Resume for OFW jobs: how to write a resume for work abroad

A resume for work abroad is read differently from one for a job in Manila. The first reader is often a licensed recruitment agency, and the second is an employer in Riyadh, Dubai, Doha, Hong Kong, Singapore or Taipei who has never heard of your last company. Both want to know the same things before they read anything else: can you do the job, do you have a passport, and when can you leave.

This guide covers the resume format for OFW applicants: the details to put at the top, what to cut from a local resume, and how to write your experience for the main types of overseas jobs.

What agencies and foreign employers check first

1. The job you are applying for, written as the title at the top, such as “Domestic Helper”, “Production Operator” or “Staff Nurse”.
2. Nationality: “Filipino”.
3. Passport: whether you have a valid passport and until when, such as “Passport valid until 2031”. Never write the passport number.
4. Availability: “Available to deploy immediately” or your notice period.
5. Overseas experience: the country and years, if you have worked abroad before.
6. Contact: a +63 mobile number on WhatsApp or Viber, and an email address you check daily.

Put these in a short block under your name. An agency screening many applications for one job order checks these lines first.

The format

Use a reverse chronological resume on A4, which is the standard paper size in most destination countries. Keep it to one page for household and entry-level jobs and two pages for skilled and professional roles. The sections run: header and personal details, summary, work experience, education, certificates and licenses, skills and languages.

Check that the agency is licensed before you send your documents. The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) publishes the list of licensed recruitment agencies on its website.

Photo

A photo is expected for most OFW applications, especially household, hospitality and Gulf jobs. Use a recent photo in plain, neat clothes against a white or light background, looking at the camera. Some agencies ask for a full-body photo for household jobs; send it as a separate file when they ask, not on the resume.

What to cut from a local resume

• Passport, SSS, TIN, PhilHealth and Pag-IBIG numbers. Give them to the agency only when it processes your application.
• A long list of character references. Write “References available on request”.
• Religion, unless the job ad asks for it.
• Height and weight, unless the job ad asks for them, as some security and hospitality jobs do.
• Old objectives such as “To work in a company where I can grow”. Name the job instead.

Write experience that travels

An employer abroad does not know your last company. Add a short line on what it does and how big it is, such as “Electronics manufacturer, 2,000 staff, Laguna”. Then list what you did with numbers where you can: how many people you cared for, how many units you inspected per shift, how many beds on your ward.

Examples by job type

Domestic helper and caregiver

List each employer by city and country, with the family size and the ages of children or elderly people you cared for. “Cared for two children aged 3 and 6 and an elderly grandmother; cooked daily meals; managed household of five” is far stronger than “household chores”. Add cooking styles you know, such as Filipino, Chinese or Arabic, and your TESDA certificates such as Caregiving NC II.

Factory and production worker

Name the product and the machines: “Operated SMT and reflow lines for automotive circuit boards; kept defect rate under target for 11 months”. Mention safety training, 5S or quality systems you worked under, and whether you are used to shift work.

Nurses and healthcare workers

Give your PRC license and year, your ward or unit, the number of beds and your years of experience in each. Add any destination license or exam you have passed or started, such as a DHA, DOH or MOHAP license for the UAE, SCFHS classification for Saudi Arabia, or the NCLEX for the US. Hospital accreditation such as JCI is worth one line.

Skilled trades

Welders, electricians, drivers and technicians should list the TESDA certificate and level, such as Shielded Metal Arc Welding NC II, the equipment they use, and any work on large projects. Drivers heading to the Gulf should list their license type and any Gulf driving license they held before.

Office, hospitality and BPO

Use a standard professional resume with a summary and achievement bullets. BPO experience with foreign clients is valued abroad, so name the country of the account and the results, such as call quality or customer satisfaction scores.

Going to the Gulf?

For the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait, recruiters also look for a visa line, such as “Requires employment visa”, and any previous Gulf experience in your summary. The country guides go into more detail.