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[Jack_Bread]

I usually go with
2 miners
a woodcutter
a carpenter/mason
a craftsdwarf
a farmer
and a trader.
I use embark profiles, so I hardly ever look at the items/animals screen, but I'm pretty sure I usually have 2 cats, a cage(to cage kittens), 2 picks, an axe, and an anvil.

[Quantum Toast]

I've not got round to trying it myself, but I've heard that spending points on mining skill isn't really necessary; it levels pretty quickly, so as long as you still bring picks and enable the labour, the only real loss is that mining's slower early on and you'll have a bit less stone.

[sono]

Why should anyone invest points into woodcutting? That makes almost as much sense as bringing an animal caretaker.

Invest in skills that are either hard to learn and become important later on, or are useful in the early game.

(Armor/Weaponsmithing, Masonry, Carpentry, Craftsdwarfs, Siege Engineering, etc.. would be a generic list, possibly forgot some)

PS: It makes sense to train Farmers, since the labour is very time intensive when done unskilled.

[darthbob88]

Why should anyone invest points into woodcutting? That makes almost as much sense as bringing an animal caretaker.

Invest in skills that are either hard to learn and become important later on, or are useful in the early game.

(Armor/Weaponsmithing, Masonry, Carpentry, Craftsdwarfs, Siege Engineering, etc.. would be a generic list, possibly forgot some)

PS: It makes sense to train Farmers, since the labour is very time intensive when done unskilled.

Agreed, and herbalism could probably be added to that list; I only use it in the early game, to get above-ground plants and seeds, and later to keep my farmers busy de-shrubbing the world.
Also, by my calculations, assuming all the outputs get melted down for 1/2 bar each, it would take a bare minimum of 60 bars of metal to reach proficient in either weapon- or armour-smithing.

[Dwarf fort 27]

why bring a trader? i usually just turn on Anyone may trade

[darkflagrance]

^ I usually give someone novice Appraiser, because the first caravans might not bring enough goods to allow someone to level up sufficiently. It's only skill point anyway.

[Porpoisepower]

I only train an appraiser, all other skills level quickly enough that you won't have any problems(unlike the 2d version where leveling is a bit slower.)

After I arrive on site I enable 
1 Miner will quickly become legendary,
1 Grower will feed a fortress
1 Brewer, sometimes part time cook
1 Mechanic
1 Mason
1 Carpenter/Wood Cutter

I'll also turn on architect for my broker, to give him something todo between merchants.

[Sutremaine]

...so as long as you still bring picks and enable the labour, the only real loss is that mining's slower early on and you'll have a bit less stone.

There is an early skill level at which dwarves become visibly faster diggers; I think it's Skilled but I haven't played in ages (should have a new laptop by the end of the day though -- finally). It's worth throwing a few levels of Miner on someone if you want or need to get underground and organised ASAP, but Proficient is overkill.

[Doro]

usually i have
2x miners
carpenter / woodcutter / axe dwarf
hunter or fisherdwarf... usually hunter for more military power
crafter (novice in bonecarving, woodcrafter and stonecrafter)
farmer / brewer
trader

and when first immigrants come, i usually order some peasants to be mechanics and metalsmiths if there didnt come already one

[Grax]

Why bring miners when you can get the skill directly in the place?

This is my usual profile:
   [SKILL:1:FORGE_WEAPON:5]
   [SKILL:1:DESIGNBUILDING:5]
   [SKILL:2:FORGE_ARMOR:5]
   [SKILL:2:FORGE_FURNITURE:5]
   [SKILL:3:LEATHERWORK:5]
   [SKILL:3:DYER:5]
   [SKILL:4:CLOTHESMAKING:5]
   [SKILL:4:CUTGEM:5]
   [SKILL:5:STONECRAFT:5]
   [SKILL:5:BONECARVE:5]
   [SKILL:6:METALCRAFT:5]
   [SKILL:6:MECHANICS:5]
   [SKILL:7:ENCRUSTGEM:5]
   [SKILL:7:JUDGING_INTENT:1]
   [SKILL:7:APPRAISAL:1]
   [SKILL:7:ORGANIZATION:1]
   [SKILL:7:RECORD_KEEPING:1]
   [SKILL:7:PACIFY:1]

Plus anvil, two picks and some seeds and cats.

[Shades]

Why bring miners when you can get the skill directly in the place?

I tend to agree with that, it's been a long time since I took mining as a starting skill

Plus anvil, two picks and some seeds and cats.

I tend towards 6 picks (the only dwarf that doesn't help out with early mining is my farmer type), but I rarely start full scale mining of ores until after the first wave of migrants when I switch to dedicated miners.

[Kav]

Mine start depends on my mood. Sometimes I bring metal crafters, military dwarfs, glassblowers, or maybe even 7 picks with extra food and just have at it.

Am I the only one that likes to bring a leatherworker? I prefer to get some decent leather armor out for the first immigrant wave, and I need leather bags for farming.

When I'm feeling extra dwarfy I bring no tools, just an anvil, stone for building the furnaces, copper nuggets, some cassiterite, and only the wagon for wood. Not every expedition starts out in the middle of an antman colony next to a troglodyte camp surrounded by naked mole dogs. I Gotta have my fun somehow.

[Grax]

leather armor out OF the first immigrant wave

That's right. ;-)

[Kav]

Then you'd eat them and gather their bones wouldn't you? Damn dirty elf. 

[dakenho]

I go between 2 builds
1 minner
1 mason/mechanic
1 carpetner
1 cutter
1 fisher dwarf
1 clean/appraiser/cook/brewer
1 fisher dwarf

I usually do not bring an anvil, if you are prodcutive you should be able to get enough cloth or crafts made before the second visit from the mountain homes to buy one.  this also allows you to start with 2 dogs. 2 cats and 2 cows and plenty of food/booze/+ 30 plump helmet spawn/30 pig tail seed/30 cave wheat seeds/ and 30 dimple cup seeds and 6 mining picks.  when you start your fisher goes out and collects additional food your other 6 dwarfs can go mine out your initial fortress areas.  once done set your cutter to cut wood, your carpenter to make beds/chests/barrels/bins and your mason to make cabinets and doors/flood gates and mechanisms use a combination of flood gates and doors to do your farm.  its a pretty solid build and the points you gain from not bringing and anvil really helps (not recommended in orc mod and as orcs can mess up trade a little).

my option 2 is the same thing but with an anvil and no specialty dwarfs (except the appraiser) and minus the cows but with 6-7 war dogs.  which works better on dangerous maps or modded versions of DF