Tailoring your resumé to include sections that reflect your specific skills and experience is the next step toward building a great resumé.

Regardless of the position or industry you are applying for, nearly every resumé should include an objective statement and a profile section.

The objective

The best resumés are targeted. Creating a targeted objective is the basis for crafting a resumé that is applicable to the position you are applying for.

The objective is usually one to three lines in length and clearly outlines the position you are applying for. This is your chance to show a potential employer that you are truly interested in the company and job position.

If you are applying for a position that you have read a job description for, ask yourself, “Could this objective be written for any other job?” If your answer is yes, keep tweaking your objective to make it more specific.

The profile

A well-written and detailed profile section will often determine whether or not an employer decides to read more of your resumé.

A profile section includes four to six points of relevant information, skills and experiences that directly relate to the position you are applying for.

Without detailing specific job titles or work places (that’s what the rest of your resumé is for), a profile section should include specific job skills, key characteristics or qualities related to the job position, achievement statements, important certifications, technical skills and relevant experiences.

For example, a great bullet point would be, “Regularly beginning and completing written pieces in order to meet a strict deadline for various outlets such as newspapers and magazines.” A not-so-good bullet point for a profile section is too vague and doesn’t show off your skills. For example, “Writing articles for a magazine.”

When writing bullet points for your profile, ask yourself, “Could anyone else could have written this exact point?” Be creative, detailed and try to intrigue employers enough to find out more about the experiences you have had.

Other sections

Depending on your previous work or volunteer experience, you may want to include a separate Work and Volunteer section, a Relevant Experience section, or a Recent Experience section. In each section, list experiences in reverse chronological order.

Other sections that might be important for your resumé include relevant technical skills, related courses or professional development courses.

A resumé is your personal advertisement. Choose carefully the sections you want to include so that you can profile your skills and experience in the most clear and concise way possible.

Check out the other articles in the 15 minute resumé makeovers series: Basic aesthetics and Writing better bullet points