interests

References

Don't forget to spell- and grammar-check your resume and get a qualified friend to go over the grammar for you. You can write brief and concise descriptions of your experiences as well as what you have achieved through these experiences. You can illustrate this with certificates, diplomas, degrees, awards, and/or portfolios.

The educational history should be brief. If you have a master's degree, your high school grades are irrelevant. Don't use superficial adjectives, such as "excellent sales results." Try to turn this around by using positive verbs instead, such as "achieved 200% increase in sales."

Here are some adjectives that always look good on resumes:

Self-starter

Initiative taker

Independent worker

Team player

Accountable

Reliable

Organized

Good communicator

For example: "planned sales strategy with team of three and coordinated implementation."