How to Build a Resume That Gets You Hired for Temp Jobs
Knowing how to write a resume is crucial for any job - including temp jobs. When applying for short-term or long-term positions, you’ll likely still be asked to submit a resume.
Knowing how to write a resume for temp jobs is essential for highlighting your skills and standing out among the crowd. Explore these tips for writing a resume.
How to Write a Resume for a Temp Job
A resume for a temp job should include your contact information, contain relevant work experience and education, and follow an organized, easily scannable layout. Focus on experience that most closely relates to the temp job you're trying to apply for.
1. Make Sure Your Contact Info is Front and Center
Your name and contact information should be the very first thing on your resume, centered at the top of the page. The most crucial part of your resume is letting the employer or staffing agency know exactly who you are and how they can contact you. Without this information somewhere that’s easy to find, they won’t be able to get in contact regardless of how much they like your work history. The most important contact information is your phone number and email address. You can also include your home address, although it’s not necessary. Instead, you can list your city and state.
2. Highlight Relevant Work Experience and Education
This is the meat and potatoes of your resume. Include your employment history going back at least five years.
Keep in mind while writing that you want your resume to usually only be 1-2 pages long in total. If you have a lot of experience, you don’t necessarily need to list out every single position you’ve had. You can pick the ones you want to highlight - for example, you may only choose to list jobs where the skills match what you’re applying for.
If you don’t have that much job history or if this is your first position, leave your employment history blank. You can instead focus on any volunteer or domestic work you may have done, as well as your educational history. Most temp jobs don’t require a college degree, but you should list any education received and what year you graduated, such as high school or GED.
Focusing on any skills you’ve accrued over the years is also extremely helpful. Try to include any assets and learnings you’ve gained to give the staffing agency an idea of what jobs you might be good at.
While you can update your resume for each job you’re applying to, it takes a lot of extra time. It’s often easier to create one basic resume that includes the necessities if you plan on applying to jobs in bulk. This will help save time in the long run.
3. Include Skills and Certifications Related to the Temp Job
Even if you don’t have the exact experience needed for the job, figure out what related skills you possess that match the position you’re applying for. For example, if you’re applying for a temp job at Strom Engineering, you may want to highlight industrial and warehouse experience, such as:
- Equipment and machinery experience
- Assembly and manufacturing experience
- Welding and certification skills
- Forklift and equipment operating licenses
- Quality control and inspection experience
- Leadership and supervisory skills
- OSHA training and technical certifications
If you don’t have any experience yet, that’s okay too. Look into your education and see if any of the classes you took have overlapping skills and education. For example, if you took a robotics or woodworking class, say so. If you worked in a grocery store handling warehousing and restocking, mention it. Any potential skill overlap helps when you don’t have a ton of starting experience.
4. Keep Your Resume Simple, Organized, and Easy to Read
One of the number one tips for keeping your resume front of mind is to ensure it’s easily readable. The number one thing to know is that hiring managers and recruiters will skim your resume when they have a lot to sort through. To stand out, make sure your greatest assets are highlighted front and center without a bunch of content and clutter hiding it.
Some of the best tips we recommend to do this include:
- Utilizing white space to your advantage
- Simplifying to get your point across quickly
- Organizing content in reverse chronological order
- Highlight important information concisely
5. Use a Resume Template and/or AI
Using a resume template is the best way to format correctly and get all the important information in one place in a readable way. Your resume does two things: it gives a snapshot of your experience and shows that you read directions. Beyond that, it doesn’t have to be much more complicated, so a resume template is a perfect cheat to get your foot in the door.
Canva is a great option for building a resume off a template. You can also use an AI tool like ChatGPT to draft a resume.
If you choose to take the AI route, start by uploading the job description and/or job posting. Then, enter your work experience, applicable skills, education and certifications, and any other information that makes sense for the role. Finally, use this prompt:
“Using only the information I provided, create a resume that prioritizes my most relevant job skills. Use clear, concise information to make it easily scannable. Naturally incorporate relevant job and industry terminology from the job description if it accurately reflects my experience. Emphasize relevant technical skills, certifications, equipment experience, and measurable accomplishments to show I’d be a good fit for the position. Ensure everything is written with a simple, professional format that sounds like me. Do not invent, exaggerate, or assume any skills, qualifications, responsibilities, or accomplishments that I haven’t provided. Ask questions if anything is missing before creating the final resume.”
After getting a response, the most important part is to look over the resume. Remember that AI often makes mistakes and can add information that’s not true, but it helps to get started.
Commonly Asked Questions When Writing Your Resume
If you’ve never written a resume before or you simply need some pointers, you may have a few initial questions. Our job applicants often have similar questions, including:
How do I list temporary work on a resume?
Temporary work is listed just like any other job, but it helps to mark them as “temporary” or “contract.” Otherwise, hiring teams may wonder why you stayed such a short time at certain jobs and have questions. Being up front about the type of work helps better explain your work history and can make your resume look even better when you’re learning a variety of skills within different temp positions.
How do I get my resume to stand out?
The best way to get your resume to stand out is to highlight your relevant work experience in reverse chronological order, keep everything neat and organized, and ensure there’s white space without content being too wordy so everything is easily scannable.
What if I don’t have a lot of work experience?
If you don’t have a ton of work experience, start with your highest level of education followed by relevant coursework, volunteer positions you’ve had, and career goals. Even if you don’t have the exact job knowledge required for the job, show how you possess certain skills related to it and show how they apply.
For example, if you’re trying to get a temp position in a warehouse but you just graduated high school, consider various classes or unofficial jobs you’ve had where your skills are applicable. Maybe you helped an uncle or family friend with their business growing up. Maybe you assisted a coach or teacher in school. Maybe you were part of a school club where you showed leadership skills and growth in your position. The key is taking the skills you have and showing the employer how they transfer over. If you already think you can do the job, try to show why with supporting facts.
Do I need to list every job I’ve had?
No. Only list the most relevant jobs unless you have very little work experience. Ideally, your resume should only fill a page with limited experience, up to two pages with a stronger work history. Typically, however, only the most recent 10 to 15 years of job experience is relevant. If a job lists a specific amount of work experience, you can also try to mirror that. So if a job asks for 8 years of experience, list experience for the last 8 years.
What if English is my second language?
You can use an AI tool like ChatGPT to review your resume for proficiency. Try this prompt after completing your resume:
“Review the attached resume for language and flow. My primary language is [insert language here]. This resume needs to read like it was written by someone whose primary language is English.”
Do I have to write a different resume for each job I apply for?
Not usually. Most people have one generic resume that they might tweak slightly for different positions if they are in different industries and other work history needs to be mentioned. Overall though, it’s easy enough to submit the same resume if it makes sense for the job. If the industry or job changes enough, it could be worth changing some more things before submitting it.
Submit Your Resume for Your Next Temp Position
Writing a resume can be difficult, but following these tips on how to write a resume for temp jobs will help make it easier. Once you’re ready to get started, Strom Engineering takes the hard work out of finding your next temp job. Just upload your resume to our online portal, and we’ll match you to open jobs. If you’re a match for any openings, we’ll be in touch.
Strom Engineering is a national staffing and recruitment agency, with a particular focus on manufacturing, engineering, assembly, and other trade positions. We match skilled candidates to temporary or project staffing positions. Learn more about how it works and check out our case studies for more information.