"A functional-chronological resume would allow the person to list the knowledge, skills and abilities of the temp work without listing all of the temp assignments, Montgomery says. "The cover letter can explain that the resume reflects only the relevant skills and abilities, and/or some of the knowledge, skills and abilities were acquired through a variety of temporary assignments."

Professional resume writer Deb Dib agrees. "Here's an idea if there are a lot of temp jobs. It prevents the 'laundry list' look that can happen when there are rows and rows of jobs and dates. Also makes the resume more readable and understandable. Use a format that combines jobs by function," says Dib, who is president, of Advantage Resumes of New York. Dib offers this example:

Systems Design: Jobs through (list temp company or companies), including work as (list titles) with companies including (list companies). Fourteen months, 2000 to Present

Y2K Remediation: Jobs through (list temp company or companies), including work as (list titles) with companies including (list companies). Fifteen months, 1998 to 2000

Project Management: Jobs through (list temp company or companies), including work as (list titles) with companies including (list companies). Twenty months, 1998 to Present

(You can read more about functional resumes in our article, Should You Consider a Functional Resume?)

---

Describing how she set up her own resume, long-time temp Karen Hartman, who now works in career counseling, says: "I would list the different experiences that I had that I felt were marketable. I would list any (1) accomplishments with positive results, anything I did that was (2) above and beyond what was called for in my temp position, and any (3) new skills that I had learned. I would focus on the depth and breadth of my experiences to give a well-rounded idea of my future capabilities." Similarly, Jane Grogan of Career Match, Inc., advises her clients to compose "an accomplishment bullet for each company the person was assigned to."

Experienced temp Devorah Shoal makes a point of listing nationally recognised firms she's temped for.