Getting a job may be hard, but creating a resume is easier with the right template-based apps for the iPad.

We have reviewed online resume building solution Enthuse.me before, and you might also want to turn your LinkedIn profile into a neat looking resume too. iPad users can also make use of a few great apps that can give your resume or CV the professional edge without the need for lots of time or impressive layout skills.

Shine [No Longer Available]

When I first came across Shine while browsing in the App Store, I was drawn to how it makes resumes and CVs look like stylish infographics. Shine's professionally designed templates may not be appropriate for all job prospects, but it should make your resume or CV stand out in the stack of other resumes.

Shine

Each template consists of five sections in which you provide input:

  • Basic Information: job title, location, email address, website
  • About Me: summary introduction of who you are
  • History and Milestones: previous jobs, education and achievements
  • Facts and Figures: your job skills and short statistical information
  • Personal Attributes: a list words to describe your personality

Shine makes it easy to move between sections and input minimal data without the need for an external iPad keyboard.

Shine data

The data you enter is meant to be kept short so that your resume can easily be browsed and read. Whatever data you supply automatically fits all four layouts.

Shine_resume_sample

Because this data needs to fit the style of Shine templates, there's no way to exclude sections or required data from of the layouts, and nor can sections be moved around. Thus, you need to decide if the style and approach of Shine is appropriate for your job hunting needs.

Shine_resume_2

As you might expect, Shine resumes can be shared via email, to Facebook and Twitter in the form of a JPG file, or sent directly to a printer.

Shine sharing

Shine advertises additional layouts for in-app purchase, but as of this review they are not available. It would be very useful if Shine CVs could be exported into HTML format, which would make them more attractive and useful online than in PDF format.

Shine may not fit the needs of every job hunter, but it certainly provides a new approach to resume document layout. It would difficult for an employer to overlook a Shine resume in an email as they're so eye-catching.

Resume Builder Pro [No Longer Available]

Resume Builder Pro provides the traditional resume layout approach, requiring input including your basic personal information, work history, education, job skills, and references.

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As with Shine, Resume enables you to focus more on the content of your resume, while it takes care of all the formatting. You can rearrange sections and anything left blank won't appear in your document.

Overview

Bulleted data is created by adding sections of information. For most sections of the resume builder, you can provide as much information as you need to.

Information

Resume only provides one layout template, but it includes eight different font styles, including .RTF and .DOCX (Word).

Resume_builder_pro

A resume can be exported in PDF format via email, to Dropbox, copied to the clipboard, or sent straight to a printer. It doesn't include any option to export directly to other iOS apps. You can also create multiple resumes, but unfortunately the app doesn't allow you to duplicate a resume and make changes to the data.

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Pages ($9.99)

If you want more control over the content and layout of your resume, the latest version of Pages for the iPad, as well Pages for Mac, includes six professionally designed classic, business, and informal templates, as well as matching cover letters— held over from the previous version of Pages for iOS. There are no sample CV templates in the collection, but the resume templates can be revised for that purpose.

Pages_templates

Like its Mac cousin, Pages templates provide more control over the appearance of your resume document, and though the font styles and sizes can be changed, Apple used elegant, clean styles for their templates. Naturally, you can even drop in a profile photo if you want, and Pages documents can be exported in PDF, Word, and ePub formats, or sent to a printer.

Pages

If you don't have prior experience with Pages, it might be more challenging to use than Shine or Resume Builder Pro. However, the price you pay for Pages also provides you with a full word processor.

No More Formatting

Apps like Shine, Resume Builder Pro and Pages take care of document formatting for you, so you can focus on your personal content. Each has its own benefit, so let us know which works for you.

Did you get a job using a resume you created using an app? Do you trust these apps with your job prospects? Add your thoughts below.