I remember the first time I had to write a resume. I was 16 and applying to a role at American Eagle (yes, I made a resume in high school; no, I did not need one to get an after-school job; yes, I was very extra). Having zero context for what one should look like, I took my older brother’s resume and copy-and-pasted my own experience into his template.
Maybe that’s your go-to strategy: Find someone with a great resume and make it your own. I won’t deny it worked well for me—and I still use that same template to this day.
Once you perfect your resume, check out open jobs on The Muse to maximize your chances »
But if you’ve never made a resume and don’t have someone else’s to work off of, you may be in need of a template. We’ve collected eight of our favorite Google Docs resume templates that are fun and cheap (if not free!)—as well as some tips for using them to your advantage.
You want to pick one that’s visually appealing, easy to use, and allows you to include all the necessary resume sections. But you should also choose a resume template that can be easily “read” by an applicant tracking system (ATS).
ATSs are software that most employers use to store, file, and search candidate resumes to help them stay organized and find the applicants that meet the most qualifications. These programs are pretty advanced, but they’re far from perfect, and certain types of formatting may make it difficult or impossible for an ATS to accurately parse your resume.
To give yourself the best chance of getting to the next round of hiring, you want to make sure the Google Docs resume template you choose doesn’t include any of these formatting elements:
Want to make creating a resume in Google Docs super easy on yourself? Choose one of Google’s premade resume templates. If you’re on docs.google.com, just click on “Template gallery” near the top right of the page and scroll down to see your resume options. If you’re already in a Google Doc, you’ll want to click “File”> “New” > “From template gallery” to see all of your options.
While Google has five built-in templates, we only recommend three of them for getting through any ATS you might encounter.
Need something super simple? Look no further than this resume created right in Google Docs. With just a pop of color and clear direction as to what goes where and how to best organize your information, you can’t go wrong with this template. To make sure the ATS doesn’t get confused, you’ll want to just delete the “Hello” and “I’m” from the top of the page. Then it’s your choice whether you want your name in black or coral.
What we like most about this resume template is that the skills section goes first, which makes it perfect for career changers.
Why, you ask? Listing your skills at the top allows you to emphasize what you bring to the table (a.k.a., your transferable skills), especially to a hiring manager who may not be able to tell how your past experiences apply to their job posting. (This resume format, where your skills are listed above your work history, is called the hybrid or combination resume.)
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