Did you know that hiring managers only spend seconds glancing at your resume? That’s why you need a resume summary.

A resume summary is a quick way to show your skills and achievements to hiring managers. This makes it easier for them to see why you’re the right fit for the job.

In this article, we’ll show you how to write an attention-grabbing summary. Plus, we’ll provide you with plenty of resume summary examples to help inspire you.

What is a professional resume summary?

A professional resume summary is a brief statement at the top of your resume that highlights your professional skills, experience, and achievements.

Your summary is like an elevator pitch — a quick, punchy way to say “Here’s what I can do.”

“Hiring managers are not reading the entire resume on the first pass,” says resume expert Jessica H. Hernandez. “They’re going to scan it for position titles, employment dates, keywords, and metrics that stand out before deciding to read it thoroughly.” 

Your resume summary is the perfect way to introduce yourself to the hiring manager and encourage them to read more.

Where does your resume summary go? Right under your contact information. If you’re using a resume headline as well, your summary should go right after that.

Resume summary example

When to use a resume summary

We highly recommend using a resume summary in the following situations:

  • When you have lots of relevant experience: A summary quickly shows hiring managers your rich career history and why you’re a great fit.
  • When you possess unique skills or achievements: Adding these to your summary can help you stand out from other candidates.
  • When you want to incorporate relevant keywords: The summary is a great place to include keywords that hiring managers will be searching for. (See “How to Tailor Your Resume Summary” further down).

Professional resume summary example

This resume summary is effective because it highlights the candidate’s relevant experience, skills, and achievements.

Resume summary

Should you use a resume objective instead of a summary?

A resume objective is not quite the same thing as a resume summary. Yes, they both introduce you to the hiring manager, but they serve different purposes.

A resume summary highlights your key achievements, skills, and experience.

A resume objective outlines your career goals. In other words, a resume objective is more about what you’re looking for in your career.

When to use a resume objective

If you fall into one of the following three categories, you should use a resume objective instead of a resume summary:

  • Entry-level job seekers: Individuals who are new to the job market or have little to no professional experience in their desired field.
  • Career changers: Those looking to pivot to a new industry or career path and want to highlight how their existing skills can transfer to a new role.
  • Those with employment gaps: People who have significant gaps in their employment history and want to explain their situation while focusing on their future career goals.

Entry-level resume objective example

The following resume objective from a recent graduate is effective because it highlights the candidate’s education, passion, and skills.

Resume objective example for graduates.

Read more: How to Write an Entry-Level Resume

Career changer resume objective example

This resume objective for a career changer is effective because it shows how the candidate can use their skills in customer service and event planning to succeed in a new role in social media marketing.

Resume objective for the career changer.

Read more: How to Write a Career Change Resume

Employment gaps resume objective example

This resume objective effectively shifts the focus from the candidate’s employment gaps to their relevant skills and eagerness to apply them in social media marketing.

Resume objective for employment gaps.

Read more: 54 Examples of Effective Resume Objectives

How to write an effective resume summary

How do you craft a winning professional resume summary statement? Just follow these steps:

1. Begin with your years of experience and job title

Start your summary by mentioning your years of professional experience and your current or target job title. This sets the stage for your key skills and achievements.

2. Highlight your key skills and achievements

Highlight your most relevant skills and include at least one measurable achievement that demonstrates your impact in previous roles. This showcases your capabilities and how you’ve successfully applied your skills.

3. Talk about what you bring to the table

Conclude with a brief mention of how you plan to use your skills to contribute to the potential employer. This ties your background to the employer’s needs.

Here’s an example of a resume summary:

“Sales Manager with 10 years of experience, achieving a 40% increase in sales through innovative marketing strategies, customer relationship improvements, and effective team training. Skilled in leadership and client relations, aiming to further boost sales and customer satisfaction in a new role.”

Always try to include at least one measurable achievement

A measurable achievement has a number attached to it. For example: “Increased departmental sales by 25% within one year through strategic product placement.”

Measurable achievements impress hiring managers because they show how well you did your job. They prove your value and indicate the kind of positive impact you could have in your new role.

Having trouble coming up with a measurable achievement? Here are some ideas to consider:

  • Sales and revenue: Dollar amount or percentage growth.
  • Cost savings: Amount or percentage of costs saved.
  • Productivity: Time saved or percentage increase in output.
  • Project management: Projects completed ahead of schedule or under budget.
  • Customer satisfaction: Improvement in satisfaction ratings or retention rates.
  • Marketing metrics: Audience growth, engagement rates, or campaign performance.
  • Product development: Number of products launched or users acquired.
  • Quality assurance: Percentage decrease in errors or audits passed.

Read more: 67 Resume Accomplishments Examples to Show Your Value

How to tailor your resume summary to get more interviews

Most job seekers don’t realize this, but when you submit your resume it goes into a computer database called an Applicant Tracking System, or ATS.

In other words, a hiring manager won’t see your resume unless they find it by searching through the ATS database first.

It’s crucial to make sure your resume is as easy to find as possible. You do this by adding keywords to your resume. These keywords can be found in the job description.

For example, if you were applying to the following job, you’d probably want to include some of the underlined keywords in your resume summary:

A job description with keywords underlined.

If you were writing a resume summary for this job, it might look something like this:

Resume summary

IMPORTANT NOTE: Do not lie on your resume! If you don’t have the skills listed in the job description, don’t add them to your resume. Tailoring your resume isn’t about tricking the hiring manager. It’s about optimizing your resume so it can be found.

Tailoring your resume is highly effective. But it can be time consuming. It can also be hard to know which keywords are the most important.

To optimize your resume faster and more effectively, use Jobscan’s resume scanner. This tool analyzes your resume against the job description and provides you with a resume score. This score tells you how well your resume matches the job description.

The higher your score the more likely a hiring manager will find your resume when searching through an ATS database.

To use the tool, paste in your resume and the job description and click “scan.” You’ll then receive a match report that looks like this:

A section of Jobscan's match report showing the resume score and missing hard skills.

To increase your score, add the missing keywords (marked in red) to your resume. The higher your score the more likely you are to get a job interview. Try Jobscan’s resume scanner for free here.

Read more: How to Tailor Your Resume

Professional resume summary examples to guide you

Here are 15 professional summary examples that cover a variety of situations and industries.

Each example features a bad example followed by a good example. Then we tell you why the good example works.

Student resume summary example

Bad example: 

Recent Marketing graduate. Passionate about optimizing product value and increasing brand awareness

Good example:

Recent marketing graduate with two years of experience in creating marketing campaigns as a trainee in X Company. Adept in search engine optimization (SEO) and social media marketing. Eager to learn more about growing businesses and optimizing product value.

Why this works: This summary quickly tells us the candidate has a marketing degree and real job experience at a specific company. It also highlights important skills in SEO and social media. It also shows the candidate is keen to learn and grow in their career, making them look both skilled and motivated.

Read more: How to Write a College Student Resume

Career change resume summary example

Bad example: 

Registered nurse who has a huge passion for running and managing a business. Has strong leadership and managerial skills. Able to work with others and take charge of a diverse team.

Good example:

Registered nurse with 10+ years of management experience leading teams of medical and non-medical staff. Looking to leverage leadership skills as the Operations Supervisor at Company XYZ. Has 3+ years of experience running a family business, helping manage operations, and growing the business. Has strong leadership and managerial skills and has a huge passion for building businesses. Able to learn fast and adapt to changing circumstances.

Why this works: This resume summary shows the applicant has lots of management experience, both in nursing and in running a family business. They make their new career goal clear, wanting to be an “Operations Supervisor”. Their passion and quick-learning ability show they’re serious and ready for this new role.

Read more: How to Change Careers: Everything You Need to Know

Administrative assistant resume summary example

Bad example:

Administrative assistant with strong organizational and administrative skills. Has worked with various agencies and has contributed greatly to every previous employer. Able to manage multiple tasks and create effective systems.

Good example:

Administrative Assistant with 4+ years of experience doing administrative work and office support in 3 different agencies. Created a filing system that resulted in a 10 percent decrease in slack time within X Organization. Has strong organizational skills and a strong eye for detail. Able to create effective systems and documentation that are critical for the success of any organization or company.

Why this works: This resume summary shows four years of administrative assistant experience and success in different agencies. It quantifies achievements (10 percent decrease in slack time). It also highlights strong organizational skills and a focus on effective documentation.

Learn the top 10 skills required for an administrative assistant job.

Marketing manager resume summary example

Bad example:

Experienced marketing manager seeking an opportunity to share her expertise on growing brand and increasing social media presence at X Company. Passionate about driving innovation in every marketing campaign and engaging users to more effectively reach and engage with them.

Good example:

Digital marketing manager with over 20 years of experience. Spent 12+ years learning and focusing on search engine optimization (SEO), digital marketing, and social media marketing. 

Why this works: Even though the good example is shorter than the bad example, it’s more effective. This is because it details the applicant’s experience and mentions specific areas of expertise (SEO, social media, etc…).

Learn the top 10 skills required for a marketing manager job.

Operations manager resume summary example

Bad example:

Operations manager with proven leadership skills and strong communication skills. Has led various teams under different companies. Seeking to add value to X Company and help build the business from zero to one.

Good example:

Results-driven operations manager with Lean Six Sigma Certification and 6+ years of experience leading teams, managing projects, and overseeing operations. In-depth knowledge of supply chain management, total quality management, and project management.

Why this works: This summary quickly tells us the applicant is results-focused and has important certification (Lean Six Sigma). With “6+ years” managing teams and projects, and special knowledge in areas like “supply chain management,” they’re presented as a well-rounded, experienced manager.

Learn the top 10 skills required for an operations manager job.

Customer service resume summary example

Bad example:

Motivated customer service professional with years of experience working in customer service across different MNCs. Has strong communication and interpersonal skills and is seeking to join X Company to grow more in CS.

Good example:

Customer service representative with 10+ years of experience dealing with different customers and resolving different customer complaints, issues, and inquiries. Has strong knowledge and experience in driving customer loyalty and building strong linkages with existing and repeat customers and clients. Consistently awarded as “Customer Service Representative of the Month” at X Company.

Why this works: This summary quickly shows over a decade of experience in customer service, dealing with various issues and building customer loyalty. Mentioning “Customer Service Representative of the Month” awards at a specific company highlights recognized success and dedication in the role. This makes the candidate appear reliable and skilled to potential employers.

Learn the top 10 skills required for a customer service job.

Teacher resume summary example

Bad example:

A teacher who is very passionate about physics and imparting knowledge to high school students. Physics coach for several years. Introduced Physics modules and reviewers that helped many students pass exams and win physics competitions within the country.

Good example:

High school physics teacher with more than ten years of experience teaching high school students. Coach of school’s physics team for 8 consecutive years and has consistently won in national physics competitions. Passionate about providing quality education to students and pushing them past their limits so that they can maximize their potential.

Why this works: This resume summary statement is oozing with passion, but it is also specific. It details the robust experience of the applicant and mentions their notable success coaching a physics team to national victories.

Learn the top 10 skills required for a teacher job.

Accountant resume summary example

Bad example:

Certified public accountant for 15 years. Worked for big auditing firms within the country and has strong experience in tax accounting, risk analysis, and fund management.

Good example:

Certified public accountant with 15 years of experience in tax, risk analysis, and fund management working with Ernst & Young for 10 years and Deloitte for 5 years. Responsible for cutting overhead by 10 percent in EY in 2020. Has strong analytical skills and is an expert in different accounting software and systems.

Why this works: This professional summary states the years of experience as well as the companies the candidate has worked for. Since Ernst & Young and Deloitte are two of the biggest accounting firms, this should impress hiring managers. The summary also includes tangible results (“cutting overhead by 10 percent”).

Learn the top skills required for an accountant job.

Cashier resume summary example

Bad example:

Enthusiastic cashier with years of relevant experience working in X company. Works well under pressure and is willing to learn new skills to better serve customers.

Good example:

Customer-focused cashier with 5+ years of experience serving different customers and creating a warm and friendly store environment. Has increased sales by 5 percent through strong communication and interpersonal skills. Has strong knowledge of managing financial transactions and creating end-of-day cash position reports.

Why this works: This summary immediately tells us the cashier has over five years of experience and has positively impacted sales by 5 percent. A range of useful skills is mentioned, such as creating friendly environments, managing financial transactions, and producing reports.

Learn the top 10 skills required for a cashier job.

IT resume summary example

Bad example:

Experienced and knowledgeable IT professional seeking to contribute skills and knowledge to X Company. 

Good example:

Goal-oriented IT specialist working in the industry for more than 5 years creating databases, maintaining IT systems and infrastructures, and training others in IT. Automated a complex system and helped the company save 10 percent in overhead.

Why this works: This summary quickly shows the applicant has over 5 years experience in the field. Mentioning a specific achievement (“automating a complex system”) that saved the company money highlights practical, successful application of skills.

Data analyst resume summary example

Bad example:

Enthusiastic data analyst with a knack for working with numbers and a desire to help companies make data-driven decisions.

Good example:

Detail-oriented data analyst with 6+ years of experience in leveraging statistical analysis and data visualization tools to drive business improvement. Successfully implemented a data tracking and forecasting system at XYZ Corp that resulted in a 15 percent improvement in budget adherence. Adept at translating complex data into actionable strategies, and proficient in SQL, Python, and Tableau.

Why this works: This summary quickly shows the applicant has solid experience, knows useful tools like SQL and Python, and has successfully used their skills to improve a company’s budget use by 15 percent.

Learn the top 10 skills required for an data analyst job.

Graphic designer resume summary example

Bad example:

Creative graphic designer who loves to create cool designs. Experienced in Photoshop and enjoys working in a fun environment.

Good example:

Innovative graphic designer with 8+ years of experience creating compelling visuals for brands like [Brand A] and [Brand B]. Spearheaded a rebranding campaign for [Company X] that increased customer engagement by 20 percent. Proficient in Adobe Creative Suite, with a proven track record of marrying design theory with practical application to drive business success.

Why this works: This summary immediately mentions the “8+ years of experience,” providing a sense of the candidate’s career depth. Highlighting specific brands and quantifying accomplishments (“increased customer engagement by 20 percent”) emphasizes the applicant’s expertise in the field.

Learn the top 10 skills required for a graphic design job.

Pharmacy technician resume summary example

Bad example:

Friendly pharmacy technician who knows a lot about various drugs and likes to help customers with their prescription needs.

Good example:

Certified pharmacy technician with 7+ years of experience in retail and hospital settings. Reduced medication errors by 25 percent by implementing a new verification process at ABC Pharmacy. Skilled in utilizing pharmacy management systems and adept at fostering positive and trusting customer relationships through accurate and safe dispensing.

Why this works: This summary shows the applicant has a lot of experience and success in important areas like reducing medication errors, managing medicine, and working with pharmacy systems. It also demonstrates their ability to create trust with customers, offering a clear picture of a skilled and reliable employee.

Learn the top 10 skills required for a pharmacy technician job.

Recruiter resume summary example

Bad example:

Recruiter who has hired people for various roles and likes to work with different companies.

Good example:

Dedicated recruiter with 5+ years of experience in talent acquisition for tech and healthcare industries, successfully placing over 300 candidates in permanent and contractual positions. Introduced a new hiring strategy at XYZ Corp, reducing time-to-hire by 20 percent. Skilled in leveraging LinkedIn Recruiter and other sourcing tools to identify top talent, while fostering strong relationships with hiring managers and candidates alike.

Why this works: This summary pairs a solid 5+ years of recruiting experience with quantifiable achievements, like placing over 300 candidates and reducing hiring times by 20 percent. Mentioning proficiency with tools like LinkedIn Recruiter showcases specialized skills.

Learn the top 10 skills required for a recruiter job.

Web developer resume summary example

Bad example:

Web developer who likes to code and design websites. Has worked on various projects and likes to learn new coding languages.

Good example:

Results-driven web developer with 6+ years of experience, specializing in front-end development with proficiency in HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Successfully enhanced user experience for ABC’s online store, resulting in a 30 percent increase in customer conversions.

Why this works: This summary merges specific expertise (“6+ years of experience” and specialization in “front-end development”) with demonstrable impacts (improving user experience and increasing “customer conversions by 30 percent”). Mentioning specific technical proficiencies such as “HTML, CSS, and JavaScript” provides a compelling snapshot of the candidate’s capabilities.

Learn the top 10 skills required for a web developer job.

Key takeaways

  • The importance of a resume summary – A well-crafted resume summary can significantly impact your job application. It can quickly grab the hiring manager’s attention by showcasing your most relevant skills, experiences, and achievements.
  • Resume summary vs. resume objective – Use a summary to highlight your achievements and skills relevant to the job you’re applying for. Use an objective to outline your career goals, especially if you’re an entry-level job seeker, a career changer, or have significant employment
  • Showcase measurable achievements – Include quantifiable achievements in your resume summary to provide concrete evidence of your capabilities and success.
  • Tailoring Is key – Customize your resume summary to match the job description by incorporating relevant keywords. This makes it easier for hiring managers to find your resume when they search through the ATS database.

FAQs

What is a summary on a resume?

The resume summary is a brief paragraph that showcases who you are, how you can help the employer with your skills, experiences, and expertise, and why you are the best person for the job.

Should a resume summary be written in the first or third person?

Your entire resume, including the resume summary, should be written in the third person. You can also eliminate pronouns in the summary.
For example:
“He is a licensed teacher with 10+ years of experience. He has strong communication skills.”
For this career statement, you simply say:
“Licensed teacher with 10+ years of experience. Has strong communication skills.”

Where does a resume summary go on a resume?

The resume summary comes directly after your name and contact information.

Should you always use the same resume summary?

No. A resume summary should be tailored for each job application. If you want to apply to five different job applications, then you need to prepare five different resumes tailored to a specific job posting.

How long should your resume summary statement be?

A resume summary can be one to four sentences long. It can be written as a short paragraph or listed in bullet points.

What is a summary of qualifications?

A summary of qualifications is the same as a resume summary. It emphasizes key accomplishments, qualifications, and certifications while presenting you as the best candidate for the job.

What are the other names for resume summary?

A resume summary statement is often referred to by other names, including:
• Career summary
• Career synopsis
• Personal statement
• Professional summary
• Summary of experience
• Summary of qualifications
• Qualifications summary
• Competencies

What is a good summary for an entry level resume?

A good summary for an entry-level resume should focus on educational achievements, relevant coursework, soft transferable skills, and any related internships, volunteer work, or extracurricular activities.

How to start a resume summary?

Starting a resume summary effectively means grabbing attention fast. You can lead with your experience, skills, or top achievements to immediately show you’re the right fit.

What should a resume summary include with no experience?

When crafting a resume summary with no experience, focus on your educational achievements, relevant coursework, and transferable skills from activities like volunteering. Emphasize your eagerness to learn, dedication, and how your background aligns with the position you’re seeking.


Make your resume stand out and get noticed

Upload your resume to see what’s missing and get a free match rate.

View full results and optimize your resume


Click to rate this article
[Total: 210 Average: 4.9]