Traditional Resume Template [5+ Classic Resume Examples]

Not sure what kind of resume will boost your chances of landing an interview? Go for a traditional resume template. It’s much more than timelessly elegant.

Maciej Duszyński, CPRW

Career Expert

Updated 01/10/2023

As seen in:

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The Internet is abundant in all sorts of newfangled resume ideas.

But the truth is—

A traditional resume is always your safest bet.

Why?

Read on to find out, and explore a gallery of classic resume templates.

This guide will show you:

How to define a traditional resume in this day and age.
The advantages of using a classic resume template.
Examples of traditional resume templates.
Resume writing and formatting tips.

Want to save time and have your resume ready in 5 minutes? Try our resume builder. It’s fast and easy to use. Plus, you’ll get ready-made content to add with one click. See 20+ resume templates and create your resume here.

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Sample resume made with our builder—See more resume examples here.

One of our users, Nikos, had this to say:

[I used] a nice template I found on Zety. My resume is now one page long, not three. With the same stuff.

Before we jump in—

Let’s come up with a traditional resume definition:

A traditional (or classic) resume is a business document outlining your work experience, key achievements, skills, as well as educational background. Apart from this, it includes your contact details and additional information on your qualifications, such as certifications, awards, or membership in professional organizations.

You can create such a resume with word-processing software or using a traditional resume template in a resume builder.

A traditional resume would be printed out and delivered to the employer via traditional postal services.

However—

This is no longer the case.

In this day and age, a traditional resume is delivered via email.

Also, a traditional resume layout is rather simple and devoid of flashy graphical elements. It's readability and scannability that count.

In contrast—

A non-traditional resume can take on many different forms.

From an infographic resume, to creative resume, to website resume to the yet-undiscovered type of resume.

Now—

The traditional resume templates in our resume builder let you create a document that can follow any of the three classic resume formats:

Once your resume is finished, you can download your traditional resume as a PDF or MS Word file that can be printed out or sent as an email attachment.

So—

Why go for a traditional resume?

First off, a classic-looking resume is something every recruiter will be able to read quickly.

With only 7 seconds of the recruiter’s initial attention, you really want your document to be easy to scan.

Second—

A simple, traditional resume will surely pass any ATS (Applicant Tracking System) scan.

With more and more companies using ATSs, this is something you should always have in the back of your mind.

Note: All traditional resume templates available in our builder are ATS-compliant.

And now—

Here comes the gallery of classic resume examples:

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