While we create thousands of fantastic professional resumes throughout the year, these documents don’t simply materialize out of thin air. Before a resume service creates your resume, a writer will spend some time talking with you as well as acquiring some crucial information, including the following.

1. Your Contact Information
This one seems pretty obvious, but including proper contact information is crucial. In fact, this is the one bit of information that you really need to review. After all, while your professional resume writer knows how to create a resume free of spelling, grammar and syntax errors, they won’t know whether or not your contact information is correct, so double and triple check this information. After all, if you phone number is off by so much as a digit, that could kill your chances of scoring that great new job.

As a side note, ensure that your contact information is professional. Don’t use a personal email address with a quirky name (cutegirl26@gmail, for example), use a straightforward, professional email address, such as kellysmith@yahoo or something along those lines.

2. Your Educational Background
If you are fresh out of college, or just one or two years into your professional career, include your high school information. However, if you’ve been out of school for quite some time, a professional resume writer really only needs to know about any college degrees you possess. You also should include additional training you have received, such as specialized certificate programs, which might be needed for the jobs you seek.

3. Your Employment History
Again, if you are fresh out of college or trade school, feel free to include the part-time jobs you have held. While these may not speak to your ability for the jobs you want, they do showcase your responsibility and work ethic. However, if you are professional with a couple of years in the work force, these part-time work experiences are less relevant.

If you have gaps in employment, be sure to explain these gaps to your resume writer. Also, if some of your work experience includes a volunteer position or an unpaid internship, these still might be valuable additions to your professional resume. Your writer can look at all of your employment history and determine which jobs and work experiences will be the most relevant items to place on your resume or in a cover letter.

Additionally, be sure to provide your resume writer with job descriptions as well as job titles. For instance, if you worked as a manager, describe your work tasks and how many people you managed. If you worked as a health care provider, explain your daily responsibilities and how many patients were under your care. If you were named as the top salesperson in your division for three straight years, be sure to mention it. Your resume writer will transform this information into dynamic statements showcasing your abilities and achievements.

4. Provide Additional Qualifications
If you have special certifications that are relevant to the jobs you seek, be sure to provide your resume writer with that information. You also need to provide the writer with a list of skills, such as the types of software programs you can work with or perhaps the type of equipment you can use, etc.

5. Your Ideal Profession
Professional resume writers create resumes based upon the jobs for which their clients will be applying. Provide your writer with the types of job position you are seeking, so the writer can tailor the resume for that specific job, including the types of dynamic keywords that catches the eyes of hiring managers. Not only do hiring managers simply skim quickly over resume looking for these specific skills and qualifications, many resumes are run through software programs known as applicant tracking software. Your resume needs to include the type of verbiage that will make you a good match for a specific job.

Your professional resume writer may or may not include all of the information that you provide. Typically, it is recommended that your resume be restricted to one single page and no more than two pages, so some information may be omitted. However, providing as much information as possible makes it easier for the writer to truly understand all of your qualifications and create the best possible resume.

If you need a professional resume, take a look at our recommendations. While we aren’t in the business of writing resumes, we review hundreds of resume building sites and have created a short list of resume services that consistently provide excellent results.

We aren’t born knowing how to write a professional resume and, frankly, this essential skill typically isn’t taught in either high school or college. Unfortunately, this document is the first impression you make on a potential employer so it truly needs to be flawless. If you are heading into the job market and crafting your first resume, here are a few items that you absolutely should include.

1. Contact Information

Sure, this one seems obvious. You need to put your name, a phone number and an email address on your resume and everyone knows that. However, we’ve seen many resumes that include incorrect or inappropriate contact information on them. Be sure, first of all, to triple-check that you put the correct phone number and email address.

If you want your professional resume to look professional, take a quick look at your email address. It should be something like johnsmith@gmail or lynnrogers7@yahoo. If it looks like cutegirl101@hotmail or fratboy007@aol then you look more like a kooky college kid than a professional adult entering the workforce. Email addresses are free, so spend three minutes signing up for an email address just for business purposes and make it look like a professional email.

2. Educational Background

If you have been in the workforce for several years, you need only list your college information. However, if this is your first professional resume and you are fresh out of college or trade school, it is alright to list your high school graduation date. Employers can’t really inquire about your age, but this provides them with some information about your level of experience. Don’t worry too much about being young and inexperienced. If it’s an entry-level post, most of the candidates will have had limited professional work experience and hiring teams understand this fact.

To expound upon your qualifications, consider adding relevant coursework or perhaps a minor that relates to the field in which you are applying on your professional resume. For instance, maybe you are applying for a job that does a great deal of business in other countries. If you have a minor in Spanish, Mandarin or another language, this could be beneficial to list. Likewise if you are applying for a job in engineering and you have a degree in engineering with a minor in surveying, list that information.

3. Relevant Work Experience & Training

If you are young, you probably have limited work experience but have still held a few part-time jobs. This experience is valuable, so place it on your professional resume. Likewise, if you have volunteer experience perhaps with a youth group, at a homeless shelter or on a political campaign, this can be good information to add. Skip the under-the-table jobs such as lawn mowing or baby-sitting. It’s great that you did those jobs, but they don’t belong on a professional resume.

For those who are in college now and have a few more years until graduation, it is wise to start building up your resume. Take on a part-time job or volunteer for a cause near and dear to your heart. This will help you gain experience and some good references and perhaps future business contacts. If possible, inquire about internships that fit within the field of employment that interests you. Whether paid or unpaid, internships truly can be worth their weight in gold. They provide you with tangible work experience and provide you with a true glimpse at your future job.

When it comes to skills and training, be sure to list relevant computer programs and other training and certifications you might possess. For instance, if you are applying for a post as a graphic designer, list any relevant design and photo editing software in which you are proficient.

4. References

As a young person, you won’t have the type of references that can speak to your ability to accomplish tasks in your chosen field. You probably delivered pizzas, waited tables, manned a cash register or maybe stocked grocery shelves. However, your former employers can speak about your attitude regarding work, your professionalism, your punctuality and how you handled co-workers and customers. This is highly valuable information, so be sure to put references on your professional resume that will sing your praises. Just be sure that the contact information you provide for each reference is correct.

If you have a reference from a work experience that was unpleasant or from a boss unlikely to give you a shining review, don’t add that person as a reference. Hiring teams understand that you might have had a dud of a boss or been stuck in a difficult working environment, but you should be prepared to explain why you left that person off the list if asked. Simply give a brief unemotional description of the situation and, if possible, put a positive spin on it, describing what you gained from this difficult experience.

A professional resume contains a great deal of information but it should never run longer than a single page. This is especially true if you are seeking an entry-level job. You can expound upon your abilities and goals in your cover letter, but that also should be no longer than one page. Ensuring that you have the best information and have eliminated anything irrelevant can be difficult, which is why we recommend that you leave your resume writing to the professionals and select one of our top-rated resume writing services.