What should the summary of my resume include

When hiring managers are reading through dozens, even hundreds, of resumes, they often skim through each and miss information. By beginning with a statement that concisely describes why you are qualified, you are more likely to get a closer look. However, just writing a resume summary statement does not guarantee that employers will be interested in your resume. You need to make sure your resume summary statement concisely demonstrates why you are an ideal candidate for the specific job and company.

A resume summary is sometimes referred to as an executive summary, especially for upper-level positions. An executive resume summary statement is even more critical for advanced positions since prospective employers will be primarily focusing on and comparing the track record of success that candidates have developed in similar roles.

A resume summary statement is not the same as a resume objective. However, a resume objective statement tends to focus more on your own interests as the job seeker—it emphasizes what you are looking for in a job or company.

A resume summary statement, on the other hand, communicates what you can bring to the table in the targeted role. Your summary statement is often the first item read on a resume, so you want to get to the point: why should a company hire you? In about one to four sentences, highlight your most relevant strengths, skillset , and core competencies that are unique to you as a candidate. In particular, demonstrate how you would add value to the company.

Have you saved money for a company in the past? Did you streamline an administrative process? Include skills and experiences that will impress the employer, using specific percentages, numbers, or dollar amounts to quantify your achievements. Be sure to tailor your resume summary to the specific job listing. Look at the listing, and try to incorporate keywords from the listing in your resume summary. This will help the employer see how you are a good fit for the job.

Try to use action words to demonstrate your achievements. The summary statement should be approximately two to four lines and speak to your professional background only. Do not address any outstanding circumstances employment gaps , change of career, personal experiences, etc. The key to writing the best resume summary is being specific. It even kind of follows the formula laid out several paragraphs above.

So why is it a bad resume example? Second, if this was the only resume summary the recruiter would have to read, they could even invite you for an interview. An average job offer attracts about 30 resumes according to Jobvite , so the only reaction this resume summary would get is a smirk. Pro Tip: When writing your resume summary for the US employers drop all personal pronouns.

This way it will be much easier for you to cherry-pick all the most important details you need to include in a well-written resume summary statement. Apart from a summary, there are quite a few more things to add to your resume to boost your chances of getting hired. Resume summary statements on first job resumes are no longer considered a mistake. Passionate analyst with a strong background in management and communication. Seeking to improve the grasp of key business indicators for ABC Inc.

As a business writer for DEF Inc. For entry-level candidates, the distinction between a summary and an objective may become somewhat blurry. Remember: a career summary focuses on your relevant professional experience whereas a career objective highlights your skills. Consider things like:. Learn how to write an internship resume from our dedicated guide. Or if you need more detailed advice on writing a resume for a junior position, head straight to our guide: Entry-Level Resume: Sample and Complete Guide.

Previous 3-month internship experience with data-driven outreach marketing. Just like you see in the example above. Apart from your internship experience, the resume summary for students can mention such things as your:. Passionate about developing new businesses and planning marketing strategies. Seeks to boost and redefine ABC Inc.

At DEF Inc. At GHI Inc. For more details on writing a business executive resume, go to Executive Resume: Sample and Complete Guide. Developed a total of 15 mobile and web apps. Contributed to developing back-end code for over 30 e-commerce websites. The sample above comes from a part-time freelance software engineer who wants to start a full-time career as a programmer in a large organization. For more details on writing a job-winning career-change resume, go to Career Change Resume: Sample and Complete Guide.

Each resume summary example comes with a link to an in-depth resume writing guide for this very job title. Dedicated senior administrative assistant with over 7 years of professional experience. Organized travel plans and schedules of 5 senior executives whilst doing general office admin duties. Eager to help ABC Inc. Also, skilled in accounting and ready to assist in bookkeeping. Devised and implemented 3 office initiatives that helped the company save over USD 10, a year. Skilled at dealing with sensitive situations and keen to support ABC Inc.

Dependable and devoted executive assistant with over 7 years of professional experience. Keen to support ABC Inc. Also, saved USD K a year by redesigning and implementing a modernized call system. Dynamic office manager with over 7 years of professional experience. Seeks to leverage top-notch managerial and organizational skills to boost efficiency at ABC Inc.

Managed a team of 5 office assistants in a high-volume retail business. Energetic and optimistic customer service representative with over 3 years of professional experience assisting customers in solving complex issues. You likely have way more to say here than you can get on one page anyway especially if you really think broadly about what the Hiring Manager is looking for and what you've accomplished that matches up , so you'll need the room!

Pay attention to proof-points and keywords; and focus on succinct, punchy bullet points - making sure the right things jump off the page to the Hiring Manager. If you do this, then a summary that just re-iterates these is unnecessary Craft a thoughtful summary statement more on this in a later post but include it as part of the Cover Letter.

How to take action now! An easy one today! If you have a Summary statement on your resume, take it off - save it and likely refine it - more to come on this!

A resume summary statement is often referred to by other names, including:. As hiring managers may read through hundreds of resumes in a week, a strong resume summary section can be just what it needs to stand out from the pack. Here are nine examples of real resume summaries to use as a guideline when writing your own.

Resume summaries are ideal for job seekers who have many years of work experience in the same field and will be continuing in that field , as they help organize and focus years of relevant job experience. On the other hand, resume summary statements are not always ideal for job seekers with little experience or notable gaps in their resumes. If you have been working in the same field for less than 10 years, it might serve your resume best to forego the summary statement and use the extra space to expand your work experience.

The resume objective statement is likely the introductory statement you remember using in decades past. The traditional objective statement has become obsolete because it takes up space without offering anything truly valuable to the resume.