How to Write a Resume for Today’s Job Market

In today’s competitive job market in Dubai, having a perfect resume is essential to stand out and secure a job. Whether you are an experienced professional or a fresh graduate, your resume needs to showcase your skills, experience, and potential in a way that impresses the recruiters in the UAE. Many applicants make the mistake of submitting improper resumes and complain about getting rejected. There is no rocket science to get a Dubai job. You need to put your experience, skills, and education in your resume in a way that impresses the recruiter. In the market, you will find several Dubai resume formats, but ATS-friendly Dubai CVs are the best. 

How to Write a Perfect Dubai Resume

Whether you are applying for a teacher’s job, a doctor’s job, a salesman’s job, or even a driver’s job you need to have a proper Dubai standard resume with you. Your UAE CV will decide whether you will get a job or not. Candidates can follow the instructions and detailed steps given below to write a perfect Dubai resume. 

Dubai Resume Format

UAE resumes must have personal information, a summary, work experience, educational qualification, and skills sections. You can add additional extra sections like volunteering experience and certificate section if you have any. Check the Dubai resume format given below. 

Section 1: Personal Information

The first section of your Dubai resume is the personal information. Begin with your full name, contact information (including a local UAE phone number), and professional email address.

Include your current location and visa status (if applicable).

• Your Full Name: Your complete name.
• Contact Info: Phone number and email ID.
• Nationality: Your current nationality.
• Your Age: Put your date of birth. This is common in the UAE.
• Date of birth: Some companies set an age range for applicants to particular positions.
• Driving license information: Many jobs in Dubai demand you to drive throughout the city or to other locations in the UAE.
• Visa status: Recruiters may ask for your visa status.
• Languages: You may also want to include any other languages you speak like English, Arabic, Urdu, etc.

Your marital status, Instagram page, Facebook page, etc are some of the things not to mention in your Dubai resume. 

Section 2: Professional Summary

This is an important section of your Dubai CV so you need to write it well. In your professional summary, you have to write about your year of experience, the industry where you worked, the skills you have, and what you bring to the table.

Your CV summary will function as both an introduction to your resume and a description of your qualifications. 

It should be 2 to 4 sentences with the following highlights:

• Your current job title and area of expertise
• How much experience do you have in this field
• Your main achievements
• Your most relevant skills
• How can you contribute to the company/department/team’s objectives?

Make sure to personalize your summary for each job application by adding the name of the organization and summarising the description of the open position.

Section 3: Work Experience 

This is the main section of your Dubai resume. You need to write your work experience very well so that recruiters find you skilled and professional.  Highlight your professional experience in reverse chronological order; that means put your current job experience first then previous and likewise. 

For every job, specify:

• Job title.
• Where did you work?
• How long did you work there?
• Your main responsibilities and accomplishments.
• Have you ever worked in the Gulf? Great! Make sure to mention so.

For every job experience write your responsibilities in five bullet points detailing your accomplishments. Highlight your accomplishments by using numbers, metrics, and milestones.

Quantify your achievements with specific metrics (e.g., increased sales by X%, managed a team of Y employees).

Also Read: How to Tailor Your Dubai Resume to a Job Description

Section 4: Educational Qualification

As per the UAE resume format, your educational qualification section should be after your job history. However, if you are a fresher and don’t have any work experience you can put your qualifications first. List your academic qualifications starting with the most recent.

• What degree did you get?
• Where did you study?
• When you have completed your degree.
• Also, let them know if you have completed any particular courses or training.

If you have studied for your degree from any of the top colleges in your country, likely, the Dubai recruiter doesn’t know that. So mention like- Oxford University London, the number 1 university in England.  

Section 5: Skills

The skills section of your Dubai CV is an excellent space to show the recruiter how you fit the requirements outlined in the job description. You can increase your chances of passing the ATS system by mentioning the skills smartly referring to the job description. Nowadays, gulf country recruiters focus on the skills of a candidate to make a hiring decision.

In the job description, you will see that the recruiter has mentioned the skills needed in the job duties and in the requirements. You need to smartly copy those skills and add them to your resume to showcase yourself as the no 1 candidate for the job.

What skills to add to the Dubai Resume

• Include at least a few keywords from the job description in your CV.
• Include unique skills that you believe are necessary for the position, and attempt to be creative in finding synonyms that no other candidate would use: this will help you stand out.
• Don’t copy and paste all of the job description skills into your CV: this will not be legitimate and will appear as if you were attempting to deceive the ATS. 
• Emphasize skills that are in demand in the Dubai job market (e.g., proficiency in Arabic, and project management certifications).

Also Read: How To Write Dubai CV As Per ATS System?

Section 6: Certificates 

If you have any professional certificates or educational certificates you can mention that in this part of your Dubai resume. If you don’t have any certificates you can skip this section. 

Tips for Writing a Successful Dubai Resume

Check out the important tips and tricks for writing a good Dubai CV given below. 

• Be Concise and Clear: Keep your resume brief (ideally 1-2 pages) and easy to read.
• Use a Professional Format: Stick to a clean and organized layout with clear headings and bullet points.
• Tailor Your Resume: Customize your UAE resume for each job application to highlight the most relevant skills and experiences.
• Highlight International Experience: If you have worked in multicultural environments or have experience relevant to the Middle East, emphasize this.
• Check Language and Tone: Use formal language and avoid slang or informal expressions in your Dubai CVs. Write your CV in English.
• Proofread: Ensure there are no grammatical errors or typos in your UAE resume. Use a spellchecker and proofread your CV thoroughly. 
• Career Gap: If you have a career gap justify it well. Don’t lie on your resume as UAE employers do background checks and you might face the Consequences of Lying on Your Dubai Resume.

Should a Dubai Resume have a photo or not?

Whether or not to include a photo on your CV is an important decision that is determined by the sort of job you are looking for. Previously, Dubai companies expected candidates to send a photo, but this practice is becoming less followed. We recommend not adding your photo in the Dubai resume to prevent biases.  Instead, offer a link to your LinkedIn page that will offer more details about your job profile and also include your photo if an employer wishes to see it. 

Also Read: Top 8 Reasons Why Dubai Employers Are Rejecting Your Resume

We hope that the above explanation will help you write a perfect Dubai resume for today’s UAE job market. If you are finding it difficult to write a Dubai-standard resume on your own, you can get assistance from your resume writing services. LearnwithFaiz resume writing services are the no 1 in Dubai. We offer ATS-friendly resumes that have helped several job seekers in getting a job in Dubai.