When applying for a new role, one of the most important documents you will present to a hiring manager is your resume. For many hiring managers, resumes flood in the moment a job is posted. This can lead to resume fatigue, which can in turn cause hiring managers to throw away any resumes that are difficult to read.
In fact, one of the top preferences of hiring managers across companies and roles is to see resumes that are simple and easy to understand. A basic resume goes a long way in professionally presenting necessary information without going overboard and causing the reader to lose interest.
In this guide, you’ll discover basic resume examples for 2022 with key insights into how to ensure your resume is readable.
What is a basic resume?
A basic resume is a simple document that presents your name, contact information, relevant work experience, education, and skills in a clear format. Simple resumes do not rely on heavy graphic design for their impact. Instead, they focus on laying out information in a streamlined and organized manner. With a simple resume, fonts are kept plain and no distracting elements are included.
They are optimized to work for you and for busy hiring teams.
Basic resumes are usually saved as a .docx or similar text-based file type. They do not include photos, graphics, or colors. Often, these resumes will implement simple line breaks and white spaces to help create an appealing format. The goal is to ensure that copy is easy to read and that the resume is neither crowded nor the information cramped.
Basic resumes can be used for any job role. The biggest benefit of sticking to a simple resume format is that it ensures the readability of the resume. With a basic resume, recruiters and hiring managers can quickly read the document, notating important information. This also ensures that if a computer is the first to scan the document for keywords, these words can be easily found.
Basic resume examples: The template
If you are interested in writing a basic resume, check out this basic resume example template. It can be quickly adapted to display your own experience and skill set. You can also download a free copy of this template on our Free Resume Templates resource page or look for specific resumes based on your job role.
Make sure that when you use a basic resume template as your guide, you input your own information. Review the final copy multiple times to make sure you didn’t leave any of the original example copy in place.
Basic Resume Example 2022
FIRSTNAME I. LASTNAME
(212) 555-1212 • www.theladders.com/expert/my-profile
LEVEL FIELD ROLE
◇—————————————————————————◇
Job Title • Job Title • Job Title • Job Title • Job Title
Skill or Capability • Skill or Capability • Skill or Capability • Skill or Capability • Skill
Accomplishment • Accomplishment • Accomplishment • Accomplishment • Accomplishment
Award • Expertise • Recognition • Award • Expertise • Recognition
WORK EXPERIENCE
Current Company, Inc., New York, NY Jan 2015 – present
Precisely Specific Job Title
Brief Company or Role Description
- Achieved a number, dollar, or percentage by…
- Accelerated a number, dollar, or percentage by…
- Added a number, dollar, or percentage by…
Prior Company, Inc., New York, NY Jan 2011 – Jan 2015
Precisely Specific Job Title
Brief Company or Role Description
- Decreased a number, dollar, or percentage by…
- Delivered a number, dollar, or percentage by…
- Eliminated a number, dollar, or percentage by…
EDUCATION
Grad School University Name 2004
Master’s in Precisely Specific Degree
- Winner of award, distinction, or honor
Undergraduate College or University Name 2000
BS/BA in Precisely Specific Degree
- Winner of award, distinction, or honor
PERSONAL, PATENTS, AWARDS, TECHNOLOGIES, KEYWORDS
◇—————————————————————————◇
Optional Keywords • Optional Keywords • Optional Keywords • Optional Keywords
Simple resume examples filled out
With the above template for a basic resume, you’re ready to start building your own professional document. If you need a few ideas about what to include, check out these 2022 resume examples. These simple resume examples will give you an idea of what type of information you should include on your resume and how to word the copy.
Example 1: HR Generalist resume
JANET SUMMERS
123 Frolic Way – Springfield – IL – 62711
(217) 555-7777
HR GENERALIST
◇—————————————————————————◇
HR Generalist • HR Specialist • HR Associate
Recruiting • Employee Relations. • Talent & Succession Planning
Facilitated Growth • Drove Positive Outcomes • Increased Retention • Ensured Compliance
WORK EXPERIENCE
Innovative Tech Solutions Jan 2015 – present
HR Generalist
- Recruited and placed 250 employees
- Increased employee engagement levels by 70% over four years
- Revamped intranet, improving onboarding workflows
HR Intern August 2014 – Jan 2015
- Aided HR specialists with data entry
- Attended 12 tradeshow events to help recruit new hires
- Designed 10 new templates for HR recruitment fliers
EDUCATION
Colorado University, Boulder, CO 2015
B.S. in Human Resources
◇—————————————————————————◇
CareerPlug Applicant Tracking System • Kronos • bambooHR • ADP • Harris Data • PeopleSoft • UltiPro • SharePoint • iSolved • Vibe HCM • syncHR • PeopleStrategy eHCM • KMI LMS
Example 2: Communications Specialist Resume
JARED REGISTER
123 Lake Drive – Fort Collins – CO – 80521
(970) 555-7777
COMMUNICATIONS SPECIALIST
◇—————————————————————————◇
Communications Specialist • Communications Associate • Digital Communications Specialist
Media Relations • Events • Reputation Management • Crisis Management • Communications
WORK EXPERIENCE
AgTech Inc. Jan 2020 – present
Communications Specialist
- Increased holiday event traffic by 30% after developing a digital ad campaign strategy
- Achieved press interest that led to a 20% rise in media mentions
- Spearheaded brand image campaign to see a rise of 30% in national brand recognition
AgTech Inc.
Communications Intern August 2018 – May 2019
- Assisted with launching employee intranet
- Designed 15 email template designs for employee use
- Created and mailed 30 company holiday cards
- Took 25 internal training courses designed to increase HR knowledge
EDUCATION
Colorado State University – Fort Collins, CO 2020
B.S. Communications Studies
◇—————————————————————————◇
Prezly • Canva • AdobeSuite • Outbrain Amplify • BuzzStream • Prowly • Muck Rack • NinjaOutreach • WordPress • SharePoint
Tips for writing a simple resume
As you can see from the above simple resume examples, regardless of your experience or the role you are applying for, you’ll be focusing on the same basic components. To keep your resume on the right path, follow these quick writing tips:
- Include numbers: As you list out your experience, rather than writing lengthy paragraphs describing every detail of your work, focus on the numbers instead. How did you impact the business? What did you increase or decrease that helped move the team toward important goals? Numbers are easy for a hiring manager to quickly scan and act as a proof point for your experience.
- Remove the fluff: Even if you have minimal experience, don’t try to pad with lengthy sections of information. Stick to simple, factual statements.
- Check your spelling: Before you submit a resume, always double-check the document for spelling or grammar errors. You can use a built-in spellcheck in your word processor or run your document through an online spelling and grammar check.
- Avoid the extras: Ornate design elements, fancy fonts, graphics, emojis, and photos are not necessary for a quality resume. Instead, keep the resume a simple, text document that can be easily read on any device.
- Stick to one page: If you find that your resume is running over onto second or even third pages, go back through and remove any unnecessary information. However, if you have ten or more years of experience, a two-page resume is acceptable.
Find help writing your professional resume
If you feel overwhelmed by crafting your experience and skill sets into a basic resume, we can help. Our partner Leet Resumes can write your professional resume for free. The process is simple. You provide some basic information and a professional writer drafts a resume utilizing a format optimized by experts with years of cross-industry experience.
You can also download and edit one of 73 resume templates free of charge. These span 10 industries, include example text specific to each resume, and come with a unique sample cover letter for you to use as inspiration.
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