What should a resume look like? Planning for Success.

You have created a career of unique talents and abilities. Now you need a proper setup. The best resumes help complete the picture of your professional personality. A great resume takes your carefully crafted words and highlights them with an eye-catcher that represents your style. But what exactly does a good resume look like? The simple answer is: sleek and professional without being boring.

But where is the line between professionalism and boredom, and how do you distinguish yourself from strict frameworks?

The ideas and explanations below break down all the important parts of a good resume and offer advice on how to use them in your layout.

In this blog we cover:

Why visuals are so important

Correcting image projection

Best font for headings, section headings and text

Deciding on margin size

How to leave enough white space

Should we add colour or not?

Use photos or graphics?

Why visuals are so important

Why spend time on how your resume should look instead of focusing on the content? The look of your resume affects the message it sends to recruiters. Using the visual elements of your document to your advantage will enhance your entire application.

Think about the first thing you notice when you open a new web page or meet a new person. Much faster than you can work on a language, you have already made a decision based on appearance. Recruiters are not different. This carefully created list of skills doesn’t matter if they can’t find it in seconds. Creating a cohesive but striking image in your resume is even more important if you are in any creative or even related field. Let’s start with the foundation of the look of your summary format.

Choosing the right format

The format of a summary determines how elements are placed and where the focus is. There is no “right” format, but where you are in your career and the move you want will help you choose the one that works best for you.

Format Best Used is Reverse Chronological with emphasis on career development for anyone who has a relatively direct career path with functional emphasis skills and education over work history, where hybrid creates balance between skills and work history. It projects the correct image. How a resume looks depends on the image you are trying to project. Yes, it should be professional, but beyond that, the appearance of your resume should be compatible with the personality traits you have emphasized in your resume, work history, and skills.

For example, an accountant’s resume focuses on detail, reliability, and organization. This document should be more visually conservative. Our accountant’s book example uses the monochromatic Amsterdam pattern from our modern category.

However, a graphic designer resume should show creativity and unique thinking. Our graphic designer resume uses colour with our Dublin template.

Dublin Template

Here are some questions to consider when making design choices:

What is the main message of my resume?

Which three adjectives describe my work style?

What are three job attributes I should include in my CV?

Colour is just one of the many options available when creating the look of your resume. The information below and the design decisions you make about it affect the overall look of your resume.

Best Fonts for Titles, Section Headings and Text

Fonts or typefaces are the backbone of your design. At every step and every design decision, the first thing you should consider is: Is it easy to read? The best CV fonts are clean with lines. They lack the appearance of curls and are not very stylized.

Fonts are design elements, but they are also image makers. Consumer brands, corporate logos, information materials, advertising and marketing campaigns — wherever there are words and letters, careful consideration has been given to which fonts to use and how best to combine bold, italic and thin versions of font families.

Your first decision is whether to choose a serif or sans serif typeface. It is possible to combine the two types, one for your name and section headings and one for the text, but be sure to choose appropriate fonts.

A classic example of a serif font is Times New Roman, which was originally designed for newspapers. Some avoid this older font because it is the default font for many, while others prefer it for its powerful feel and readability. Garamond is a serif alternative. Among the sans-serif fonts, Microsoft’s default Caliber is a pure choice. Helvetica is widely used and considered a font that does not shrink content.

Serif Sans Serif

Authoritative

Old school

Easier to read small

Modern

Top class

Better fit in a smaller space

Your name should be the largest type on the page, somewhere between 20–24 points. Next in hierarchy are section titles with 11–14 points and then your contact information and body type with 10–12 points. We recommend staying larger than 10 pt. so that your text remains legible and avoids a stuffy look.

Deciding on Margin Size

Keeping all your career achievements on one page can be difficult, but cutting margins is not the way to go. Word documents default to one-inch margins everywhere, but you’re not creating a Word document, so you have some leeway.

Depending on the design of your resume, these margins may not make much sense. Check out our modern Toronto resume template. It uses accent boxes to separate sections and creates a visually spacious feel with narrower margins.

While we don’t recommend pushing your text to the edges of the page, we will say that a visually impressive resume doesn’t have to come with standard one-inch margins. However, if you choose to use a resume template, avoid making the edges of your design more than a quarter inch, or you risk losing white space for readability and aesthetics.

Rethink the image you want to project. While you want recruiters to know that you have many skills and experiences to share, you know how to communicate systematically and effectively. You can deliver your message considering the time usage.

The Toronto Model

How to leave enough white space

White space gives the reader breathing room. Large marginal type blocks invite the reader to move forward — they are difficult to read and strain the eyes. It also gives the impression of disorder, like a desk full of unfinished work.

Whitespace or negative space also separates sections to make it easier for HR to find them during a quick scan. It is likely that they will first want to explore your skills and see your recent achievements. If you leave white space around each part, the focus will remain where you want it.

Follow these design principles to create the impression of organized and clear communication:

Use spaces between paragraphs, indents and lines.

Line spacing should be at least 130% larger than the font size.

Create “closed” areas that mimic shapes. They attract attention.

Be consistent. In other words, use the same spacing between elements of the same type.

Change the length of the lines to get negative space in your sections, especially in the work history block, which can condense with all your achievements!

Expert
Follow Your Eyes

In a document like a CV, which contains a lot of text, the reader’s eye tends to follow an F pattern.

First, the reader scrolls up, from left to right. Next, they scan the left side. When they find what they are looking for, say a section heading, they read from left to right and repeat the process, looking for the next piece of information of interest.

Save this template when drawing.

Add colour or not?

Should you add colour to your summary layout? The short answer is maybe. There is no one perfect lifestyle or perfect answer to this question. Why? A number of factors will influence your decision, the most important being the impression you are trying to make.

Let’s go back to accountant vs. the graphic designer continues the comparison. Accountants spend their days working with spreadsheets and numbers. They don’t pay to be creative with money. Sticking to a white background and black font shows that they take the responsibility of protecting your money seriously. However, graphic designers are paid to use colour (and all the other elements discussed in this blog) to benefit the project. The lack of colour can leave recruiters scratching their heads.

Another consideration is how your document will be viewed. It’s very rare to send paper CVs by snail mail, but you can print them out to take to the interview, which you’re sure to get with your great CV! If you can control how the colour looks to the reader, go ahead, but make sure there is plenty of contrast between the text colour and the background.

Finally, your resume should reflect the company’s culture. Is it an old-fashioned industry standard bearer or a scrappy startup?

Choosing the right colour for your CV

Which colour suits your CV? In short, choose a shade that matches your professional style.
Colours evoke different emotions and send different messages. In general, most experts agree that these colours correspond to the following meanings:

The colour that conveys the message

Red: energy, determination, passion

Orange: ambition, vigor

Yellow: optimism

Green: growth

Blue: calm, trust, loyalty

Purple: creativity, focus

Brown: strength, stability

Expert advice

If you want to add colour but don’t stick to the right choice, here’s an idea. A company’s logo colour reflects its image, so when in doubt, copy their colours.

Use photos or graphics?

The last question regarding the layout of your resume is whether or not to include images. We have one almost definitive answer for you: don’t use photos, especially of yourself, unless you’re an actor or other visual performer. They make HR staff cringe because they can give the impression of bias.

Graphical elements are another matter. Small icons representing different categories can, if used correctly, add some atmosphere to an otherwise traditional resume, which means small parts. Choose wisely, otherwise these icons can express immaturity or frivolity, which detracts from your professionalism.

Our New York template includes small icons that give a glimpse of each of your resumes. If you go this route, it’s best to avoid using colours as well. Too many different design elements can be confusing or make your resume look cluttered.

One last tip: Graphic resumes may seem like the right thing to grab attention, but be aware that they are not ATS friendly (read our ATS resume optimization blog for more on applicant tracking systems), which are not easy to scan into a standard web format and can make life difficult for the reader. While you want to stand out, you don’t want to create barriers that a recruiter is unlikely to try to jump.

The basics of what a CV should look like

What does the perfect CV look like? It all depends on the job you want, the image you’re trying to convey, and the culture of the company you want to work for. A well-written CV is eye-catching and makes a convincing first impression. Keep these principles in mind:

Clarity, visuals, and readability, and you’ll be on your way to a great resume and your next job.

Get started with our resume and one of our many customizable resume templates.