Skip to content

Resume structure research method

See the proposed inputs, sampling rules, exclusions, privacy safeguards, and reporting limits for resume structure research method. No aggregate claim is published until the required evidence and review threshold is met.

Methodology explains a preparation signal; it does not turn the result into a hiring prediction.

What a resume structure must make easy to verify

Use O*NET and NCS to define role-relevant work categories. Measure section order or length only from a documented resume corpus, separated by language and role family.

Which structure helps a reader find identity, role scope, evidence, and chronology without hiding important context?

Verified public facts

31.0Database release2026-08-27

O*NET 31.0 organizes worker and job information across skills, knowledge, abilities, tasks, work activities, work context, occupations, and related domains.

How to use it
A defensible vocabulary for role requirements and work evidence categories.
What this data cannot establish
That every task or skill applies to a particular opening or candidate.
2026-08-27

The O*NET Data Collection Program states that the database is updated quarterly, with a primary update in the third quarter.

How to use it
Displaying a source version and review date on occupation-based pages.
What this data cannot establish
That an individual occupation was changed in every release.
2026-08-27

Korea’s NCS public data describes work through the competency units required to perform it, providing a Korean reference alongside occupation data built for the U.S. labour market.

How to use it
Korean role and competency framing without translating U.S. occupation labels literally.
What this data cannot establish
A vacancy count, hiring trend, salary, or employer-specific requirement.

How the data is handled

  1. Map work before sections

    Use occupation tasks and competency units to define what evidence a role may need, then inspect where the resume places it.

  2. Preserve language and role

    Report structure patterns separately by language, career stage, and role family instead of presenting one universal template.

Definitions that travel with the result

Required context
The role, organisation, dates, ownership, work performed, and observable outcome needed to understand a claim.
Section presence
Whether a clearly labelled section exists. It does not measure the quality or truth of its contents.

Results that still require observed data

Observed resume structure

Which sections appear, in what order, for a defined language and role family?

Awaiting observed data
Required result fields
  • Source URL

    The exact page or record used for the observation.

    string · required
  • Observed at

    The date Refresh retrieved or checked the record.

    date · required
  • Language

    The language of the source document or text sample.

    string · required
  • Occupation code

    The source taxonomy code, not a label inferred from a job title.

    string · required
  • Unit of analysis

    What one counted record represents, such as one resume, posting, filing, or review.

    string · required
  • Category

    A documented category with a stable definition.

    string · required
  • Count

    The numerator after deduplication and exclusions.

    number · required
  • Denominator

    The eligible records used to calculate a share or rate.

    number · required
  • Metric definition

    The exact inclusion, exclusion, and calculation rule.

    string · required
Publish only when
Publish only after duplicate documents, inaccessible files, and mixed-language records are handled by a written rule.
Awaiting observed data
No structure percentage is shown until a dated, deduplicated resume corpus is available.

What this data cannot establish

  • O*NET and NCS can define work categories, but neither prescribes one correct resume section order.
  • A public-resume corpus is self-selected and cannot represent every applicant or hiring market.

How to use it

  • Use observed patterns to check findability, not to copy one section order blindly.

Official data sources

  • O*NET DatabaseU.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration2026-08-27
    Coverage
    Worker and job characteristics, including occupations, tasks, work activities, skills, knowledge, and work context.
    Boundary
    O*NET describes occupations in the U.S. economy. It does not reproduce one employer’s job description or prove that a candidate has a skill.
  • Korea National Competency Standards dataHuman Resources Development Service of Korea2026-08-27
    Coverage
    Korean competency standards and competency-unit information used to describe work by the capabilities required to perform it.
    Boundary
    NCS is a competency standard, not a live count of vacancies, resumes, interviews, or hiring outcomes.

Frequently asked questions

Read the result with its method and limits.

Use the relevant methodology before deciding which finding to act on.