Writing your Curriculum vitae, Resume or C.V.

See also 'How to write your resume' 

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What is an appropriate format or style for Resume Writing?

But first, what do we mean by style?

Style refers to the way you arrange your words and sentences so as to intelligibly and attractively communicate your message. Different genre calls for different writing styles.

The problem with style is that it's subjective. Different readers have different ideas about what constitutes good writing style - the way you put together a sentence or group of sentences. All styles however have one major objective; to express ideas more concisely, clearly, and compellingly.

Appropriate writing style and presentation of resumes

Resumes formats and expressive style can be casual, imaginative or formal. Orient your resume style to the type of position for which you are going for. Resume style elements include:

• Paper:  Colored paper is unfitting for business applications.  Use white paper, black text.

• Format: Your format and presentation should make it simple for an interviewer to read and follow your curriculum vitae.

• Fonts: The variant and size of font you use not only sets your resume style, but also shapes how easy your resume is to read. There are only two types of fit business fonts:

• Serif fonts: Times New Roman, Bookman and Georgia
• Sans serif fonts: Tahoma & Arial
  

• Maintain font size to either 10 or 12 points and heading size at 12 or 14 points. For emphasis, use  bold text, or italic text. Be uniform in your font choices and styles.

• Columns:  Choose a number of columns to reflect how you want your resume to appear. Two-column resumes, with headings on the left, are usually easier to follow, particularly if your resume contains a lot of information.

• Bullets: Bullets should be used to organize and underscore skills and achievements. Standard bullets include the circle, the disc, and the square. Be uniform in your use of bullets and numbered lists.
  

• Text alignment: Do not center or right-align your text. Avoid using justified text as it tends to create abnormal lines. Left-aligned text and bulleted lists are easy to read and preserve a professional look.

• Graphics: While low toned graphics can add appropriate style to your resume, avoid using pictures. Use graphics to differentiate sections of information.

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