What Is A Resume Profile And What Should You Include
A resume profile, or professional profile, is a short summary on your resume describing your goals, ambitions, and your most relevant qualifications pertinent to the job you are applying for. You should write the resume profile in the top section of your resume. A resume profile can take the form of a resume summary, resume objective, or summary of qualifications.
Scroll past the examples to learn how to write your own.
Look To The Job Description For Clues
Almost all job descriptions will have a Requirements section, and that is a great place to start if youre wondering what to put in your resume title. Of course, youll probably be applying to many different jobs with this one resume profile, so its important not to be so specific that your profile title no longer makes sense. Look at the requirements for a variety of jobs youd like to apply for, and build a resume profile title that includes the most important requirements from each.
How To Write An About Me Section In Your Resume
Your resume is your opportunity to present yourself as the most qualified candidate for the position for which you are applying. Including an about me section in your resume can help you stand out as a candidate hiring managers or recruiters want to learn more about, which can help you get an interview. In this article, we discuss what an about me section in a resume entails, the benefits of including an about me section and examples of how to write one.
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Putting It All Together
Ultimately, creating a winning resume profile is fairly simple. Use the tips above to ensure yours hits the mark. That way, your first impression on the hiring manager will be a strong one.
Good luck!
Co-Founder and CEO of TheInterviewGuys.com. Mike is a job interview and career expert and the head writer at TheInterviewGuys.com.
His advice and insights have been shared and featured by publications such as Forbes, Entrepreneur, CNBC and more as well as educational institutions such as the University of Michigan, Penn State, Northeastern and others.
Learn more about The Interview Guys on our About Us page.
About The Author
Mike Simpson
Co-Founder and CEO of TheInterviewGuys.com. Mike is a job interview and career expert and the head writer at TheInterviewGuys.com.His advice and insights have been shared and featured by publications such as Forbes, Entrepreneur, CNBC and more as well as educational institutions such as the University of Michigan, Penn State, Northeastern and others.Learn more about The Interview Guys on our About Us page.
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What Is An About Me Section In A Resume
An about me section is a brief segment in your resume that highlights who you are as a professional, describes your greatest strengths and showcases your greatest professional accomplishments. The about me section in a resume should briefly provide the reader with an answer to the question, Why should we hire you? An about me section should include several elements:
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Your professional title. Your about me section should describe who you are as a professional. Including your current job title. It quickly informs the reader of your level of professional experience.
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Relevant skills and accomplishments. Your about me section should also highlight the skills relevant to the position you are applying for that are your greatest strengths. It should include an example of a professional accomplishment that highlights those strengths.
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Your career goals. Your about me section should also make it clear what the purpose of your resume is. This can include both short- and long-term goals.
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How To Write A Professional Summary If Youre Changing Careers
As a career changer, try to show how your past experience relates to the position youre applying for or how it can help your future employer grow.
Are you a software developer who wants to work with a new programming language, lets say Python? You can mention how youve already developed 7 mobile apps using JavaScript and HTML. Even something as small as completing a Python online course on CodeAcademy can work wonders.
But if you still feel like you dont have any relevant job experience, you consider writing a resume objective instead. Instead of past achievements and experiences, it highlights your transferable skills and motivation. Moreover, it explains why you seek to switch to a different industry.
Heres an example of a professional summary for someone changing careers:
- Certified Human Resources Associate aiming to leverage an extensive background in experience in digital marketing to develop a career in human resources.
- Knowledge of multiple HR software programs, such as Bamboo HR and Zenefits.
- Results-oriented and self-driven professional with exceptional communication and leadership skills, and the ability to adapt quickly to change.
- Looking for a human resources-related job within a company that offers flexibility and opportunity to grow both personally and professionally.
Resume Profile Vs Resume Objective
Stating an objective on your resume is a way to convince employers that you know what you want in a job, whereas a profile explains what you have to offer the employer and can help sell your candidacy.
Another option is to not use either and simply start your resume with your most recent work experience but this sacrifices a key opportunity to incorporate the keyword phrases that are vital if your resume is to be ranked highly by applicant tracking systems.
It also makes a hiring manager have to work harder instead of having a highlighted summary of your qualifications for the job top and center, he or she would have to try to ascertain from the Experience section whether you have the skill set required.
Most employers prefer resume profiles to resume objectives, but it’s up to you to decide which works best for your resume considering your work experience, skills, the level of the position, and the qualifications for the job for which you are applying.
For example, while an objective might state, “Experienced English teacher seeking position at independent school,” a profile would say, English teacher with 10 years of experience in independent school systems. Success in developing creative teaching strategies to achieve passing grade levels on statewide exams.” Unlike the objective, the profile answers the question, “What can this applicant offer the employer?”
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How Qualified Are You For This Position
If you have related work experience, place that at the top and include your job title. If you dont, then use examples from your academic career and show how these examples qualify you beyond a person with no experience at all. For instance, if you are applying for a job as an editor at the local newspaper, your first bullet could read something like the following,
- Recent University of Nevada graduate & senior editor for the University Tribune, where I compiled three years of experience editing, writing and formatting journal articles for publication
Proofread Your Resume And Finish Strong
Once youve written your resume and cover letter, youre in pretty good shape to send out that first application. However, youre not quite done yet.
The most important step before sending out any resume is to read it over and make sure that there are no issues that could get your application discarded.
To help make that process easier, heres a checklist you can go through to make sure your resume is looking spotless:
The Resume Genius Resume Checklist
Is your contact information accurate?
Does your resume NOT include details like headshots or sensitive personal information?
Does your resume fit on one page ?
Is your information easy to read ?
Is the design of your resume appropriate for the position youre applying for?
Did you include all relevant sections on your resume?
Did you include quantified achievements in your work experience section?
Does your resume address the requirements stated in the job ad?
Is your resume free of typos and grammatical errors?
Is all of your information clearly formatted and professional?
Feel free to use our on-page checklist, or and begin reviewing your resume.
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Dont Worry Too Much About Gaps
One of the questions that Lees and Heifetz get asked regularly is how to account for gaps in a resume, perhaps when you werent working or took time off to care for a family member. If you were doing something during that time that might be relevant to the job, you can include it. Or you might consider explaining the gap in your cover letter, as long as you have a brief, positive explanation. However, the good news is that in todays job market, hiring professionals are much more forgiving of gaps. In a recent survey, 87% of hiring managers said that they no longer see candidates being unemployed or having an employment gap as a red flag.
Rein In The Buzzwords
Theres absolutely no harm in saying youre a highly motivated individual or that you have extensive knowledge in x, y and z. However, plug your personal profile with too many buzzwords is off-putting and reduces the value of what youre saying, overall.
Personal profiles for your CV arent that difficult to write, especially if youre a graduate. Just follow our simple structure, and youll have crafted the perfect intro to your CV in no time.
About the author: Laura Slingo is Digital Copywriter for the UKs leading job board, CV-Library. For more expert advice on job searches, careers and the workplace, visit their Career Advice pages.
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Early Management It Professional
Committed IT supervisor with 5 years of experience overseeing 6-person tech team. Skilled at coaching and performance management, and familiar with DevOps and Agile methodologies. Implemented cloud-based solution that resulted in a $5,000 year-over-year cost savings. Certified ScrumMaster and PMI Agile Certified Practitioner .
Resume Summary Vs Objective
While a resume summary will highlight a few important experiences and skills youve acquired, a resume objective is a statement of your career goals. You might decide to include one or the other, or both. Your choice may depend on the position, company or industry youre applying for as well as the complexity of your past experience.
A resume objective might be useful if you have limited work experience, like recent high school or college graduates. A resume summary is more appropriate if you have some work history and various skills and experiences worth highlighting.
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For example, a recent high school graduate applying for a nursing program may want to include a resume objective, while an experienced registered nurse should opt for a summary statement.
An objective statement for a recent graduate entering a nursing program might say:
Motivated nursing student seeking to develop more extensive experience working with elderly patients.
While the nurse with experience could write a summary that states:Attentive nurse practitioner with three years of experience effectively diagnosing patient illness and managing treatment.
As shown above, an objective statement will state what you hope to achieve while a summary statement will highlight your current accomplishments.
Image description
Resume summary vs. objective:A resume summary is a short description of your qualifications that explain why you’re a good fit for the role.
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What Is Included In A Resume Profile
A resume profile is typically several sentences or a short paragraph that summarizes an applicant’s goals and ambitions for his or her next job. It also highlights the candidate’s most relevant qualifications and skills for the position.
Profile sections can be titled Overview, Qualifications Profile, “Professional Summary,” or Qualifications Summary.
What Makes A Great Resume Profile
Alright, so you only have a tiny bit of time to catch a hiring managers attention. That means you need a stellar resume profile to entice them to give your resume some extra consideration.
Creating an outstanding resume profile means tapping on a few key points. Usually, you want to mention your:
- Amount of experience and job title, or recent relevant education
- Area of expertise
- Relevant skills
- Relevant achievements
You can also touch on your career goals if you can position them in the right way. While your goals are about, well, you, you need to cover them using an approach that aligns with the hiring managers needs. If you can do that, talking about your goals is an option here, too.
However, theres more to the equation than that. You also need to tailor the information to the position.
As with all parts of your resume, updating your resume profile to match the specific job you want to score is crucial. That way, the content is relevant to that particular hiring manager, increasing the odds that theyll find it enticing.
Its also smart to through some numbers in there. On a resume, numbers visually stand out, so they attract the eye. If you want to make sure your resume profile gets noticed, quantifying a couple of the details can help.
Finally, its important to keep in mind that brevity is your friend here. In most cases, you want to limit your resume profile to just a few sentences max.
MIKE’S TIP:
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Healthcare Sales Executive Resume Summary Example:
Turnaround & Ground Up Leadership
- Concept-to-execution strategies for untapped products, markets + solutions that yield 110% revenue growth
- Negotiates partnerships with leading distributors + hospitalsMedline to Centara + Novant Health to Mayo Clinic
- Revitalizes underperforming sales organizations via scalable, sustainable infrastructures emulated as best practice
- C-Level networks of clinical + supply chain leadership acquired during tenures with XXX, XXX and XXX
Why this resume summary is good:
This resumes summary examples strength lies in the detailed, unique information that has been included. By including revenue stats, names of past employers and partners, the reader right away sees that this person will bring to the role a strong networking ability with key players in his industry, and more importantly can build, grow and revitalize a sales organization, market or product.
By: Virginia Franco, Founder of Virginia Franco Resumes and Forbes contributor.
Arrange Your Contact Information
Now that you know the format youre going to use, its time to start your resume. First things first, employers need to know who you are and how to contact you.
List the following contact details in your resume header at the top of the page:
- Name
- Telephone number
- Email address
- Link to online portfolio
- LinkedIn profile
Traditionally, you would also include your mailing address on your resume. However, this is no longer mandatory because most job applications are sent via email.
Here are two examples of how you can format your contact information section:
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Why Include A Resume Profile
Because the job market is so competitive, its important to make every contact with your potential employer stand out in a positive way. Most often, the first impression you make with the hiring manager is through your resume.
Hiring managers may need to evaluate hundreds of resumes for each open position. Understandably, they do not have a ton of time to spend reading each resume carefully. By including a resume profile, you can grab their attention.
You can use this section to highlight the skills, experiences, and awards that make you the ideal candidate for the position.
It’s a nice way to make hiring managers want to learn more about what you can add to their company. Including a resume profile can help give your application an edge, increasing the likelihood that you’ll get the call for a first interview.
Marketing Manager Professional Summary Example:
Why this summary is good:
This resume summary stands out because it gets straight to the point. Through immediately introducing the number of years of experience the candidate has, the HR manager doesnt need to spend time adding up years. The candidate also jumps right into his or her strongest skill, provides a statistic, then gives additional skills.
By: Sarah Landrum, Founder of Punched Clocks, contributor at Entrepreneur.com and Forbes
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What Do Employers Expect From Your Resume Opening Statement
Sometimes it is useful to consider job seeking activity from the point of view of the end hiring managers. External recruiters are important people to impress, but it is the employers that will be making the ultimate hiring decision. They will be reading lots of resumes, so what would they want to read in your resume opening statement?
Recent College Graduate Or Entry
Recent magna cum laude animal sciences graduate with a focus on small animal care excited to bring passion and knowledge to a position with an animal shelter or animal-focused nonprofit and learn more about programs that protect animals from euthanasia. As president of the University of Georgia chapter of the Association of Shelter Veterinarians, planned, organized, advertised, and managed a fundraiser that brought in over $20,000 in donations to a local shelter while also placing 43 cats and dogs with adoptive families. Proud dog mom of two former shelter pets, Dakota and Miley .
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