Write a Combination Resume to Show Your Skills

Combination Resume

There are three resume formats commonly used: chronological, functional, and combination. The combination resume format is one that can showcase your relevant skills more effectively, especially if you don’t have much professional experience. Here’s what you need to know about the combination resume format.

What Is a Combination Resume?

The combination resume, also referred to as a hybrid resume, is essentially a combination of the chronological and the functional resume formats. It showcases both your top skills and work history. A combination resume is very similar to a chronological resume, but places the skills section ahead of the work history section.

Combination Resume vs. Functional Resume vs. Chronological Resume

Understanding the combination resume often has to do with first understanding the chronological and functional resume formats. Here’s what you need to know about all three.

• Chronological resume

  The chronological resume is the most common resume format and emphasizes your work history. The chronological format is what a recruiter is typically going to expect, so if you’re going to use a different format, you need to have a good reason for it.

• Functional resume

  A functional resume emphasizes your skill set and focuses less on the work history section, which may only include the job title and company name without much elaboration. Because of its reliance on skills and training, the functional resume format is a resume style that career changers and recent graduates use.

• Combination resume

  The combination resume is a mixture of the chronological and functional resume formats. Like the chronological resume, it gives your potential employer more information about your job history. However, like the functional resume, it features a more robust skills section than a chronological resume typically would.