Plain Text Resume

Resume

During job and internship search, a resumé plays a very important role. As such, well-written resumés will get anyone a high number of job interviews. Then rest is up to you to get the job.

  • Sample Plain Text (.txt) Master eResume. Note how the formatting is retained, and how similar it looks to the hypertext sample resume. The difference lies in the file format. The only way to really understand this is to download this sample plain text resume to either your text editor or word processor for a comparison. (Link opens in a new.
  • For whatever reason, you may be asked to submit your resume as a plain text document to the company that does not accept paper ones. You should actually have your resume saved in more than one.

That’s why resumés play a major role in the job search process. A friend of mine submitted his resumé in pdf format while he’s making online job searches.

Today, resumes are being submitted online more and more, as employers post jobs and applicants respond. With the increasing growth of technology, hardly anyone mails a resume or delivers it in person. The information below will explain how to create a plain text resume, and why it is essential in today’s business world.

If a resumé is sent using this format and it will be scanned by keyword scanners, then a pdf format will not be recognized by the software and the resumé will never get into the hands of the hiring manager. It’s like sending nothing at all.

There are different types of resumés, so students must use the appropriate type depending on a particular situation.

Resume Types:

  1. A Print Version, designed with bulleted lists, italicized text, and other highlights, ready to be printed and emailed or sent by hand to potential contacts and interviewers.
  2. A Scannable Version, a less-designed version without the fancy design highlights. Bulleted lists are fine, but that’s about the limit.
  3. A Plain Text Version, a simple file ready to be copied and pasted into online forms or posted in online resumé databases. This might also be referred to as a Text-Only copy.
  4. An E-mail Version, another plain text copy, but this one is specifically formatted for the length-of-line restrictions in e-mails. This is also a Text-Only copy.

Plain Text Resume - After Converting Your Resume To Plain Text...

Plain Text ResumeResume

© David Alan Carter
All Rights Reserved

If you've been told to convert a copy of your formatted resume to Plain Text, you've been told right. The simpleformat also known as ASCII (which stands for American Standard Code for Information Interchange) allows anydocument to be read by practically any computer in the world. A plain text resume is needed to post to online formswith job banks, and to send electronically via email in response to ads.

But there's one last hurtle to jump. Yes, your resume in its current plain text form will be easilyread by computer software scanning for keywords. But should those bytes and bits succeed in getting through theinitial screeners and end up on the monitor of an actual human being, you don't want your plain text resume to beoverly hard to read. In the interest of human eyes, here is a checklist of 5 steps to go over before your plaintext resume steps out onto the internet.

5 Steps to a Readable Plain Text Resume

1- Adjust The Header. Your resume's header - name andcontact information - will likely be jumbled in the conversion to plain text, unless it was centered and devoid ofdesign instructions to begin with. Fix the look by placing everything on the left margin. Allocate a single linefor each of the following: Name, Address, Phone Number, Email Address, and Web Address URL (if applicable).

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2 - Fix Spacing. Many times, a plain textconversion results in a ginormous block of text where there should be paragraphs and spacing between resumesections. Use the 'enter' key on your keyboard to fix spacing problems. Insert a line space between paragraphs, anda double line space between category sections of your resume.

3 - Bring Back Lost Bullet Points. In theory, bulletpoints from your formatted resume should be transformed into asterisks during an ASCII conversion. In theory.Meaning, check those bullet points. If they vanished, or were turned into question marks, fix them by making themasterisks.

4 - Look For Other Anomalies. Scan for othercharacters that may have gone wacky in the process. Candidates for conversion wackiness include the em dash(similar to an extended hyphen), diacritical marks (i.e., the accent mark above a letter), and other characterscreated by your application software and not found on the keyboard. The fix for these anomalies is to find theclosest approximation that resides on your keyboard. Tip: if it appears on your keyboard, it's ASCII supported.

What Is A Text Resume

5 - Improve Readability by Re-Formatting CategoryHeadings. To make your plain text resume more pleasing to the eye, consider placing yourcategory headings (i.e. Profile, Education, Experience, etc.) in ALL CAPS to help distinguish the various sectionsof the resume. Think about adding a series of marks either directly above or below the category headings, craftingeither a full line or partial line. You might try a series of equal signs or tildes/squigglies ~~~~~~ forthe sake of appearance. Don't go crazy, and remember to limit any character additions to those found on thekeyboard.

Plain text resume builder

Plain Text Resume Conversion Completed - And Readable

Plain Text Resume Builder

You're almost ready to present your plain text resume to the world. As a last step, test your new and improvedASCII resume by emailing it to yourself and a friend or family member. Preferably someone with a different emailclient (e.g. Outlook, Hotmail, Thunderbird, etc.). Does it look OK? You're good to go.
___

A Final Thought...

File format notwithstanding, if you've been in the job market for weeks or months andyour resume isn't making the phone ring, it's time to reevaluate the document that is supposed to be sellingyou. Writing an effective resume has never been a walk in the park, but in this tough economy, resumewriting is even more challenging. If yourresume is going to be fighting for attentionin an extremely competitive field, the services of a professional resume writer might make sense.

If you opt for some help, seek out a certified resumewriter, and a writer who will guarantee the resume he creates will generate interviews. Yes, they're outthere.

Text Resume Sample

In fact, I can help you identify that 'pro,' that special writer who is qualified to deliver a polished documentthat puts your best foot forward in a tough job market. The page Resume WritingServices Reviews identifies 10 or more of the more popular companies out there, and I rank thesewriters on values like...

Plain Text Resume Converter

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You’ll find star rankings, mini-reviews, and in-depth reviews on each of these 10 companies. Whether you goit alone or trust the services of a pro writer, I wish you the best of luck in your job search!

Plain Text Resume Format

Plain text resume pdf

Plain Text Resume Pdf

– David

David Alan Carter is a former technical recruiter (i.e. headhunter) and founder of Resume One of Cincinnati. For more than ten years, he personally crafted thousands of resumes for satisfied clients from all occupational walks of life, from entry-level to senior executive.