Resume Templates That Help You Build a Clean, ATS Friendly Resume
Resume templates can make the job application process much easier, especially when you are not sure how to organize your education, experience, skills, projects, or volunteer work. A good template gives your resume structure, but the best resume templates also keep your information simple, readable, and easy for Applicant Tracking Systems to scan.
Why resume templates matter
Many job seekers start with a blank page and quickly feel overwhelmed. They know what they have done, but they do not know how to present it clearly. Resume templates solve that problem by giving you a professional layout you can follow step by step.
However, not every resume template is safe for ATS systems. Some templates use graphics, columns, icons, text boxes, or heavy design elements that may look attractive but can make your resume harder for software to read. When a resume cannot be parsed correctly, important details like your job title, dates, education, or skills may be missed.
The safest resume templates use simple formatting, standard section headings, clean spacing, and a single column layout. This helps both recruiters and ATS systems understand your background quickly.
If you are not sure whether your resume is readable, you can also check your resume score for free before applying.
What the best resume templates include
The best resume templates are not overly decorative. They are clear, organized, and focused on the information hiring teams actually need. A strong template should help you show your qualifications without distracting from your content.
- Your name and contact information at the top
- Clear education details
- Relevant experience grouped by category
- Bullet points that describe results, responsibilities, and skills
- A clean skills section with technical, language, or industry specific skills
- Simple formatting without tables, columns, icons, or text boxes
Good resume templates also make it easier to customize your resume for each role. Instead of rewriting everything from scratch, you can adjust your section titles, keywords, and bullet points based on the job description.
Resume Template 1: Traditional Career Resume Template
This first resume template is best for students, recent graduates, nonprofit roles, public service roles, education, advocacy, government, administrative work, internships, and entry level jobs. It uses a straightforward structure that highlights education first, then relevant experience, additional experience, and skills.
FIRSTNAME LASTNAME
University Name, City, State
Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science in Major, Expected Graduation Month Year
Relevant Coursework: Course Name, Course Name, Course Name
Awards: Academic Award, Scholarship, Honor, or Recognition
Organization Name, City, State
Your Title
Month Year – Month Year
- Describe your responsibility using clear action language connected to the role.
- Include measurable impact when possible, such as people served, events supported, or projects completed.
- Use keywords from the job description naturally inside your bullet points.
Organization Name, City, State
Your Title
Month Year – Month Year
- Highlight volunteer work, internships, campus leadership, teaching, advocacy, or nonprofit experience.
- Show communication, leadership, research, organization, and problem solving skills.
Company or Organization Name, City, State
Your Title
Month Year – Month Year
- Add work that is not directly related but still shows responsibility, reliability, or transferable skills.
- Include customer service, research, administrative support, operations, or leadership experience.
Computer Skills: Microsoft Excel, Google Workspace, PowerPoint, CRM Tools
Language Skills: Spanish, Professional Working Proficiency
Interests: Community Engagement, Education, Public Policy, Research
Why this traditional resume template works
- It keeps the layout simple and easy to scan
- It uses clear section headings that ATS systems can recognize
- It allows students and early career professionals to highlight relevant experience first
- It separates primary experience from additional experience
- It works well for internships, nonprofit roles, education, public service, and entry level positions
This is one of the safest resume templates for job seekers who want a clean and professional resume without unnecessary design elements.
Resume Template 2: Creative Career Resume Template
This second resume template is designed for creative careers, media, communications, journalism, publishing, production, design, theater, music, art administration, and portfolio based roles. It still uses clean formatting, but the section titles can be adjusted to match the creative field you are targeting.
FIRSTNAME LASTNAME
University Name, City, State
Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science in Major, Expected Graduation Month Year
Relevant Coursework: Digital Media, Visual Communication, Writing, Production, Design
Awards: Creative Award, Academic Honor, Publication, Exhibition, or Recognition
Company, Studio, Publication, or Student Organization, City, State
Your Title
Month Year – Month Year
- Lead each bullet with strong action language that matches the job description.
- Describe creative deliverables such as articles, campaigns, videos, scripts, designs, social content, or productions.
- Quantify your work when possible, including audience growth, number of assets created, or project reach.
Company, Studio, Publication, or Organization, City, State
Your Title
Month Year – Month Year
- Show creative responsibility, collaboration, production support, editing, research, or storytelling experience.
- Connect your work to outcomes, deadlines, audience needs, brand goals, or campaign performance.
Independent Project, Exhibition, Publication, or Organization
Your Role
Month Year – Month Year
- Use this section for independent projects, freelance work, publications, exhibitions, performances, or creative collaborations.
- Highlight transferable skills such as project management, writing, editing, visual design, communication, or research.
Technical Skills: Adobe Creative Cloud, Figma, Canva, WordPress, Google Analytics
Creative Skills: Copywriting, Editing, Visual Design, Storytelling, Content Strategy
Additional: Photography, Script Coverage, Social Media, Brand Communication
Why this creative resume template works
- It allows creative job seekers to organize experience by field
- It includes space for portfolio links and creative project work
- It keeps formatting clean enough for ATS systems
- It avoids overly designed layouts that can create parsing issues
- It helps writers, designers, media professionals, and students show both skill and direction
Creative resumes do not have to be visually complicated. In many cases, a clean resume with a strong portfolio link is more effective than a heavily designed document.
How to choose the right resume template
The right resume template depends on your career goal. If you are applying for a corporate, nonprofit, education, public service, or entry level role, choose a traditional resume template. If you are applying for media, design, journalism, production, communications, or arts related roles, choose a creative resume template with flexible section titles.
You can also rename sections based on your experience. For example, “Public Service Experience” can become “Teaching Experience,” “Nonprofit Experience,” or “Advocacy Experience.” “Media Experience” can become “Communications Experience,” “Design Experience,” “Publishing Experience,” or “Production Experience.”
This flexibility is what makes resume templates so useful. They give you a strong structure, but you can still customize them for your industry and target role.
ATS tips before using resume templates
- Use a single column layout whenever possible
- Use standard fonts like Arial, Calibri, Georgia, Tahoma, or Verdana
- Keep section headings simple and recognizable
- Use keywords from the job description naturally
- Do not place important details in headers, footers, tables, or text boxes
- Save your final resume as a Word document or PDF, depending on the employer instructions
Before applying, compare your resume against the job description and make sure your most important skills appear in context. You can also explore more resume examples to see how different roles organize experience.
Final thoughts on resume templates
Resume templates are helpful because they give your experience a clear structure. But the template alone will not get you interviews. The content inside the template matters most. Your bullet points should be specific, your keywords should match the job description, and your formatting should be simple enough for ATS systems to read.
Whether you choose a traditional resume template or a creative resume template, focus on clarity first. Recruiters do not need a complicated design. They need to quickly understand who you are, what you have done, and why your experience fits the role.
Before you send your next application, use an ATS friendly layout, customize your keywords, and check your resume score for free.
Check your resume score for free
Upload your resume and see how it performs before applying. Find missing keywords, formatting issues, and simple fixes before they cost you interviews.