Functional CV Guide: Template and Tips

A functional CV, also known as a skills-based CV, is an alternative CV format that prioritises your skills and how you’ve used them over your work experience.

Some people choose this CV format when transitioning into a new career phase to emphasise their transferable skills better. However, it’s essential to use this format strategically so recruiters and hiring managers can easily find the information they’re looking for on your CV.

Explore when you might choose to write a functional CV and how to format a skills-based CV with a customisable template that walks you through the process.

When to use a functional CV

When you need to tell a compelling story, which is your primary goal in writing a CV (to tell the story of your career), using an alternative technique like a functional CV can help your narrative shine. Although the chronological CV is the most common format, several other types of CV, including the functional CV, enable you to highlight different aspects of your career.

You may decide to emphasise your skills rather than your work history if your desired future path doesn’t neatly align with your previous experience, for example, if you are changing careers or writing your first CV. 

It’s vital to note that if you apply for jobs via a web portal, you may want to stick with a more traditional CV format. Many companies use applicant tracking systems (ATS) to scan incoming CVs and use an algorithm to determine whether an applicant fits the job before a human recruiter reviews the application materials. ATS are typically programmed to “read” chronological CVs and may not interpret alternative CV formats accurately.

To avoid disqualifying your CV based on technical inadequacies, submit a chronological CV when applying for a job online and save your functional CV for those cases when submitting it directly to a recruiter or hiring manager.

Other ways to show skills on your CV

If you are applying for jobs through an ATS but still want to lead with your skills, consider adding a skills section to your chronological CV. A skills section can offer a dedicated space to include valuable CV keywords whilst maintaining the format ATS are typically programmed to scan.

Functional CV format

Your functional CV will look slightly different than the chronological format you may be used to, particularly in how you present your skills and work experience. However, the structure of your other CV sections will remain consistent.

Typically, a functional CV will include these essential sections:

• Header

• Objective or summary

• Skills

• Work experience

• Education

• Certifications (optional)

Let’s take a closer look at each section.

Functional CV template

Use this functional CV template to write your CV as we detail what to include in each section below.

Header

Your header will appear on the top two lines of your CV. Lead with your name and critical contact information, such as your email address, phone number, address, and portfolio link, if you have one. Make this information stand out with a larger font size, bold text, or centred formatting.

Objective or summary

Use an objective or summary statement below your header to give recruiters and hiring managers context about your experience and goals before detailing your specific qualifications. Recent graduates, people changing careers, or people looking to advance their careers usually opt to write a CV objective, whilst people with some or varied work experience often include a CV summary.

These sections are typically considered optional, but with a functional CV, an objective or summary statement can offer a familiar introduction before you present the less-common skills section.

Skills

The skills section is the star of the functional CV. It will be your longest and most detailed section where you name your top three skills. For each, write the skill you want to highlight on one line, followed by about three bullet points to describe how you’ve used that skill to promote business goals.

Use your skills bullets to detail measurable accomplishments or projects you’ve completed that showcase this skill. You don’t need to mention when or where you used them. This lack of specificity and context surrounding your skills is one reason hiring managers may feel less compelled by the functional CV format. To draw more explicit connections between your skills and your roles, consider writing a chronological CV.

Check out the following example of what a skill entry may look like:

Project management

• Set project goals, developed budgets and timelines, and aligned stakeholders for internal company-wide communications projects

• Oversaw project execution workflow and mitigated risks with 100 per cent on-time and on-budget completion and 95 per cent project success rate over two years

• Managed cross-departmental communications to create agendas and presentations for monthly company all-hands meetings

Work experience

Since you’ve already shared your accomplishments and projects in the skills section, your work experience section will be more condensed than you’d typically see on a CV. With a functional CV, you can simply list your work experience, sharing only your title, company, and dates of employment.

You can format this section in several ways. The simplest may look like this:

Executive Assistant, ABC Company, June 2019 - June 2021

Education

Your education section will look the same as it would on a chronological CV, listing your college or university, dates attended, location, and degree or qualification obtained. You may include your degree classification if above a 2:1, relevant projects, achievements, coursework, extracurricular activities, or study abroad programmes.

Additional sections

Sections such as certifications, hobbies, or volunteer work are all optional. However, if you have relevant experience in any of these areas and they help demonstrate your career development and progress, you should add them below your education.

Getting started

A functional CV prioritises skills and how you use them over work experience, making it a suitable choice if you’re transitioning into a new career phase or writing your first CV. You can also opt to add credentials to your CV and advance your career with a Professional Certificate from industry leaders on Coursera. Learn in-demand project management, UX design, web development, or data science skills from Google, Meta, and IBM. Join our global community and start learning today for free!