How to Format the Header of a Resume

Create a clean, simple resume format to let your experience shine.

When a recruiter or hiring manager picks up your resume, the first thing he typically looks for is the resume's header, a straight forward but vital component of your resume. The header is your name and contact information, and it is important to format it correctly. If you travel a lot and don't have a permanent address, or if you are in the process of moving, it is advisable to rent a professional business address, either at a post office or business suite.

Instructions

1. Open a word processing program on your computer. Create a 1-inch margin at the top of the page. Set your document's preferences to create equal margins of 1-inch on the left, right and bottom of your resume for a clean, polished look.

2. Type your name at the top. Enter a hard return to create another line. Type your street address, city, state, home phone number and cell phone number. Add an email address that conveys professionalism; for instance, if your normal email address is [e-mail], change it. Add your professional website address if this is a pertinent to your job.

3. Highlight your name. Choose a professional, clean font such as Arial or Times New Roman. Make the name several points larger than the other contact information. A good font size for the name is 18 points. Make the name bold. Stay away from decorative fonts.

4. Highlight the rest of the contact information and make it the same font as the name, but do not bold it. Select a font size such as 12 points for everything but the name.

5. Select all the text and align the header so that it is all centered on the page.

References

• Dice: Resume Formatting Tips from the Pros: Warren Simons
• Oberlin: Contact Information